Nationals Officially Release Miles Mikolas, Here's How Their Rotation Could Look

The Washington Nationals have released Miles Mikolas.

Washington Nationals starting pitcher Miles Mikolas | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

This move was expected to happen, but the Washington Nationals announced that they officially requested unconditional release waivers on right-handed pitcher Miles Mikolas.

Mikolas was previously designated for assignment to make room for left-handed pitching prospect Jackson Kent's major league debut on Aug. 12. Mikolas is now free to sign with another team to close out the rest of the 2026 season if there is any interest in a veteran arm who can eat up innings.

Signed to a one-year contract this past winter, the Nationals weren't expecting him to be a dominant force in their rotation. But they likely were looking for a little bit more than the 5.82 ERA he provided, even if it was clear that his career was trending in the wrong direction for the past two seasons.
Nonetheless, Washington kept him on their roster until he accrued 10 years of service time, which is a great gesture by the organization. But it was time for the two sides to move on, and here's what could becoming for the remainder of the season when it comes to the Nationals' starting rotation.

Luis Perales Gets Called Up

Washington Nationals pitcher Luis Perales | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The first thing I have circled is a future callup of right-handed pitching prospect Luis Perales. Acquired this past winter in a rare prospect-for-prospect trade that saw president of baseball operations send left-hander Jake Bennett to the Boston Red Sox in exchange for Perales, the right-hander has steadily worked his way into the mix for a promotion to The Show.

After returning from Tommy John surgery, he has continued to get better and better over the course of the season. And he just finished the month of July with a dominant 1.46 ERA across five outings (four starts) and 24 2/3 innings pitched with 29 strikeouts to 16 walks.

Perales is still raw. He has walked batters at a 13.5% clip in Triple-A, which is in the ninth percentile. However, he possesses a big-time arm with a TJStuff+ rating of 107 and a fastball that is in the 99th percentile with an average velocity of 98.5 mph. There's still a lot that the 23-year-old needs to work on before he can become an effective starting pitcher at the big league level. But with Washington a longshot to make the postseason, it wouldn't be a shock to see him get starts to close out the campaign in the month of September.

Brad Lord Gets Starting Opportunities

Washington Nationals pitcher Brad Lord | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

In the meantime, don't be surprised if Brad Lord gets real work as a starting pitcher to finish the year. Coming into the season, the Nationals brass stated that they viewed the right-hander as a starter. But when push came to shove, they put him in the bullpen, where he has thrived in long relief as their best reliever throughout the campaign.

But with only four starters in the current rotation -- Cade Cavalli, Jake Irvin, Andrew Alvarez and Kent
-- after Washington moved on from Mikolas and fellow veteran Zack Littell, there is an opening that needs to be filled immediately. Based on what has been reported about the thinking of the organization, it sounds like Lord could be getting the first opportunity to take over that spot.

He wasn't great in that role last year. Across 19 starts and 92 innings pitched, he had an ERA of 4.99. As a reliever, he had a 2.79 ERA across 29 outings and 38 2/3 innings, which could be why Lord was placed into the bullpen to start this season. But it seems like he's at least earned the trust of this regime, and that could result in him getting starting opportunities to finish the year.

Whether anything comes of it remains to be seen. But don't be surprised if Lord is named the fifth starting pitcher in the near future after he gets lengthened out a bit.