Nationals' Cade Cavalli Discusses What He Wants to Improve on Heading Into 2026
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It's been a winding road for Washington Nationals right-handed pitcher Cade Cavalli.
When he was taken in the first round of the 2020 draft out of the University of Oklahoma, it looked like he was going to be on the fast track to reach the majors. And because of dominant performances coming up the farm system, that turned out to be the case.
The Nationals promoted Cavalli to The Show in 2022 for his debut on Aug. 26. While his lone start wasn't great -- seven earned runs allowed in 4 1/3 innings pitched -- his arrival to the bigs signaled that one of the team's top draft picks would be a mainstay in Washington for years to come.
Unfortunately, that turned out not to be the case, as the youngster underwent Tommy John surgery after suffering a torn UCL in spring training of 2023. That set him back multiple years, and it wasn't until this past season that he made his return to the major league mound.
"Feeling very grateful," he said, per Jessica Camerato of MLB.com. "I don't know how else to put it. It’s been a long, long road to have a full season healthy."
Cade Cavalli Discusses What He Wants to Improve Upon This Offseason
After posting a 4.25 ERA across 10 starts, he flashed some of his high upside but also struggled at times. But now that Cavalli got another crack at the majors, he has an idea of what he needs to improve upon heading into 2026.
"I think that attacking in the zone, not having noncompetitive misses so much. I think that's been a mentality thing, not being so fine and trying to strike out a ton of hitters," he said.
One thing that was noticeable for the now-27-year-old this past season was his lack of strikeouts. He fanned just 40 batters in 48 2/3 innings pitched, which was a steep drop off compared to the 279 K's he had in 220 1/3 innings before the injury.
Whether or not he ever returns to being a high strikeout guy remains to be seen, but Cavalli does have a plan for how he's going to implement those improvements he's aiming for next year.
"I'm excited to go clean up this arsenal that I've been learning with this year," he said. "... [I'm] ready to go organize it, refine it, make it better, and hopefully get better and help the club next year."
Cade Cavalli, 97mph Paint. 🖌️🎨 pic.twitter.com/Wvoi5Wd4D1
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) September 2, 2025
There's no doubt that his mere presence provided a boost to this Nationals rotation this past season. With multiple arms struggling throughout the year behind MacKenzie Gore, the arrival of Cavalli in August gave them someone who could compete against top teams every fifth day.
That was on display against the Philadelphia Phillies, New York Mets and Miami Marlins, when he faced those teams five times combined and came away with a 3-0 record and 2.25 ERA while Washington went 5-0 across those five matchups.
If Cavalli can have a fully healthy offseason and implement everything he believes will allow him to have a better overall showing in 2026, then the Nationals will finally have a one-two punch at the top of their rotation.
