Nationals Former Prized Prospect Earns Career First With Impressive Performance
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Just because the Washington Nationals as a team don't have much to play for when it comes to the rest of the year doesn't mean there aren't players looking to make an impression upon the organization regarding how they might fit into future plans.
Following the DFA of Nathaniel Lowe, that was a clear message that the rest of the season is going to be an evaluation period, with the team carrying five young outfielders on their Major League roster as they assess the logjam at that position.
Similarly, pitchers throughout the organization will have an opportunity to step up and demonstrate why they should have an increased role going forward based on how poorly that unit has performed throughout the year.
Brad Lord has done that on his end, with strong performance after strong performance putting him in the running for a rotation spot in 2026 and beyond based on how he's looked when given the opportunity to start.
But he's not the only one who is attempting to make a statement.
Cade Cavalli Earns First Career MLB Win
Handed the ball on Saturday for a chance to secure his team at least a split of the series against the Philadelphia Phillies, Cade Cavalli pitched the best game of his Major League career and secured his first MLB win.
There were some rocky moments for the 27-year-old, but he was able to work out of jams created by allowing seven hits to step off the mound with a scoreless outing after seven innings pitched, keeping a potent lineup at bay with five strikeouts and no walks.
During this outing, Cavalli flashed his high-upside stuff, hitting triple digits with his fastball and pairing his electric sinker with a change up that fell off the table and fooled hitters all game to keep them guessing.
This was a great sign for both the right-hander and the organization.
the important thing is that he remained calm pic.twitter.com/bbsh62IlhK
— Washington Nationals (@Nationals) August 16, 2025
Taken in the first round of the 2020 draft at No. 22 overall, Cavalli was immediately considered the organization's best prospect, sitting with the top ranking in both 2021 and 2022.
It wasn't hard to understand why that was the case. His pedigree combined with an incredible showing during his first professional season -- a 3.36 ERA across 24 starts with 175 strikeouts in 123 1/3 innings pitched that resulted in him reaching Triple-A in his debut campaign -- caused everyone to take notice of what the right-hander was doing.
Then, after beginning the 2022 season with Triple-A Rochester where he posted a 3.71 ERA in 20 starts, he was called up for his Major League debut that year on Aug. 26, which was a complete disaster.
Cavalli allowed seven runs on six hits in 4 1/3 innings of work, getting shut down for the rest of the year because he suffered from shoulder inflammation. And as it turned out, that was just the start of his injury journey.
In spring training ahead of the 2023 season, the former first-rounder suffered a UCL sprain and had to undergo Tommy John surgery, a procedure that kept him out for the entirety of that year before he returned to make just three starts in 2024.
But now Cavalli is back, and he looks like he is starting to find his past form where he was considered to be one of the best pitching prospects in the sport, let alone the Nationals organization.
With his first MLB win under his belt, everyone is hoping there is more to come.
