Nationals New Ace Cade Cavalli Gets His First Spring Start Against Cardinals
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It's Cade Cavalli time for the Washington Nationals on Tuesday.
After an offseason where he became the de facto ace of the team following the MacKenzie Gore blockbuster, the right-hander will have an opportunity to showcase what he worked on throughout the winter when it came to bolstering his arsenal.
Facing the St. Louis Cardinals -- who the Nationals already beat in a split-squad matchup to open their spring training campaign -- Cavalli will get his first action of the spring. The expected front-runner to be the Opening Day starter will likely only pitch one or two innings, but it'll be nice to see him back on the mound.
cade on the mound 💪 pic.twitter.com/pXZXRsUken
— Washington Nationals (@Nationals) February 24, 2026
As always, taking away too much from this start is not wise. But it will also be interesting to see how he uses his fastball on Tuesday. Reducing the usage of that pitch is something that was expected to happen across the board for Washington's pitching staff this year. However, manager Blake Butera also stated Cavalli's heater has a higher velocity already in camp than it reached last season.
That will be something to keep an eye on during the short time he's on the mound against the Cardinals, as the big righty could be an outlier in the team's plan to not throw as many fastballs depending on how effective his arsenal is.
Main Squad Takeaways
A major thing that stood out when it came to this lineup is Harry Ford was slotted into the starting catcher spot. This will be the first time he's started behind the dish for the main squad, and it's interesting to see it come during Cavalli's scheduled start.
Ford would like to pick things up with the bat in his hand, but a good showing on defense and calling the game for however long he's in the lineup will go a long way when it comes to helping him earn an Opening Day roster spot or even become the starter. So his performance will be something to monitor.
Outside of that, the infield alignment is intriguing. Seaver King is back at shortstop, a position that he has fielded at an elite level coming up the ranks. Nasim Nunez is at second base, and he could play there a lot this season. Andres Chaparro is back at first and Brady House is starting at third base coming off his two-homer spring debut.
r/foundfootage: the brady house home runs pic.twitter.com/kL4pGiHICc
— Washington Nationals (@Nationals) February 23, 2026
A bit more under the radar is the alignment of the outfield. James Wood is back in the lineup, but he's over in right field while Daylen Lile is in left. Wood has yet to appear in a big league game in right, so that's something new for him on Tuesday. They both flank Robert Hassell III, who gets the start in center field.
Overall, this is a solid lineup that will give fans the first look at Cavalli this spring while also moving some players around to see what they can do at different positions.
Brad Wakai graduated from Penn State University with a degree in Journalism. While an undergrad, he worked at the student radio station covering different Penn State athletic programs like football, basketball, volleyball, soccer and other sports. Brad became the Lead Contributor for Nittany Lions Wire of Gannett Media where he continued to cover Penn State athletics. Currently, Brad is the Publisher for Washington Nationals On SI and covers multiple teams across the On SI network. He is the host of the sports podcast I Said What I Said, where he and his co-host discuss topics across the NFL, College Football, the NBA and other sports. You can follow him on Twitter: @bwakai