Zack Littell States How He Will Improve After Latest Disastrous Nationals Outing

The Washington Nationals pitcher shared why he believes he's struggled.

Washington Nationals starting pitcher Zack Littell | Geoff Burke-Imagn Images

Following an impressive showing on April 21, the Washington Nationals had an opportunity to at least secure a split of their four-game set against the Atlanta Braves with a win on Wednesday. And with Zack Littell on the mound, they were hoping to get a bounce-back performance from the veteran.

But they didn't receive that. Once again, the right-hander was lit up by his opponent. This time, the Braves hit four home runs off of him, which increased his total to 11 given up on the season. That leads Major League Baseball by three entering Thursday, and his ERA sits at 7.56 on the year.

Littell has not been what the Nationals envisioned when they signed him. However, he believes he can turn things around by doing what he did in the past when he was successful.

Zack Littell Will Revert Back to Things He Did Previously

Washington Nationals pitcher Zack Littell | Jeff Hanisch-Imagn Images

"Get back to what I do well. I've kind of gotten away from what I've had success doing in the last couple of years," he said after his outing on Wednesday, per Spencer Nusbaum of The Athletic. "I'm not just talking about from an execution standpoint. There's some usage stuff and some shape stuff that I've got to get better at. I know it's in there. I've done it for a long time now."

There are clear areas where Littell has struggled this season compared to his previous two when he was a successful starting pitcher. Problems with control is the main culprit, as that has caused him to walk more batters than usual and have hard contact against him.

Based on the comments from the veteran, one can only wonder if Washington's coaching staff has had an influence on how Littell has pitched this year. Coming into the season, it was clear that there was going to be an emphasis on throwing fastballs less and breaking stuff more, which has helped certain pitchers. But if that's not setting Littell up for success, then going back to his previous strategy should be an adjustment that's made by both parties.

It's not a given that the 30-year-old will immediately become effective if he makes these changes. Littell has only been a full-time starting pitcher for two seasons. And while he was impressive with ERAs of 3.63 and 3.81 in 2024 and 2025, respectively, the book could also be out on how to attack his arsenal since he doesn't have overwhelming pure stuff.

Hopefully he is able to make adjustments and get back to being a solid starter at some point this season. And ideally that will happen sooner rather than later.