The Washington Nationals avoided arbitration with the seventh and final player on Friday after agreeing to a multi-year agreement with pitcher Cade Cavalli
The Washington Nationals nearly agreed terms with all seven of their arbitration eligible players ahead of the deadline earlier this month, agreeing to terms with six players. But on Sunday, the Nationals officially resolved that.
Washington avoided arbitration with Cade Cavalli on Sunday, agreeing to terms on a one year, $862,500 contract. The deal also comes with a club option worth $4 million and a buyout of $7,500 to guarantee Cavalli $870,000.
The Nationals entered arbitration seeking to agree to $825,000 with Cavalli looking for $900,000. The $75,000 difference marked the smallest in arbitration negotiations across baseball, a stark difference from the Detroit Tigers and pitcher Tarik Skubal entering arbitration reportedly $13 million apart.
The news of Cavalli's deal also comes one day after the Nationals added another potential bullpen arm after inking Trevor Gott to a minor league contract.
Nick Deeds of MLB Trade Rumors noted the Nationals bridged the gap between the two sides using a loophole in the system with inclusion of a club option making the deal a multi-year arrangement. "Without the cloud of creating a new precedent hanging over the negotiations, the Nationals were surely more comfortable being flexible with Cavalli and were more motivated to avoid what could have been a messy arbitration hearing that runs the risk of damaging the club’s relationship with a former top prospect who could remain a key part of their team for years to come," Deeds added.
Cavalli is coming off a 2025 season where he finished 3-1 with a 4.25 ERA, allowing seven home runs and 15 walks against 40 strikeouts in over 48 innings pitched. It marked his first season with the Nationals since 2022, where he finished 0-1 with seven runs allowed in just 4.1 innings pitched. He joined the organization after being drafted 22nd overall in the 2020 MLB Draft and inking a $3 million signing bonus.
The 27 year old pitcher is projected in the Washington Nationals' starting rotation alongside Josiah Gray, who also avoided arbitration this offseason, and Brad Lord. Foster Griffin, the first free agent signing of the Paul Toboni era, is also projected in the rotation as he looks to translate his success from Japan back to the MLB. Of course, MacKenzie Gore enters the 2026 as the likely Opening Day starter, though there remains ongoing questions about when the Nationals could end up making a move with still two years of club control left and teams across the league monitoring his status.
The organization previously announced it avoided arbitration with the rest of its eligible players ahead of the deadline with Luis Garcia Jr., Josiah Gray, MacKenzie Gore, Riley Adams, CJ Abrams and Jake Irvin all agreed to.