Washington Nationals starting pitcher Cade Cavalli has tossed 21 strikeouts and not allowed a run over his last two starts
The Washington Nationals were able to even the series agains the Texas Rangers on Wednesday night behind the arm of Cade Cavalli and bats of both Andres Chaparro and Jose Tena. Yet for Cavalli, it's a sign he may be heating back up again.
With all the uncertainty about the strength of the rotation ahead of the 2026 season, manager Blake Butera made clear that it was Cavalli who earned the nod as the team's ace before being officially tabbed to be the Opening Day starter. Though there have been low points, such as his four earned runs allowed across just 1.1 innings against Pittsburgh back in April, Cavalli is cementing another high point in 2026.
Cavalli has now recorded 21 strikeouts over 14 combined scoreless innings over his last two starts -- with just four hits allowed. Over his last ten starts and 59.1 innings pitched, Cavalli has tossed 73 strikeouts to just 13 walks while owning a 2.12 ERA with his strikeouts tied with two others for the most across that span. Maybe most importantly, the Nationals have picked up wins in six of Cavalli's last seven starts.
The Nationals' ace flirted with a no-hitter against the Cubs last week in a 7-0 win, the first shutout win of the month, before watching it break up in the seventh inning with a single. Cavalli followed it up with his eighth straight quality start after becoming just the third pitcher in Nationals history, after Max Scherzer and Stephen Strasburg, to record at least ten strikeouts and allow no earned runs in at least six innings.
Through his 26 innings pitched and four starts in August, Cavalli has allowed just five earned runs with 32 strikeouts and a 1.73 ERA, dropping his ERA in 2026 to 3.22 after Will Dion replaced him on the mound in the seventh inning en route to the win.
It's a notable consecutive performances for a rotation that was questioned to be void of a true ace after the front office pulled the trigger on a trade that sent Foster Griffin to the Cleveland Guardians ahead of the deadline, now adding fuel to the idea of the Nationals extending Cavalli. With potential uncertainty around CJ Abrams following the position switch and clear fan interest in locking in star local outfielder James Wood long-term, Cavalli adds stability to a rotation that will be in dire need of upgrades this offseason.
