Paul Toboni Points to Two Relievers Who Impressed Since Deadline

The season went sideways weeks ago for the Washington Nationals as the team uses Thursday's day off to make the cross country trip back to the East Coast looking to end a seven game losing streak, including a winless six game road trip. They will get a chance to end the slide when they host the Los Angeles Angeles for a three game series on Friday night to kick off a six game home stand, marking the first meeting between the two teams this season. Yet with the attention more focused on the future than how the 2026 team closes the season, president of baseball operations Paul Toboni sees two new reliever additions in the organization's farm system who have caught his eye this season.

Right hander Ben Grable arrived in Washington after the Nationals traded infielder Luis Garcia Jr. to the New York Yankees, giving the organization an encouraging arm who also appeared in the MLB All Star Futures Game alongside infielder Eli Willits and right handed pitcher Miguel Sime. Ranked the 19th-best prospect in the Yankees farm system at the time of the trade, Grable owns a 2.76 ERA and 1.10 WHIP with 75 strikeouts and one home run allowed across 49 innings in his first professional season. Grable, 24, has also made six appearances in Triple A Rochester where he's allowed four of his 15 earned runs, though he's also holding opponents to a .191 batting average through 2026 including a .120 average in High A.

Yet he was the first of two names after Toboni also pointed to right handed pitcher Joe Glassey, who arrived just prior to the trade deadline after the Nationals executed the second-ever trade with the Baltimore Orioles in exchange for outfielder Christian Franklin. Glassey, 25, owns a perfect 3-0 record this season with a 1.83 ERA and 0.86 WHIP with 70 strikeouts across 44.1 innings. Over his three year MLB career, Glassey owns a 1.82 ERA while holding opposing batters to a .178 average.

The right hander has also held opposing batters under a .200 average in each of his three seasons, while he has yet to allow a run across a pair of appearances in Triple A Rochester this season. It's an encouraging start after Glassey allowed just one hit across 11 innings and ten appearances in Double A, adding reason for confidence that pitching help could be coming down the line.

Toboni also pointed to Eli Willits as likely to stick in Double A to begin the 2027 regular season after the former top overall pick in the 2025 MLB Draft made his debut in Harrisburg this week.