Before the season Paul Toboni was very active on the waiver wire. With the Nats having plenty of roster spots up for grabs, the front office decided to take chances on players. We wrote about the Nats heavy use of the waiver wire this winter. Now that we are about a month and a half into the season, I wanted to look at how these waiver claims have been doing.
Between January and March, there were a bunch of roster churn at the back of the 40 man roster. It seemed like the Nats were claiming a new
player every day. Sometimes they would DFA guys just days after claiming them. However, I can count 8 guys on the 40-man roster who were part of this waiver/small trade frenzy.
Andre Granillo, Richard Lovelady, Paxton Schultz, Gus Varland, Ken Waldichuk, Curtis Mead, Jorbit Vivas and Joey Wiemer have provided mixed returns, but a few of these guys have been valuable pieces for the Nats. Before the season, I actually picked out 3 players that would hit. My picks were Granillo, Schultz and Varland. I would say I am 2 for 3 on those picks.
In my opinion, the hits have been Lovelady, Schultz, Varland, Mead and Wiemer. All five of those guys have provided real value to this roster. I want to break down these five and talk about their futures on the roster. Also, I want to explore some of the guys who have not performed so far and examine why they have missed.
The first player I want to discuss is Curtis Mead because I think he could be the best long term piece. Technically Mead was not a true waiver claim, but he came to the Nats through the waiver process. Mead was DFA’d by the White Sox in late March, but the Nats decided to swing a trade to make sure they got him. They traded 2025 6th rounder Boston Smith to Chicago to cut the line and get Mead.
A big reason why they wanted Mead is because the organization was familiar with the player. While Mead was in the lower minors in the Rays organization, he was managed by Blake Butera. Whenever he has been asked about Mead, Butera always speaks about the Aussie in glowing terms.
Mead was a fun reclamation project for the Nats. At one point, he was a top 50 prospect in baseball, known for his pure hitting ability. However, he struggled to translate his ability to hit in the minors into big league production. Eventually, the Rays gave up on him and so did the White Sox.
However, Mead has been really hitting this season. In 31 games, Mead has a .780 OPS and a 121 wRC+. This is despite running into some very bad batted ball luck, as you can see with his .227 BABIP. Mead is showing a lot more power this year and almost has as many walks as strikeouts.
Mead has not been great defensively at first base, but he is fairly new to the position. He is decent with his scoops, but there are times where he needs to sharpen up his instincts at the position. Mead can play a little bit at second and third base which adds value as well. I think the Nats found a really quality hitter in Curtis Mead, which is why he is the biggest hit so far.
There have also been a trio of waiver wire relievers who have done well for the Nats. Before his blowup against the Marlins, Gus Varland’s ERA was sitting at 3.07 and he was the Nats closer. I still like Varland’s stuff and mentality, which is why I have written a lot about him this season. In my opinion, that Marlins game was just a bad day at the office for him.
Paxton Schultz has not been in as many high leverage situations as Varland, but he has done well in the innings he has pitched. He has a 2.63 ERA in 13.2 innings this season. Schultz does a great job pounding the zone, walking just 3.4% of hitters this season. For the season, Schultz only has 2 walks.
He also does a good job putting hitters away when he gets to two strikes. While Schultz does not have elite velocity, his fastball has been a great put away pitch. Of Schultz’s 13 strikeouts, 11 have come on the heater despite the fact he only throws his fastball 30.4% of the time. He lulls batters to sleep with his cutter and changeup, then he can blow his 93-95 MPH heater by hitters.
Richard Lovelady is the other reliever who has been a big hit for the Nats. They have actually claimed him twice. The first time was in the winter, but at the end of Spring Training, he was DFA’d again and picked up by his old club the Mets. After pitching in 6 games with the Mets, Lovelady was DFA’d again. The Nats came calling again, and acquired him for cash.
Since November of 2024, Lovelady has been DFA’d 8 times. However, it seems like he has found a home in DC. In his 9 outings with the Nats, Lovelady has a 0.93 ERA. He has issued a lot of walks, but some of those have been intentional. However, when he is in the zone, Lovelady is tough to hit due to his funky mechanics and nasty sweeper. He is also an electric mound presence, who gets fired up after getting big outs.
He has been a really fun find for the Nats and has been a big part of stabilizing the bullpen. There will be nights where the walks will come back to bite him, but Lovelady looks like a quality reliever. He also seems like a fun guy to have around in the clubhouse.
The last claim I would call a win is Joey Wiemer. His insane March where he went 8/13 is doing a lot of heavy lifting here, but he did single-handedly win the Nats a couple games. Predictably, Wiemer has cooled off. However, if he can even be a .685 OPS bat like he was in April, that is a nice fourth outfielder.
Wiemer is a tremendous athlete, but he does not make a ton of contact. I am not sure how long he will be around with all the outfielders in AAA. However, that insane stretch where he quite literally could not get out makes him a win in my books.
As you would expect with waiver claims, it has not been all good. The biggest loss has been the Andre Granillo pickup, a move I actually liked at the time. Like the Mead deal, it was technically not a waiver claim, but it is connected. The Nats acquired Granillo from the Cardinals in a move that sent George Soriano to St. Louis.
Soriano was a waiver claim by the Nats, but they DFA’d him again. However, the Cardinals wanted to cut the line and gave the Nats Granillo, who was coming off a nice 2025 season. On paper, it looked like a win. Granillo was dominant in the minors last year and held his own in the MLB. Meanwhile, Soriano posted an ERA over 8 in 2025.
However, Soriano had the better stuff and the deeper arsenal. The early returns on this move have been bad. Granillo has posted an ERA over 9 in both the big leagues and the minors. His slider, which he relies on heavily, just has not been fooling anyone this season. On the other hand, Soriano has a 3.18 ERA in 18 outings with the Cardinals. Sometimes, you need to just bet on the stuff. Soriano averages 97 MPH and has five pitches, while Granillo is a two pitch guy with an average fastball and a slower slider.
Another move that was not really a part of the waiver process but I will include is the Jorbit Vivas deal. While Vivas was not on the wire, the out of options infielder was likely to be DFA’d by the Yankees. The Nats liked Vivas’ approach and decided to trade prospect Sean Paul Linan for him. That move seemed weird at the time, and has not really worked out.
Vivas was red hot to start the season, but his bat has gone cold. His wRC+ is down to 81 right now. He does have 0.2 fWAR due to his solid glove, but his lack of athletic tools really limits him. Meanwhile, Linan has a 3.47 ERA and over 12 strikeouts per 9 in High-A. This always felt like an unnecessary move by the Nats, but if Vivas’ bat can heat up again, he can be a solid utility infielder.
As we have discussed, the waiver wire has provided mixed results for the Nats. That should not come as any surprise. After all, there is a reason that these guys are on waivers. Sometimes you can find gems, but you are not going to bat 1.000.
Between some of the relievers and Mead, I think there has been more good than bad on the wire. I am interested to see how active Paul Toboni is throughout the season when it comes to waiver claims. He picked up Zak Kent the other day, and I wonder if more claims are coming. This will be something for fans to follow as we continue through this 2026 season.
