There were a lot of positive things to come out of the 2026 season for the Nationals. The offense exploded, starters like Cade Cavalli and Andrew Alvarez broke out, and the farm system is in a great place. However, the bullpen was a nightmare for the Nats this season. They aimlessly cycled through arms and repeatedly blew games.
The bullpen made history, but not in a good way. The 2026 Nationals set the all time blown saves record with 42 blown saves this season. They set the record on September 8th,
when they blew their 38th save and did not look back from that. It was an ugly year, especially late in games.
Honestly, this record was a bit of a perfect storm. It is unusual to have such a good offense paired with a very bad pitching staff, but that is what happened with the 2026 Nationals. That meant the bullpen had a lot of leads to protect, and inevitably they blew a lot of them.
When you look at the raw ERA total, the 2026 bullpen was actually better than 2025. Last season, the Nats posted a 5.59 bullpen ERA, the worst in baseball. This season, that number actually dropped to 4.99. However, due to all the leads the offense gave them, the Nats bullpen blew more games this year.
George Lewis on X actually tracked every blown save for the Nats. Most of them actually did not come in the 9th inning, interestingly. That chart shows a lot of interesting trends. It also gives you a visual of how unreliable the unit is.
What this tells me, is the Nats need a sure fire option at the back end of the bullpen. We will see how much money the Nats spend this offseason, but a lot of that budget needs to go to the bullpen. You can argue about the merits of throwing big money at bullpen arms, but the Nats do not have much of a choice. Once you have a true alpha in the bullpen, it helps the rest of the bullpen settle into a more appropriate role.
In my opinion, the Nats need to either sign a big money reliever or make a trade for a big time arm. Spencer Nusbaum wrote about how there was no guarantee the Nats sign a big fish in the bullpen. I think it should be at the top of their wish list though.
I do not necessarily need the arm to have closing experience, but I want someone who has proven they can produce at a high level. My dream option actually does not have 9th inning experience.
It would be far-fetched, but Adrian Morejon would be such a perfect fit for this team. He checks just about every box. Morejon is a very young free agent, not turning 28 until February. He also has absolutely insane stuff, with a savant page that is about as red as it gets. The market for Morejon will be bonkers, so I would not hold my breath there.
The other big name at the top of the market is David Bednar. He has proven he can handle the spotlight and has thrived as the Yankees closer. Bednar has a filthy three pitch mix, but again, the market will be intense. If Mark Lerner and the front office want to make a statement, that would be a great signing to make.
Honestly, there are plenty of options on the market, and the Nats need to come away with at least one or two of these guys. Some names that intrigue me are Evan Phillips, Raisel Iglesias and Alex Vesia. Those three are more realistic than the first two in my opinion.
Based on what we know about Paul Toboni, it does not seem like throwing major resources at the bullpen is something he wants to do. However, I do not think he has much of a choice right now. He tried to build a bullpen through shrewd waiver claims, internal development and minor trades. That simply did not work. We found a few nice arms, but no future closers.
If the Nats do acquire one or two heavy hitters, I think the bullpen would be in a nice spot. Over the last couple months of the season, some depth started to emerge. I like Erik Tolman, Jack Sinclair, Will Dion, Orlando Ribalta, Yovanny Cruz, Riley Cornelio and Brad Lord. However, I do not like any of those guys pitching in the 9th inning.
Once you find that alpha in the back of the bullpen, things begin to take shape. This offseason, Paul Toboni needs to swing big at the top of the relief market, instead of looking for quantity. With the right closer to spearhead this unit, I think the Nats bullpen could surprise people in 2027.
