Less than a day after Washington watched its pitching staff get tagged for 12 runs, Cade Cavalli stepped onto the mound Thursday and gave the Nationals exactly the kind of response they needed.
The right-hander was in complete control against the Cubs, carving through a dangerous lineup and carrying a no-hitter into the seventh inning. He got the first two outs of that frame, then put Michael Busch in an 0-2 hole before Busch spoiled the bid with a bloop single to left field.
Even with the no-hit dream gone, Cavalli’s outing stood as the best of his major league career. He not only went deep into the game with that no-hitter intact, but he also recorded the first out of the eighth inning in an MLB contest for the first time.
By the time he was done, Cavalli had thrown eight scoreless innings, allowed just one hit, struck out 10 and walked two. For Washington, it was another strong sign that the rotation can be built around him.
Getting to this point has not been easy for Cavalli or the Nationals. The 2020 first-round pick debuted in 2022, but shoulder inflammation shut him down for the rest of that season. Then came the elbow injury before the 2023 season, followed by Tommy John surgery and a long stay on the sidelines.
He did not return to the big league mound until Aug. 6, 2025, a gap of more than 1,000 days between MLB starts. Simply making it back was a major milestone. Once he did, he quickly showed why he had once been regarded as one of the top pitching prospects in the minors.
That return helped set up the breakout expectations he carried into this season, especially after he was elevated to Washington’s No. 1 when MacKenzie Gore was shipped out of town. Cavalli had some early bumps, but he has mostly been excellent all year.
After Thursday’s gem, he owns a 3.36 ERA across 26 starts and 136 2/3 innings pitched.
Cavalli is starting to look like an ace, and against a Cubs offense like that, he showed he can pitch like one too.
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