The Washington Nationals’ offseason needs to start with the bullpen, and it needs to start fast.
This is a group that has not finished in the top half of the majors in ERA since 2022, when the relief corps posted a 3.84 mark that tied for 15th. Since then, the numbers have only gotten uglier.
Washington ended 2025 with the worst ERA in baseball, then followed that by setting an MLB record for blown saves in a single season in 2026. That kind of collapse leaves no mystery about what has to be fixed.
The cleanest way to attack the problem is to add a proven closer, and Trevor Megill looks like the kind of arm that could change the whole shape of the bullpen. According to Bob Nightengale of USA TODAY, “[Trevor] Megill, who’s projected to earn $8 million next year, will definitely be shopped, and likely moved before opening day,”
That fits the Brewers’ usual playbook. Milwaukee has made a habit of moving players a year before free agency, and it has done the same with closers before, including Josh Hader in 2022 and Devin Williams in 2024.
Megill would bring real firepower to Washington. He has saved 30 games in each of the last two seasons, and even if the Brewers only make him available for one guaranteed year, that kind of production would draw plenty of interest.
The Nationals’ lack of a dependable ninth-inning answer was obvious this past season. Clayton Beeter led the club with 12 saves, while Gus Varland finished second with six after being optioned multiple times during 2026. No one else came close to the double-digit range, and that helped fuel the team’s trouble finishing games.
Washington used to have Kyle Finnegan handling the back end, and while he had his issues - especially in the second half - he still put together save totals of 28, 38 and 20 from 2023-25. The 2025 season was also affected by his trade to the Detroit Tigers before the deadline.
Adding Megill would give manager Blake Butera a real closer to lean on, which would let him use Beeter, Erik Tolman, Will Dion, Orlando Ribalta and Yovanny Cruz in more specific high-leverage spots instead of asking everyone to cover the final three outs all the time.
The Brewers’ asking price is unclear, but recent history suggests it might not take a massive package to get a deal done. Hader cost the Padres Taylor Rogers, Dinelson Lamet, Robert Gasser and Esteury Ruiz. Williams brought back Nestor Cortes and Caleb Durbin from the Yankees.
That’s why Megill belongs at the top of Washington’s wish list. One year of a legitimate closer could go a long way toward changing the outlook of the franchise.
In Other News...
Brewers Trade Watch Around Trevor Megill Just Got More Serious
Trevor Megills future has become a more intriguing subplot in Milwaukee than it seemed likely to be a few weeks ago. The Brewers still control the right-hander through the 2027 season, which gives them plenty of leverage, but the fact that his name is already surfacing in trade chatter says plenty about how teams are viewing the market around him.
Milwaukee is expected to at least hear out interest this winter, and that naturally puts a few bullpen-needy clubs on the radar. One of the more obvious fits is San Francisco, a team with a clear need in relief and the kind of farm system that can make a conversation worth having, even if nothing is close to done right now. [Read more 🡒]
Trevor Megill Came Closer Than Brewers Fans Realize To New MLB Honor
The Baseball Writers Association of America has added a new reliever honor to its yearly awards, and the first winners are Mason Miller in the National League and Louis Varland in the American League. Voted on by BBWAA members, the award is meant to recognize the best relief pitchers based on regular-season performance, with Miller standing out in the NL for his saves and strikeouts and Varland taking the AL after leading qualified relievers in ERA and WAR.
For Brewers fans, the interesting part is how close Trevor Megill got to being part of that first wave of recognition. Milwaukees closer was in the mix in the National League voting, a sign that his season drew real notice beyond the division and beyond the usual save totals that tend to define late-inning work. It is the kind of near-miss that still says something about where he stands among the leagues top arms, even if the inaugural trophy ended up going elsewhere. [Read more 🡒]
Brewers Rotation Success Just Changed A Big Winter Decision
Milwaukees rotation was supposed to be one of the biggest questions of the 2026 season, a young group with little track record and plenty of room for growing pains. Instead, it became one of the reasons the Brewers were able to win the World Series, finishing second in the National League with a 3.61 ERA and piling up strikeouts at a rate that put them among the best staffs in baseball. Several rookies and other young arms carried real weight, and the surprising part is how much of that core is still intact heading into the winter.
That success has changed the way the front office has to think about the offseason, because the most obvious path no longer looks necessary. Rather than chase a headline starter, the Brewers can lean into the group they already developed and explore more modest rotation help if they want it. A reunion with Brandon Woodruff remains a possibility, but only if the market and the medical risk line up in a way that makes sense for both sides. [Read more 🡒]