The Washington Nationals’ bullpen has spent this season making the wrong kind of history, but Yovanny Cruz’s first MLB save on Wednesday nudged the club into another unusual place.
According to the Nationals’ communications account, Cruz became the 15th different pitcher to record a save for Washington this season. That leaves the Nationals tied for second with the 2025 Minnesota Twins for the most saves by one team in a single season, and just two behind the record-setting 2025 Arizona Diamondbacks.
That number says a lot about how Washington has tried to survive the late innings. There hasn’t been a single arm the Nationals could lean on to lock things down, so they’ve had to piece together saves with a rotating cast of relievers.
The result has been ugly: the club has set the MLB record for most blown saves in a season with 42 and counting, is tied for the most losses in the league at 40, and owns the third-worst ERA at 5.01. That follows a 2025 season in which Washington finished with the worst bullpen ERA in the majors at 5.59.
Still, Cruz’s save offers at least a small reason for optimism inside a unit that has mostly been defined by failure. Multiple relievers have shown they can finish games, even if the overall results have been disastrous. In theory, that gives the Nationals some options in high-leverage spots moving forward.
And Cruz himself is the most interesting part of the equation. His first MLB save is a positive step, and it raises the possibility that Washington may not need to chase a big-name closer to fix everything.
A high-profile free-agent reliever is no guarantee, after all. If Cruz develops into that late-inning answer, the Nationals could use their resources on other areas of the roster and add more bullpen help instead of tying everything to one headline name.
In Other News...
Nasim Nunez Is Giving The Nationals A Tough Long Term Call
Nasim Nunez has turned speed into a real talking point for the Nationals, and not just because he has been a nuisance on the bases all season. The young infielder has already put himself in the club record book with a stolen-base total that tops Washingtons previous mark, a sign that his running game is more than a novelty and could become a defining part of his value going forward.
For the Nationals, the larger question is how much more there can be behind the wheels and how quickly that package can round into a reliable everyday profile. Nunez has said he wants to keep pushing the stolen-base ceiling higher, but he also knows the next step is getting on base more consistently, which makes the offseason an important one for his development and for Washingtons long-term view of what he can become. [Read more 🡒]
Nationals Suddenly Have A Tough First Base Decision To Make
The Nationals first-base picture for 2027 is starting to come into focus, and it is not nearly as straightforward as it looked a few months ago. Abimelec Ortiz, Andres Chaparro and Yohandy Morales are all in the mix for playing time at first base or designated hitter, giving the club a small but important competition to sort out as it plans ahead.
Ortiz still has the kind of upside that can keep him in the conversation, but his hold on a regular role is not secure. Chaparro has pushed his way forward with a strong second half, while Morales has kept himself in the discussion after showing real pop in the minors and flashing it in a brief big league look, even if the consistency has yet to match the tools. [Read more 🡒]
Nationals Depth Suddenly Matters As Rochester Heads To Decisive Game 3
Rochesters path to a decisive Game 3 got a lot rougher after Memphis rolled to a 15-4 win, putting the Red Wings in a hole by scoring all of those runs in just three innings. A nine-run third inning broke things open, and Isaac Lyon took the loss after giving up eight runs in 2 2/3 innings. Rochester did scratch out late runs in the eighth and ninth, with Leandro Pineda driving in two, but the deficit was already too deep by then.
For Washington, the bigger takeaway may be how quickly the organizational picture can shift when the Red Wings need help and the big-league club is sorting through its own depth. Jackson Kent was optioned from Washington, Gus Varland was recalled to Washington, and Kyle Hayes was activated from the Development List, a reminder that the Nationals roster is being tugged in multiple directions at once. Even with Game 3 still ahead, the pitching plan has not been locked in, and both sides appear to be leaning on their usual rotation and usage patterns while leaving the final call hanging. [Read more 🡒]