The Nationals’ front office is officially under new management, and on Friday, fans got their first look at how Paul Toboni and Anirudh Kilambi plan to operate as the new leadership tandem. Toboni, the freshly appointed president of baseball operations, and Kilambi, the new general manager, held a joint Zoom session that offered early insight into their dynamic-and more importantly, into a trade that already hints at their approach to roster building.
While Toboni couldn’t comment on the reported signing of lefty Foster Griffin-still pending official confirmation-he did open up about a recent trade that brought a familiar face into the Nationals’ system.
Earlier this week, Toboni made his second deal since taking the reins in D.C., sending left-hander Jake Bennett to the Red Sox in exchange for right-hander Luis Perales. On paper, it’s a swap of high-upside arms, both of whom are coming off Tommy John surgery. But this trade is more than just a rehab bet-it’s a calculated move for a pitcher Toboni knows intimately.
“On the Perales-Bennett trade, a great opportunity to trade for a great talent in Luis,” Toboni said. “He’s got swing-and-miss stuff… really exciting fastball, exciting secondary. And then just having been around him a good amount in Boston, he’s a stud competitor.”
That familiarity matters. Toboni oversaw player development in Boston before heading to Washington, and he’s clearly bringing that institutional knowledge with him. Perales isn’t just a name on a scouting report-he’s a pitcher Toboni has seen up close, and someone he believes can be a difference-maker if he stays healthy.
Perales underwent Tommy John in June 2024 and made a brief return late in the season, logging three rehab outings before heading to the Arizona Fall League. There, he flashed the kind of stuff that turns heads: 11 ⅓ innings, 19 strikeouts, and a fastball that touched 100 mph. That velocity is backed by a 70-grade heater on the 20-80 scouting scale, and he’s rounding out his arsenal with a splitter in the upper 80s, a slider in the mid-80s, and a cutter that sits in the low 90s.
The raw tools are electric-but the challenge, as with any young pitcher coming off surgery, will be managing the workload.
“We're just gonna be really thoughtful about his workload,” Toboni said. “Make sure that he's prepared from a strength and conditioning standpoint… all the proactive work he's going to do to make sure that we can keep him healthy and at his best.”
That’s a measured, long-term approach-one that reflects the Nationals’ current phase of development. They’re not rushing anything. Perales, just 22, has time to grow, and the Nationals seem committed to giving him the environment to do just that.
There’s also an added layer of intrigue here: this was Toboni’s first deal with his former boss, Red Sox chief baseball officer Craig Breslow. The two worked closely in Boston, and that familiarity helped streamline the process.
“It’s actually a lot easier,” Toboni said of negotiating with Breslow. “You can cut through a lot of the fluff to just kind of get to the meat of it… you feel secure about the player that you’re getting in return because of your familiarity with them.”
That kind of trust and efficiency matters in a front office. It’s not just about acquiring talent-it’s about knowing exactly what you’re getting and how that player fits into the larger vision. In Perales, Toboni sees not just a power arm, but a competitor with the makeup to thrive if managed right.
So while the Nationals’ rebuild continues, this trade signals something more than just a swap of injured prospects. It’s a glimpse into how this new front office intends to operate: informed, strategic, and unafraid to bet on upside-especially when they know the player inside and out.