The Nationals’ bullpen has spent most of the year living on the edge, but three relievers have done enough to look like real building blocks for 2027.
Orlando Ribalta, Brad Lord and Will Dion all appear to have carved out their places, and each brings something different to the mix. Ribalta is the late-inning right-hander who can work through trouble.
Lord has become the kind of multi-inning bridge arm teams lean on more and more. Dion, meanwhile, has already shown he can get big-league hitters out with a very different look.
Ribalta stands out first because he’s the only true late-inning option in the group. He’s not an elite high-leverage weapon, but he has shown he can handle pressure and give the Nationals a steady presence when things get messy. That matters in a bullpen that has blown a ludicrous 35 saves and owns a 5.02 bullpen ERA, the third worst mark in baseball.
His season ERA sits at 3.77, though that number doesn’t quite tell the full story. Some of the damage has come in lower-leverage spots, including his biggest rough outing of the year against the Rockies in a game that was already lost. Since then, he’s bounced back with a scoreless 10th against the Marlins and a shut-the-door effort against the Braves after some 8th-inning drama.
Ribalta also has the arsenal to keep climbing. He averages nearly 97 on his fastball and pairs it with two tough secondary pitches.
His slider is his most-used offering and creates plenty of chase, while his bugs bunny changeup helps him finish off left-handers. The numbers back up the eye test too: his 84.6 MPH average exit velocity and 36.7% chase rate both rank above the 95th percentile.
In a perfect setup, Ribalta would be a 7th-inning arm. For now, he looks like the Nationals’ best high-leverage relief option.
Lord has earned his place in a different way. Over the last couple of years, he’s been used all over the map, including starts and higher-leverage relief spots. But his best fit looks a lot more specific: a 2-3 inning bridge role.
That kind of pitcher is becoming more valuable across the league, and the Nationals seem to be buying in. Lord fits that mold well, whether he’s working as a multi-inning opener like he did yesterday or handling longer relief in medium to higher-leverage spots. The comparison that comes to mind is Chad Patrick, who has found plenty of success in Milwaukee over the last two seasons.
Lord can really beat hitters with his fastball when he’s right. The low slot and horizontal movement make the pitch tough to track, and his fastball run value of 13 is elite.
He’s doing it with two different fastballs, too. His 4-seamer has both run and ride, and it gets whiffs at a 25.2% clip, which is actually higher than any other pitch he throws.
His sinker plays off that four-seamer by running even more and producing ground balls at a strong rate.
The issue is that he still hasn’t developed a secondary pitch that’s clearly above average. He’s mixed in the slider and sweeper more at times, but the results have taken a hit.
Lately, he’s gone back to what works: pounding 4-seamers and sinkers. That’s enough to make him useful, even if it doesn’t make him flashy.
Lord has a 3.58 ERA in 73 innings with 70 strikeouts. Those aren’t eye-popping numbers, but they absolutely play. Every roster needs arms like that.
Dion is the newest of the group, and the sample is smaller, but he’s already shown enough to stick. When the Nationals traded Foster Griffin, the return looked underwhelming. That still may be true in terms of upside, but Dion has already proven he can be a legitimate big-league option.
His overall line is solid - a 3.38 ERA with 42 strikeouts in 37.1 innings - and he’s been even better since joining Washington. In 17.2 innings with the Nationals, his ERA is 2.04.
The fastball is the foundation. Dion only averages 91 MPH, but the pitch plays because it gets 20 inches of IVB, and hitters keep swinging under it.
The heater has produced a 26.9% whiff rate. His outing against the Mets was a clean example of how a lower-velocity fastball can still dominate when the movement is right.
The changeup has become a bigger part of his arsenal in Washington, and it’s paid off. He used it about 15% of the time in Cleveland, then bumped it up to 37.6% in his first month with the Nationals. That pitch gets whiffs at a 42.1% clip, and the 13 MPH gap between the fastball and changeup keeps hitters off balance.
Like Lord, Dion profiles as a multi-inning arm who can be deployed in a few different ways. Together, they give the Nationals two useful bridge pieces.
There are other names in the mix, too. Erik Tolman is trending toward a 2027 bullpen spot, but he still needs a little more time before being treated as a lock.
Clayton Beeter has had his moments and probably has a decent shot to make the roster, but there are real concerns. His control remains shaky, and even with a sub-4 ERA, his 5.30 FIP is ugly.
He could be on the Opening Day roster, but he still has more to prove.
Beyond that, plenty of bullpen spots are still open. September will matter for sorting that out. Jared Simpson has also made a strong impression, though it has only been one outing.
The overall depth doesn’t look hopeless. There are minor league arms that are worth watching, including Yovanny Cruz, Ben Grable, Joe Glassey and the recently promoted Riley Cornelio.
Still, the biggest offseason priority is obvious: find the lockdown ninth-inning answer. If the Nationals can solve that, the rest of the bullpen picture starts to come together.
In Other News...
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That is where the real tension sits for Washington. The front office can keep shopping for relievers on the open market, but the smarter long-term play may be to build the next bullpen from within, especially with several current and minor league pitchers in the mix as possible contributors. There is also ongoing discussion about whether some starters could be better used in shorter bursts, which would give the Nationals more internal options without paying premium prices for established relievers. The challenge now is figuring out which arms can actually make that move and become dependable late-inning pieces. [Read more 🡒]