Paul Toboni’s imprint on the Nationals keeps getting clearer, and the latest move shows just how far Washington’s roster reset has gone.
On Tuesday, the club designated right-handed pitcher Trevor Williams for assignment to clear space for fellow right-hander Matt Waldron, who was recently claimed off waivers by the Nationals despite his rough season so far. The move ends Williams’ time in Washington and gives him a chance to land with a contender if he clears waivers and reaches free agency.
Williams had returned this season after undergoing an internal brace procedure last year to repair his damaged UCL, and he settled into a bullpen role for the Nationals. The results were solid enough - a 2.65 ERA in eight appearances - but with Washington essentially out of the playoff race, the organization chose to move on.
His exit closes the book on a stint that began when he signed before the 2023 season on a two-year, $13 million deal. Williams beat that contract in 2024, posting a 2.22 ERA in 11 starts, but a flexor strain limited him to just two more starts after that. The Nationals still brought him back on another two-year contract, though he struggled to open 2025 before the injury that sidelined him long term.
The timing isn’t a surprise. With rosters set to expand across Major League Baseball on Sept.
1, Washington has started making the kind of moves many expected from the moment Toboni took over as president of baseball operations. The difference is that he didn’t rush into a sweeping overhaul right away.
He used this season as a long look at what he had before beginning to reshape the roster more aggressively.
That reshaping has come through a heavy run of trades. Toboni has already made nine of them, including deals that sent away LHP Jose A. Ferrer for prospects C Harry Ford and RHP Isaac Lyon; LHP prospect Jake Bennett for RHP prospect Luis Perales; LHP MacKenzie Gore for five prospects; C prospect Boston Smith for INF Curtis Mead; RHP prospect Sean Paul Linan for INF Jorbit Vivas; OF prospect Robert Hassell III for cash; INF Curtis Mead for LHP Connelly Early; LHP Foster Griffin for four prospects; and INF Luis Garcia Jr. for three prospects and RHP Jake Bird.
That doesn’t even include the smaller minor league transactions and waiver moves that have kept the roster in motion. The pattern is obvious: players the previous regime valued are being moved out if they don’t match what Toboni and his staff want, and younger pieces are coming back in hopes of becoming impact talent.
Williams’ DFA fits that same approach, even if the Nationals handled it with a bit of class by waiting until he reached 10 years of service time before making the move.
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