Following the Washington Nationals’ latest bullpen meltdown, their relief corps has the worst ERA in baseball by more than two runs. MacKenzie Gore threw a gem on Saturday afternoon, leaving just nine outs to the bullpen, and they still nearly coughed up a ten-run lead. This kind of performance has become almost predictable after three weeks of struggles.
Lucas Sims and Colin Poche, each acquired this offseason to provide a veteran presence in the bullpen, have struggled mightily in nearly every appearance they’ve made. The two veteran relievers have combined for a 17.11 ERA, largely due to an inability to throw strikes. On Saturday, Sims had more hit batters (2) than outs recorded (1), and also issued a walk. Poche also issued a bases-loaded walk. Nats relievers have struggled to work ahead of hitters as a whole, with Sims and Poche being the most frequent offenders.
While it generally isn’t wise to read much into a three week sample size, it has become obvious that the Nats need relief help. Fortunately, there are finally some reinforcements on the way.
Late last season, the Nats promoted reliever Zach Brzykcy, wanting to see how one of their top relief prospects would perform in the major leagues. The September call-up fared well in a limited sample size, aside from a shaky debut. His promotion was a long time coming, and most people expected it to happen sooner than it did.
Brzykcy joined the organization in 2020, having signed with the Nats after going undrafted. The 2020 draft was shortened to just five rounds due to the pandemic, and Brzykcy was one of the top players not to be drafted. By 2022, the Virginia Tech product was named an organizational all-star and was invited to major league Spring Training in 2023. Unfortunately, he tore his UCL before the season and missed all of 2023 rehabbing from Tommy John surgery.
Upon returning to the mound in 2024, Brzykcy dominated the minor leagues again and earned his first stint on the major league roster. Brzykcy entered Spring Training this year expected to break camp with the Nats but strained his quad in his first spring appearance. On April 15, he began a rehab assignment and struck out the side in a perfect inning. He followed that outing with another scoreless inning on April 19.
Brzykcy is expected to join the Nats as soon as he completes his rehab assignment, presumably replacing Sims or Poche. Although Brzykcy is largely unproven at the major league level, he is almost certain to be an upgrade over Sims and Poche. Last season, Brzykcy only issued three walks in his month with the Nats. Today alone, Sims and Poche walked or hit four batters while recording two outs. Even if Brzykcy gets hit around, strikes would be a welcome development.
If nothing else, the Nats can use 2025 to determine if Brzykcy deserves to be part of their long-term plans. Sims and Poche were never expected to be long-term contributors, and they have done nothing to change those expectations.
Michael Soroka is also expected to begin a rehab assignment next week. His return to the rotation will allow Brad Lord to return to the bullpen and replace whichever one of Poche and Sims remains after Brzykcy’s activation, assuming everyone remains healthy. Brzykcy and Lord would serve as significant upgrades over Sims and Poche.
The bullpen struggles have overshadowed strong starts to the season from James Wood, Keibert Ruiz, and MacKenzie Gore, among others. While Poche and Sims are not the only relievers struggling, they are the two biggest offenders. Fortunately for the Nats, there appear to be reinforcements on the way.