Over the course of a season in Major League Baseball, teams are going to be hit with injuries. There's really no way to predict when they will happen, and no way to avoid them. The Washington Nationals are certainly no different, as they have seen several key contributors already land on the Injured List at various points this season like CJ Abrams, Michael Soroka, and Derek Law, among others.
As of now, we do have some much-needed updates on a few players that should be key contributors for the Nationals throughout the 2025 season, including 2 guys that have yet to make an appearance for the club this year.
Cade Cavalli
The first name is Cade Cavalli, a former Top 100 Prospect who has seemingly become the forgotten man among the top names in the organization. While his journey to bounce back from Tommy John Surgery back in 2023 has been very long and difficult, it appears as if he might be nearing a return soon.
Last week, Cavalli was officially activated off the 15-day IL and optioned to AAA Rochester, where he will continue to build up his innings and look to return to his dominant form that we saw him have before his initial big league call-up in 2022. The results for Cavalli this season have been a mixed bag, with the numbers at AAA not looking too pretty so far. I would expect Cavalli to get a look this summer, assuming his numbers at AAA begin to improve, and once he shows he is able to get deeper into games once again.
Derek Law
Remember Derek Law? The reliever who appeared in 75 games last year and pitched a career-high 90.0 innings last season has been sorely missed in the team's bullpen so far in 2025. As reported by Mark Zuckerman of MASN recently, Law is finally set to throw off a mound this week for the first time since spring training.
This is massive news, as a potential bullpen replacement could be coming for a unit that has struggled all season long, although has looked much better recently. He has been on the 15-day IL with right forearm inflammation, and will likely need a long time to ramp up along with a rehab assignment before he is able to rejoin the Nationals again.
Jacob Young
The final name I want to discuss is one that actually happened yesterday, with Jacob Young exiting the game against the Orioles after slamming into the outfield wall. While initially the collision had many fans fearing that something much worse had happened to him, the Nationals received positive news after the game regarding his injury status.
As of the time of writing, it appears as if Young will be day-to-day with a left shoulder injury, and X-rays also came back negative for the Nationals' center fielder. In the meantime, assuming an IL stint can be avoided, Dylan Crews should slide over to center with Alex Call taking over in right field. If he was to go to the IL, perhaps we could see one of the team's top outfield prospects in Robert Hassell III, who almost made the team out of spring training, or the hot-hitting Daylen Lile get their first crack in the show.
Who do you want to see return to the Nationals first? As always, please let me know on X, @DCBerk.