The Washington Nationals did something many people just skimmed and overlooked: they claimed a name that seemed to have fallen off the radar. Ken Waldichuk was brought in, and George Soriano was DFA shortly afterward. A quick, cold move, familiar to how Paul Toboni and Ani Kilambi have been “stirring up” waiver wire recently.
On the surface, Waldichuk is a puzzling choice. A 27-year-old pitcher with an ERA of over 8 in the minors last season, just returned after Tommy John. But the Nationals don’t look at the surface. They look at the details.
Before things went wrong, Waldichuk was a top-100 prospect. He appeared in the Futures Game, was a strikeout machine for the Yankees and then the As. From 2019 to the present, his K/9 in the minors is 13.02 – ranking in the top 10 of the entire MILB with a sufficiently large innings. With a low-mid 90s velocity, his fastball still “plays up” thanks to launch angle and deceptiveness.
MLB wasn’t kind. Waldichuk had 175.2 innings and an ERA of 5.28. Before he could stabilize, he was forced to undergo Tommy John surgery, missing the entire 2024 season. Returning in 2025, he’s not the same: velo drops by about 2 mph, control plummets, and minor ERA jumps to 8.17. Enough to make many teams… give up.
But one thing doesn’t disappear: strikeout. Waldichuk still knocks out 68 batters in 54 innings. That’s the key. Many pitchers in their first year after TJ look bad, then improve as their bodies get used to it. The Nationals are betting on that scenario. Small but noteworthy evidence: offseason bullpen sessions show a fastball average of 93.9 mph, compared to 91.6 mph last season. If he could sit consistently at 94, the story would be different.
So how should Washington use Waldichuk? The most likely answer: bullpen. His record screams “failed starter who can explode as a reliever.” High fastball usage, good strikeout efficiency, but control is his Achilles’ heel – especially after TJ. Shortening outings, allowing for “let it rip,” reducing the pressure of long sequencing… that’s a familiar path that has saved many careers.
Of course, control remains a problem. Walks were a pre-surgery issue, and by 2025… worse. Therefore, a bullpen isn’t just an option, but a final test. If he doesn’t improve, DFA won’t hurt either. The Nationals did that with Soriano and Gasper – no problems.
What makes this trade more noteworthy than other claims is the pedigree. Waldichuk isn’t an unknown lottery ticket. He has history, data, and a clear “win condition”: velo + the right role. Toboni doesn’t need to believe in miracles; he just needs to see Spring Training answer a few very specific questions.
If Waldichuk isn’t doing well, he’s gone. If he is, the Nationals may have just picked up a strikeout reliever at almost zero cost. In a rebuild cycle, that’s positive EV. Not flashy. Not promising. But enough to make people stop and think: there’s something here.
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