WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — While his teammates were getting physicals or playing catch Wednesday, Cade Cavalli toed the rubber at the Washington Nationals’ spring training facility. No one else was throwing. It was just the right-hander, catcher Riley Adams and a baseball. And, of course, a few members of team’s coaching staff, who were watching every pitch.
Cavalli was stoic throughout as pitch after pitch popped into Adams’s glove. After his final throw, Cavalli walked toward Adams. Pitching coach Jim Hickey clapped softly. “Outstanding,” Hickey said.
“Atta boy,” Adams said as he dapped up Cavalli.
“Thanks, baby,” Cavalli replied. “Appreciate it.”
Cavalli, 25, is nearly one year removed from a torn ulnar collateral ligament, an injury that required Tommy John surgery. Wednesday was his second bullpen session of spring training. He left it feeling healthy — a win for both Cavalli and the Nationals.
“Physically,” Cavalli said, “it felt great.”
Cavalli, General Manager Mike Rizzo and Manager Dave Martinez didn’t put a timetable on when Cavalli would pitch in a big league game. Cavalli — who made his MLB debut in August 2022 but was shut down after one start — said the typical recovery time is 14 months, which would place his return in late May or early June.
“I’ve been impressed,” Adams said. “Not only with just like how his arm is feeling, but I feel like his mechanics and how he’s spotting up and everything like that is in a really good spot right now. . . . You still have to put it into perspective and understand that we still got some time. But everything’s looking really, really good.”
The 2020 first-round pick prides himself on being a bulldog on the mound. He likes to stay on the offensive and attack hitters. But once he was sidelined, Cavalli used this past year to reflect and develop more patience. He’s focused on taking his rehab process step-by-step instead of rushing through it. Still, Martinez and Rizzo know that Cavalli is eager to pitch again.
Cavalli is scheduled to throw three times a week in West Palm Beach. On Mondays and Fridays, he will throw 20-pitch sessions with a higher intensity. Wednesday sessions will be at a lower intensity. He is primarily throwing fastballs and has played a bit with his change-up. In four weeks, he can start spinning a breaking ball. Cavalli admitted he was sore after his first bullpen session on Monday but recovered well ahead of Wednesday’s.
Cavalli made some other changes coming into spring training, too. He altered his diet with his fiancée, Maddie, and “shredded off some bad weight,” he said, which has helped him feel stronger and more flexible. He changed his jersey number, too. He now will wear No. 9, the same his father and brother, Tristian, once wore.
“I believe God is putting me through something to get me stronger to be able to help this club in the long run,” Cavalli said. “That’s what my mind-set’s been, and I believe it’s been parallel with the staff as well.”
On Friday afternoon, Cavalli took the mound for his third session of the week. He had company, too — and not just the cutout in the batter’s box, used to replicate the feel of a hitter.
Joan Adon was there, on a mound to the left of Cavalli. Jake Irvin, a right-handed starter, was next to Adon. MacKenzie Gore, the 24-year-old lefty who arrived in Washington as part of the Juan Soto trade, was nearby, too. Josiah Gray, an all-star in 2023 and yet another young arm for the Nationals, looked on.
After his Friday session, Cavalli walked out of the bullpen and through the group of onlookers that included Rizzo. Mark Scialabba, assistant general manager of player personnel, stopped him on his path back to the dugout.
“I felt fantastic,” Cavalli said.
Another bullpen session down. And another step in the right direction.
“He’s been looking good,” Martinez said. “You look at him and you think, well what was wrong with him? We still got a long way to go. But he’s progressing. He’s on the right track.”
Note: The Nationals signed reliever Jacob Barnes to a minor league deal with an invite to spring training. Barnes, 33, is an eight-year MLB veteran with a career 4.76 ERA.
