Nationals designate Trevor Williams for assignment

Williams had internal brace elbow surgery last July, so it’s been a little over a year since he’s been on the mound for the Nationals. He struggled in 82 2/3 innings for the Nationals last year, but was a dependable pitcher for them in 2024.

Nationals manager Blake Butera told reporters Trevor Williams (elbow) will be activated from the injured list to pitch in relief. Varland allowed three runs and failed to record an out against the Blue Jays in his first outing back in the big leagues since late June.

It’s a bit unclear how Williams fits into Washington’s second-half pitching plans, but he’s getting close to making it back. The 34-year-old has made it through four rehab starts as he continues working his way back from last year’s internal brace procedure.

Williams underwent an internal brace procedure on his UCL in July. It sounds like he’ll have a chance to return at some point this season, possibly by June or July. He made 25 throws at 60 feet in his first official action since surgery.

Williams is still in the process of recovering from an internal brace procedure that he underwent in July and will miss at least the first month or two of the 2026 season. By placing him on the 60-day injured list, the club freed up a spot on their 40-man roster for the addition of Andre Granillo on Tuesday.

Williams is scheduled to undergo an internal brace procedure next week. It’s possible his surgeon decides that he’ll need a full Tommy John reconstructive procedure at that time. The 33-year-old will miss the remainder of the 2025 season and will miss some additional time at the outset of next year.

The procedural move frees up a spot on Washington’s 40-man roster for veteran reliever Luis García. The 33-year-old righty hit the shelf last week with a right elbow sprain and will likely miss the rest of the season.

It sounds like it’ll be another lengthy absence for Williams, who missed 3 1/2 months last year with a flexor tendon sprain. Williams was 3-10 with a 6.21 ERA this season, but the Nationals still appreciated his innings. Now they’ll either have to go to Cade Cavalli or Shinnosuke Ogasawara prematurely as they make their way back from injuries or turn to another struggling Triple-A starter. Brad Lord would be their best option to take over, but he’s the team’s most important reliever at this point and isn’t stretched out.

It this hadn’t been a doubleheader, Williams most likely would have gotten lifted during a six-run first in which he threw a whopping 54 pitches. However, with the Nationals needing some innings from him, he was left in and managed to at least get through three. Williams fell to 0-5 in his last six starts and 3-10 with a 6.21 ERA overall. The Nationals don’t have anyone they want to use in his place right now, but they could swap him out for Cade Cavalli or Shinnosuke Ogasawara after the break.

Showers stretching all across the East Coast are going to disrupt things on Tuesday night for fantasy managers. This contest will be made up as a doubleheader on Wednesday instead. Tuesday’s original starters — Jack Flaherty and Trevor Williams — will presumably take the ball at some point during the twin bill. The other fantasy-relevant storyline here is that Detroit won’t officially put outfielder Kerry Carpenter (hamstring) on the injured list until Wednesday now.