Jul 22, 2025; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Washington Nationals starting pitcher Brad Lord (61) throws to the Cincinnati Reds during the second inning at Nationals Park. Brad Mills-Imagn Images

Nationals Are Giving Brad Lord Chance To Prove Himself as Starter

Originally posted on Washington Nationals on SI
By Maddy Dickens | Last updated Aug 8, 2025 7:00 PM ET

The Washington Nationals have had troubles with their starting rotation and it was weakened even further with the loss of Michael Soroka at the trade deadline.

MacKenzie Gore was really the only main guy they didn't part with at the deadline when they didn't feel like they had offers that matched his worth. So, he is still their top guy, but his season hasn't exactly been that great.

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Gore has the most strikeouts on the team by far as the only one who has amassed 100 strikeouts (148), but passed that his numbers are below average. He is 4-12 with an ERA of 4.29 in his 23 starts.

The Nationals have literally nothing to lose as their playoff hopes are way passed gone and they are in the bottom-five of the league in many categories including ERA, opponents' batting average, and the fewest strikeouts.

With how it has gone for the starting rotation there is an opportunity for some other guys to step up and have a chance at a permanent position as a starter and that includes Brad Lord.

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Rafael Suanes-Imagn Images

Brad Lord's Chance to Start

Lord is a 25-year-old who made his debut just this season, but was primarily used out of the bullpen. He has played in 38 games on the season, but only nine of those have been starts and only four have been in the last 30.

This season he has gone 2-6 with a 3.42 ERA and 65 strikeouts, but he is pitching his best as of late.

In his last 15-games he has gone 1-1 and brought his ERA down to 3.13 with 23 strikeouts and a WHIP of 0.95.

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The 6-foot-3 right-hander was a former 18th round pick back in 2022 and he went from playing at a junior college to now starting the majors and he has a real chance to capitalize for himself with how the staff has done overall this year.

Quick Look at the Pitching Struggles

There are two teams with an ERA over 5.00 on the year and that includes the Nationals and the Colorado Rockies. Luckily, the Nats aren't worse than the historically poor Rockies, but it is a poor stat regardless.

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Washington trails just the Rockies in one other category and that is batting average with a .272. Unfortunately that isn't the only area they are second-worst in, but also total hits, runs, and earned runs.

Lord is looking to contribute something positive to the pitching rotation the rest of the season and he could potentially be someone the organization could look forward to next year.

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This article first appeared on Washington Nationals on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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