The Washington Nationals designated right-hander Trevor Williams for assignment on Tuesday, clearing a roster spot for Matt Waldron after claiming the knuckleballer off waivers from Toronto.
The move ends Williams’ four-season run in Washington and opens a new chapter for a pitcher who has been in the majors since 2016.
Williams, 34, debuted with the Pittsburgh Pirates on Sept. 7, 2016. Over 11 seasons with Pittsburgh, the Chicago Cubs, the New York Mets, and the Nationals, he has made 227 appearances, including 178 starts.
He owns a 53-65 record, a 4.43 ERA, and 847 strikeouts in 1,026 innings. His best year came in 2018, when he went 14-10 with a 3.11 ERA in 31 starts for the Pirates.
Washington signed him to a two-year, $13 million deal before 2023. He ate innings that first year (5.55 ERA in 30 starts), then excelled in an injury-shortened 2024, posting a 2.03 ERA in 13 starts.
The Nationals brought him back on a two-year, $14 million contract. 2025 did not go as planned: a 6.21 ERA in 17 starts and a partial UCL tear that required internal-brace surgery in July.
He opened 2026 on the injured list, returned at the end of July, and worked as a long reliever. In eight appearances he was effective: 2.65 ERA, 22 strikeouts and six walks in 17 innings, with a 31 percent strikeout rate.
The numbers were not enough to keep him on a club that is out of the playoff race and evaluating other arms. Reporting noted the club waited until Williams crossed 10 years of service time before designating him, a courtesy also extended recently to Miles Mikolas.
Williams will be placed on waivers. His remaining salary — about $7 million for 2026 — makes a claim unlikely. He has enough service time to refuse an outright assignment and elect free agency.
If he joins another team by Sept. 1, even on a minor-league deal, he would be eligible for that club’s postseason roster.
For a veteran who has spent a decade as a back-end starter and swingman, that window may be the real point of the move: a chance to pitch October baseball somewhere else.
The Nationals, meanwhile, keep turning over veteran pitching as they look toward 2027. Williams’ exit is another step in that reset — and another reminder that even a solid late-season ERA does not always outweigh contract, age, and organizational timing.
