The Washington Nationals have to reshape their bullpen ahead of the 2027 campaign.
After they finished 2025 with the worst bullpen ERA across Major League Baseball, they followed up by setting the MLB record for the most blown saves during a single season in 2026. Putting duct tape on the relief staff has proven to be a poor strategy, and it's clear president of baseball operations Paul Toboni needs to spend serious resources on that unit .
A clear area of need is to upgrade their left-handed options. The Nationals' lefty relievers posted an ERA of 4.94, which ranked No. 28 in baseball. Their 15 losses were tied for the most, and their fWAR of minus-1.1 was the worst.
With that in mind, here are three free agent left-handed relievers that should be at the top of Washington's board.
Minnesota Twins relief pitcher A.J. Minter | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
The first player the Nationals should pursue is a familiar face, as A.J. Minter had been part of the NL East for his entire career before the New York Mets sent him to the Minnesota Twins ahead of the 2026 trade deadline.
Minter has been dominant across his 10 years in The Show. He owns a 3.15 ERA over 445 appearances and 405 1/3 innings pitched. While his strikeout rate of 22% dipped below the league average of 22.5% this past season, he's been a high K guy over the entirety of his career largely due to the elite Stuff+ numbers that he possesses.
At the age of 33, it will be interesting to see what type of contract Minter demands after he finished 2026 with a 2.56 ERA and an ERA+ of 164 across 48 appearances despite his strikeout numbers dipping. Still, he was elite at limiting walks, as his walk rate was an eye-popping 4.3%.
Spotrac puts Minter's market value at $7.4 million per year, and they believe he'll only ink a one-year pact. If that's the case, then Washington should be all over him. And if they decide to offer Minter more length on a potential deal, then that might push their proposal over the top.
Milwaukee Brewers pitcher JoJo Romero | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
A clear top-of-the-board target should be JoJo Romero, who has been one of the best lefty relievers in baseball since he was traded to the St. Louis Cardinals in the middle of the 2022 campaign.
Since the start of the 2023 season, Romero owns a 3.04 ERA across 213 innings pitched. He has 202 strikeouts to 73 walks, and he's been 40 points above the league average mark of 100 in ERA+. Add in the fact that he's also been above average in Stuff+ metrics each of the past four years, and Romero would be a huge upgrade to this staff.
Spotrac puts his market value at roughly $6.7 million per year, and they believe he could net something like a four-year, $26.7 million contract this offseason. Romero is currently 30 years old, so he should have plenty of gas left in the tank. Because of that, he will likely be a sought after free agent, which could make it difficult for the Nationals to land him. However, there's no doubt that this is someone they should target, even if the high-leverage specialist hasn't been a true closer in his career.
Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Alex Vesia | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
The clear No. 1 target who I think Washington should go after when it comes to left-handed relievers is Alex Vesia.
He's been lights out for the Los Angeles Dodgers as a two-time World Series winner with an ERA of 2.66 across 367 appearances the past six seasons. His ERA+ of 156 is one-and-a-half times the league average mark of 100, and with 438 strikeouts to 150 walks over 328 innings pitched, he has become one of the best left-handed bullpen weapons in baseball.
Landing him won't be easy. Spotrac puts the 30-year-old's market value at $7.1 million per season, and they project him to get a two-year, $14.2 million contract this offseason. However, based on what Vesia has shown throughout his career, there's a chance he's one of the most sought after relievers available this winter and will land a monster contract. That could make it difficult for the Nationals to sign him, especially because they have other needs they have to address.
Still, Vesia should be at the top of Washington's board. And all three of these lefties should be players Toboni and his front office go after this offseason.
This article was originally published on www.si.com/mlb/nationals/onsi as Three Lefty Relievers That Need To Be at Top of Nationals' Free Agency Board .
