He may not have had a stellar pre-deadline showcase start. Still, Michael Soroka was traded to the Chicago Cubs at about 9:45 PM last night, making it much more likely that we will finally see Cade Cavalli pitch a second (and even a third!) start in the majors in his career. In return, the Nationals received two players, ranked as the Cubs’ #13 and #14 prospects per MLB Pipeline.

AAA outfielder Christian Franklin (the #14 guy) is a slightly older prospect, having been a fourth-round college selection in 2021, who missed the entire 2022 season due to a torn patellar tendon. Franklin’s lowest OBP in any of his four minor league seasons is 2023’s .384 across four levels, which immediately makes him the best on-base threat in the Nats’ organization. He has average power and grades as an average defensive center fielder, so his arrival (which comes with a spot on the 40-man roster) likely presages a trade of someone else in a crowded outfield (the likeliest candidates being Jacob Young or Alex Call).

The Cubs’ #13 prospect, Ronny Cruz, is an 18-year-old Dominican shortstop (drafted in the third round out of a Florida high school last year) who hit .270/.314/.431 in the Arizona Complex League and likely will get a chance to show what he can do in Fredericksburg for the next month. He’s a bit swing-happy but has plus power and speed tools along with a cannon arm.

Happy trails to Soroka, who now gets to join a team with a manager (Craig Counsell) who tends to get the most out of his pitchers. I would not hate re-signing Soroka this winter (ideally with stronger middle infield defense) to fill a back-end rotation spot in 2026.

For Nats Report+ subscribers, we take a deeper look into the newest prospects, Christian Franklin and Ronny Cruz, and their impact on theFUTURE of the Washington Nationals.

Speaking of bombing deadline showcase starts, MacKenzie Gore went ahead and followed up Soroka’s dud with one of his own yesterday afternoon, as the Nats face-planted the series finale in Houston to drop themselves back to twenty games under .500 (44-64) and add another flourish to their dreadful record in day games (14-32, meaning they’re practically a .500 team under the lights at 30-32). Gore allowed a first-inning run on a sacrifice fly, which, no big deal, but then lost focus after a two-out throwing error by third baseman Paul DeJong (who made a great stop to keep the ball in the infield in the first place) and served up a flat changeup at the letters to José Altuve on the very next pitch, who deposited it in the Crawford Boxes for a three-run homer and a 4-1 Astros lead. With one out in the sixth, Gore again lost focus after a beauty of a curve to Cooper Hummel was called a ball, steaming at the ump and throwing a fastball in Hummel’s wheelhouse for another Crawford Box souvenir that made the score 6-1 and ended Gore’s afternoon. Cole Henry tossed some gasoline on the fire by serving up a three-run shot in the same inning (why was he allowed to pitch on consecutive days at all, let alone after a semi-stressful appearance on Tuesday???) to Yainer Díaz for what turned out to be the final 9-1 margin.

Shortly before the start of yesterday’s game, the Nationals also traded relievers Andrew Chafin and Luis García to the Angels for 23-year-old AA 1B/OF Sam Brown and lefty pitcher Jake Eder, who has pitched briefly in the majors but was optioned to Rochester.

That’s not a bad return for two guys whom the Nationals picked up off the scrap heap this year, one of them mere weeks ago. Eder will likely show up somewhere for the Nationals over the last two months, whether in the rotation or the bullpen, to be determined. Brown will join the Harrisburg lineup and attempt to give it some (limited) juice.

For Nats Report+ subscribers, we break down prospects Jake Eder and Sam Brown and their impact on theFUTURE of the Washington Nationals.

📌 Josh Bell Reflects After Road Trip and Trade News (The Nats Report)

📌 MacKenzie Gore Opens Up on Trade Rumors: "I’d Be Lying if I Didn’t Notice the Talk" (The Nats Report)

📌 Mariners acquiring Eugenio Suarez from Diamondbacks in MLB trade deadline blockbuster (New York Post)