The Nationals made two additions to their 40-man roster before Tuesday evening’s Rule 5 Draft protection deadline, adding RHP Andry Lara and OF Robert Hassell III to the roster.
Washington’s 40-man roster now stands at 38.
Lara, 21, was signed as an international free agent in 2019 and had a breakout year in 2024, splitting time between High-A Wilmington and Double-A Harrisburg. He was 9-7 with a 3.63 ERA in 19 starts for the Senators after posting a 2-4 record and 2.35 ERA in six starts for the Blue Rocks, and collectively he had 132 strikeouts in 134 2/3 innings (a 24.3% strikeout rate) against just 44 walks.
Barring any veteran free agent additions, the Nats’ rotation looks to include some combination of MacKenzie Gore, Jake Irvin, Mitchell Parker, DJ Herz, Cade Cavalli, and Jackson Rutledge to start 2025, as Josiah Gray will miss most if not all of 2025 recovering from Tommy John surgery.
Cavalli is also returning from injury, having made just three rehab starts last year while returning from his own Tommy John, but the first four made 113 starts for the Nats last year, while Rutledge made 27 starts at Triple-A while also throwing 8 1/3 innings over three MLB games (one start).
Hassell, 23, was one of the six players acquired in the Juan Soto trade, a deal that has now seen three of the five prospects acquired along with Luke Voit reach MLB.
The outfielder was the No. 8 overall pick in 2020 and stalled out a little due to wrist issues, but he spent most of this past season at Double-A and played 85 games overall across three levels, slashing .241/.319/.328 with five homers, 28 RBI, and 15 steals.
Hassell also made his third Arizona Fall League appearance this year, slashing .281/.360/.517 with four homers, 19 RBI, and five steals in 22 games for the league-champion Salt River Rafters.
He will now, after reaching Triple-A last season, become a depth option in a young Nats outfield that has Dylan Crews, Jacob Young, and fellow Soto trade pickup James Wood penciled in as the starters, with Alex Call and Stone Garrett also on the 40-man roster.