Nationals option Paxton Schultz to Triple-A Rochester after bullpen collapse

The Nationals optioned Paxton Schultz to Triple-A Rochester after Tuesday’s 14-9 loss to the Phillies, a game in which Washington used seven relievers and still could not stop the bleed. Schultz was charged with two earned runs on three hits and a walk while recording only one out, a brief outing that pushed the club to reshuffle its pitching staff before Wednesday’s game.

Schultz’s move came with his major league line sitting at a 5.87 ERA and 1.60 WHIP over 30.2 innings. For Washington, that kind of shuttle between Rochester and Washington, D.C., has become part of the bullpen’s survival plan. Schultz had already been optioned to Rochester on April 18 after throwing 48 pitches across three innings of relief against the Giants, then returned after a rehab assignment and was reinstated from the 15-day injured list on April 7 following right elbow inflammation.

The 28-year-old right-hander has been in the Nationals’ system since Jan. 9, when the club claimed him off waivers from the Blue Jays. Drafted by the Brewers in the 14th round in 2019, Schultz arrived as one of the arms Washington has cycled through its relief mix while trying to keep the big-league bullpen afloat.

That context matters because Washington’s relief corps has been a problem all season. Earlier in the year, it carried a 6.01 ERA and a league-worst 16.9 percent strikeout rate, numbers that help explain why the club has repeatedly turned to Rochester for reinforcements whenever one outing turns into several. Tuesday was another example: once seven relievers were needed to get through Philadelphia’s lineup, the Nationals had little choice but to reach back into Triple-A depth again.

Schultz also brings recent major league and Triple-A experience that keeps him relevant to the organization’s pitching plans. In 2025, he worked 24 2/3 innings in 13 appearances for Toronto, including two starts, and posted a 4.38 ERA. For Rochester, his return is another reset; for Washington, it is another reminder that the path from Triple-A to the majors has become a revolving door built to absorb the stress of a stretched bullpen.