Update: The Nationals officially announced the signing of right-hander Zack Littell on Tuesday and designated left-hander Richard Lovelady for assignment to make room on the 40-man roster. The value of Littell’s contract for 2026 is $7 million guaranteed with the possibility of making $9.5 million through incentives, two sources said. The potential value of the 2027 mutual option is for $12 million, with a $4 million buyout, the sources said.

Right-hander Zack Littell, one of the top remaining starting pitchers on the free agency market, is set to join the Washington Nationals, a source confirmed.

The deal, which is pending a physical, is for one year and includes a mutual option for 2027, said the source, who is not being identified because he is not authorized to talk publicly about the agreement. ESPN first reported the deal.

Littell, 30, is coming off a strong season in which he pitched to a 3.81 ERA in 186 2/3 innings for the Tampa Bay Rays and Cincinnati Reds. He offers Washington another experienced arm in the rotation competition, joining Miles Mikolas, Cade Cavalli, Brad Lord, Josiah Gray and Foster Griffin.

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Given the nature of Littell’s late signing, it remains to be seen whether he’ll be ready for opening day. If he is, he could change the scope of a five-man rotation that seemed fairly set. Washington will need to open a 40-man roster spot before the Littell signing can be confirmed.

Littell has moved often in his career. He debuted in the majors with the Minnesota Twins and has played for the San Francisco Giants, Boston Red Sox, Rays and Reds. His best seasons came for Tampa Bay, with whom he recorded a 3.68 ERA in 376 2/3 innings.

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In 2025, Littell held one of the best walk rates in the majors (4.2%). He didn’t record a high number of strikeouts, but his slider, splitter, four-seam and sinker mix proved effective.

He’ll offer the Nationals dependability and raise the floor of the rotation. For a club in the midst of a rebuild under first-year president of baseball operations Paul Toboni, that’s valuable.

Littell is the third starter brought in on a major league deal this winter, joining Mikolas and Foster.

Baltimore Banner sports reporter Andrew Golden contributed to the reporting of this story.