Cavalli gave up one hit and struck out six over three scoreless innings during Sunday's Grapefruit League game against the Astros.
The 23-year-old right-hander entered the game in the seventh inning and wasn't facing any of Houston's big-league bats, but it was still a very impressive performance from Cavalli. After scuffling a bit over six starts at Triple-A Rochester at the end of last season, the Nationals' top prospect is expected to return to that level to kick off 2022, but if he keeps dealing this spring there's a chance he could break camp in the big-league rotation as a fill-in for Stephen Strasburg (neck). Even if the club resists the urge to start his service-time clock right away, a major-league debut at some point this season for Cavalli seems almost assured.