What to Expect from Nationals Pitcher Jackson Kent

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What to Expect from Nationals Pitcher Jackson Kent

Originally posted on New Baseball Media
By Chris Studley | Last updated Aug 12, 2026 3:33 PM ET

Thanks to prospects and the likes of James Wood and others who’ve established themselves as building blocks, the Nationals’ future is bright. Now, the next question becomes: how does the future rotation look? Jackson Kent, who mowed through Minor League hitters over two years, will make his MLB debut on August 12.

A Look at Kent

The Nationals plucked Jackson Kent from the University of Arizona in the fourth round of the MLB Draft two years ago. He worked mostly as a reliever in 2023 before becoming a full-time starter in 2024. In his draft-year season with the Wildcats, Kent struck out 89 over 86 innings.

Last season between High-A and Double-A, Kent posted a 4.61 ERA across 24 starts. But it’s important to beat the notion that just because a pitcher has a higher-than-hoped ERA, it doesn’t mean it’s a bad year. It certainly was not for Kent, who had a swing-and-miss rate close to 40% over the six starts he had in Harrisburg last season. That number came after he punched out 97 over 94 innings with High-A Wilmington.

Kent returned to Double-A to start 2026 and was sterling. The lefty struck out 38 over 30.2 IP, allowed just 19 hits, and walked only eight over seven starts. He moved to Triple-A Rochester in May, pitching well overall. While there was an uptick in walks, Kent struck out 67 over 63 starts.

(via New Baseball Media)

It’s a simple pitch mix for Kent, who, like in 2025, was a swing-and-miss machine down in the Minors. A four-seam fastball sits in the 92-96 MPH range with cut to it, coupled with a low-to-mid-80s changeup, a curveball, and a slider.

All of his offerings were pitches that were able to get by hitters. His four-seam, with Rochester, had a Whiff% of 28.3%. Both his changeup and curveball had a Whiff% above 40%. The slider had a Whiff% of 28.8%.

Aside from small sample sizes in May and August, Kent was relatively consistent with respect to how much he used his four-seam fastball. Right in vogue with what is starting to become the norm across Major League Baseball, Kent used it fewer than 40% of the time. The rest was a mix of sliders, changeups, and curveballs, with the slider and changeup bouncing back & forth in usage.

(via New Baseball Media)

Jackson Kent will make his MLB debut on August 12.

Analysis

It’s been an interesting year for the Nationals’ rotation, one that has begun to get younger. After trading away MacKenzie Gore, Washington largely relied on a healthy Cade Cavalli, who’s pitched very well this year, and veterans to fill the void.

Foster Griffin was great for the Nationals before the club traded the soon-to-be free agent to Cleveland. However, it’s been a mixed bag for Jake Irvin, Zack Littell, and Miles Mikolas this season. Littell was released last week, while Mikolas was designated for assignment on August 12.

Now, the youngsters get their time to shine. Washington acquired Connelly Early in July for Curtis Mead, and Kent becomes the first of several high-profile pitching prospects to come up. The club also has Luis Perales, who has some of the best pure stuff in the system, and a rehabbing Jarlin Susana as among the building-block pitchers for the future.

This article first appeared on New Baseball Media and was syndicated with permission.

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