As our site attempts to ramp up our prospect coverage from here on out, part of what I will try to be doing more of is shining light on top prospects in the organization who have noteworthy performances. Luckily for Jackson Kent, the #20 prospect of the Washington Nationals, he gets to be the first person I discuss.
If that name seems familiar, it might be because I talked about Kent last week, where I identified him as already being one of the biggest steals for the Nationals from their 2024 draft class. The 22-year-old lefty out of the University of Arizona was selected by the Nationals last season in the 4th round, 108th overall, and didn't get a chance to make his professional debut until this season.
Well, if what he has shown so far in his professional career is any indicator, especially following his latest gem last Tuesday night against the Hudson Valley Renegades, the High-A affiliate of the New York Yankees, Kent's debut season was worth the wait.
After getting off to a tremendous beginning of his season in which he had a 1.31 ERA and 0.77 WHIP after his first 4 starts, Kent suffered a setback in his 5th start, where he lasted just 4.0 innings and gave up 8 earned runs on 9 hits while still striking out 6 batters. That poor showing ballooned his ERA up to 4.01, but still only raised his WHIP to 1.05, due to his lack of free passes he has issued so far.
But back to his start last week, Kent would bounce back in a huge way, going 7.2 innings while scattering 5 hits for just 2 earned runs. On top of that, he only issued 1 walk while striking out a career-high 11 batters. As a college arm, he likely had less of a learning curve already, which was why the organization felt comfortable letting him begin at High-A rather than starting him out in Low-A.
However, with what we have seen from Kent so far, he likely is not very far off from an early move up to AA Harrisburg, where the competition really makes a major leap. I am hoping that with one or two more good starts at the High-A level, Kent might be able to earn that promotion and potentially be fast-tracked through the minors, as long as he performs well enough. As already stated, Kent is 22-years-old and a college guy like Brad Lord, so he should be a bit more polished than many other players coming from the prep ranks.
Kent is currently scheduled to make his next start on Tuesday night against the Jersey Shore BlueClaws, the High-A affiliate of the Phillies, and I will be keeping tabs on that game to see if Kent can build on his stellar 41:7 K:BB ratio, and further state his case for a quick promotion.
What have you thought of Jackson Kent so far? As always, please let me know on X, @DCBerk.