WASHINGTON -- And for your Major League debut, you’ll be facing the best hitter on your playoff-contending hometown team. Think you can strike him out twice?
No pressure, right?
Nationals left-hander Jackson Kent attended Lake Park High School in Roselle, Ill., around 30 miles from Wrigley Field. He spent his childhood going to games at the historic ballpark and looked up to right-hander Jake Arrieta on the 2016 World Series team. Yet Kent overcame any nerves to navigate the Cubs’ lineup in his first big league appearance in a 12-6 loss on Wednesday night at Nationals Park.
“It’s what I grew up wanting to do,” said Kent. “Whenever I was in elementary school, [answering] ‘What do you want to do when you grow up?’ I said, ‘I want to be a professional baseball player.’ So it’s kind of nice fulfilling my dreams and all the support around me with it.”
Kent, ranked by MLB Pipeline as the Nationals’ No. 8 prospect, was entrusted by the Nationals’ coaching staff to face the Cubs’ order a third time. He allowed three runs over four-plus innings on three hits and five walks across 78 pitches (37 strikes).
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“I was impressed by Jackson,” said manager Blake Butera. “... I think as he settles in here, he’ll probably get some better command. I know he had five walks, that’s the one thing that stood out. But it was good to see the swing-and-miss he was able to get and the ability to limit damage.”
Kent’s first big league batter was left-handed slugger Pete Crow-Armstrong, who entered the game with a .939 OPS against southpaws this season. The approach against the National League MVP candidate?
“I’m just thinking it’s another guy,” said Kent.
Five pitches later, Kent had recorded his first career strikeout, capped off with a called third strike on a 95.8 mph fastball.
Kent then walked Seiya Suzuki on six pitches and Alex Bregman on four. Facing traffic on the bases, Kent calmly fanned Carson Kelly with a changeup in a 1-2 count. After throwing ball one to Michael Busch, Kent fought back to strike him out on a fourth-pitch foul tip and end the first inning.
“He’s got really good stuff,” said Harry Ford, who caught Kent’s debut Wednesday as well as games in the Minor Leagues this season. “He could throw four pitches whenever he wants, and they all are very distinct. Whenever he’s in a tight jam, he can use any of them. He doesn’t just have one pitch he has to lean on.”
Kent struck out Crow-Armstrong not once, but twice. In their second matchup of the game, Kent needed only four pitches to catch Crow-Armstrong on a foul tip to begin the third.
“He’s a strike thrower,” said third baseman Brady House, who also played with Kent in Triple-A Rochester this season. “It felt like the games were going by super fast when he was pitching because he was just quick and efficient. He plays with intent, for sure.”
The Nationals stuck with Kent for an early test: to face Crow-Armstrong a third time in the fifth inning with no outs and runners on first and second. Kent allowed an RBI double into right field that turned out to be the final batter of his debut.
“We want to challenge these guys,” said Butera. “He showed the ability to throw the ball well, and I thought he earned that opportunity to face PCA that third time. I know he got him, but he had shown prior to that that he could handle the moment. … If he never gets a chance to experience that, it's hard to make adjustments next time we do need him to make a big pitch there.”
Kent is the fifth player on the Nationals to make his Major League debut this season, getting the promotion after Washington designated Miles Mikolas for assignment earlier Wednesday. He’s also the 31st pitcher in team history (2005-present) originally signed or drafted and developed by the Nats to start a game for them. The Nationals selected Kent in the fourth round of the 2024 Draft out of Arizona.
Kent was 9-4 with a 3.72 ERA in 20 starts between Double-A Harrisburg and Triple-A Rochester this year. At the time of his promotion, he led the Nats’ farm system in opponents’ batting average (.216) and on-base percentage (.277).
“There's a lot of guys in the Minor Leagues that have a lot of upside,” said Butera. “But you might see one really good outing, and the next time the same exact guy goes out there, it's totally different. The thing with Jackson this year, it almost feels like he's giving you that quality start every time he's gone out there.”
Kent walked off the mound to a standing ovation from both sides of the crowd. In addition to the 40 friends and family Kent had on hand, Nationals home fans were on their feet welcoming their newest pitcher -- and so were Cubs fans, acknowledging the local connection.