Jarlin Susana Back to Dealing Strikeouts in Nationals Minor League System

The injury rehab wheels are off for Washington Nationals pitching prospect Jarlin Susana, who was exceptional with Double-A Harrisburg recently.

Feb 22, 2025; West Palm Beach, Florida, USA; Right hand pitcher Jarlin Susana throws a pitch in the sixth inning against the Houston Astros at CACTI Park of the Palm Beaches. | Reinhold Matay-Imagn Images

For a while, there was concern that Washington Nationals top pitching prospect Jarlin Susana might be gone for a while.

The No. 2 pitching prospect in the system was diagnosed with a grade one right elbow strain in early May and Washington, out of an abundance of caution, shut him down.

The Nationals eased him back in with a rehab assignment at High-A Wilmington, where he made three starts for the Blue Rocks. He went 0-2, but he had a 3.00 ERA in nine innings, with 16 strikeouts and two walks.

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Washington activated him from the 7-day injured list and then unleashed him on Double-A hitters with Harrisburg on Thursday. It was like he had never left.

Jarlin Susana’s Return to Harrisburg

Jarlin Susana was strong in his Double-A return!

The @Nationals’ top-ranked pitching prospect strikes out 6 over 4 2/3 innings of one-run ball for the @HbgSenators: pic.twitter.com/0nH8xxAnXF

— MLB Pipeline (@MLBPipeline) August 8, 2025

He faced Portland in his first start back. In 4.2 innings he gave up four hits and one earned run. He also struck out six and walked two.

Combined with his rehab start on Aug. 1, he has a 1.04 ERA for August, with 12 strikeouts and two walks in 8.2 innings.

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In 10 minor leagues games he is 0-3 with a 3.63 ERA, which stands to be his lowest since his first professional season in 2022 (2.40). He has 60 strikeouts and 24 walks in 39.2 innings. Batters are hitting .231 against him and he has a 1.46 WHIP.

MLB Pipeline has the 21-year-old right-hander ranked as the organization’s No. 2 prospect behind another pitcher, Travis Sykora. But Sykora will be out for at least a year after he suffered an elbow injury that led to Tommy John surgery.

Jarlin Susana’s Breakthrough

Susana is the last piece of the Juan Soto trade in 2022 that has not reached the Majors. At the time, he was one of the youngest players in the deal and he needed the most time to ramp up.

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Susana also had a breakthrough season in 2024. He pitched for Fredericksburg and High-A Wilmington and went 4-10 with a 4.34 ERA in 24 starts. That doesn’t jump off the page.

But he showed off a high-level fastball, which was clocked as high as 103 mph. That allowed him to put up dominant numbers outside of his record — 157 strikeouts against 48 walks in 103.2 innings.

How long it takes Susana to reach the Majors will be dependent on his progress and his health. At this rate a call-up in late 2026 or 2027 is possible.

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