This 'Eye-Catching' Stat From Nationals Star Prospect Should Have Fans Excited
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It's hard to say whether or not the Washington Nationals will have a bevy of high-end starting pitchers reach the majors in the near future since so many of them have gotten hurt.
Star prospect after star prospect has gone down with a long-term issue, with many of them requiring the dreaded Tommy John surgery that puts their careers on the backburner for multiple years. That was the case with Cade Cavalli and Josiah Gray, with the former making his return this season while the latter is expected to be ready for Opening Day next year.
Someone who might have been able to make a quick climb up the farm system was Travis Sykora, the team's third-round pick of the 2023 draft who has done nothing but impress since he was taken out of high school. But like so many of the pitchers before him, he's now out for the foreseeable future after undergoing the Tommy John surgery this season.
Travis Sykora Impressed With His High Strikeout Stuff
However, before that happened, the right-hander turned heads with what he was doing in the minors. After dominating the Single-A level in 2024 with a 2.33 ERA across 20 starts, Sykora took his game to the next level this year.
Beginning the season with Washington's Florida Complex team due to an injury, he was solid in two starts by allowing just one run in five innings pitched. That carried over into his two starts with Single-A Fredericksburg, where he didn't allow a run. Then, he was flat-out dominant when he got promoted to High-A, owning a 1.21 ERA across six starts.
But the most impressive thing about Sykora was his ability to strike batters out, with 79 total strikeouts in 45 1/3 innings pitched. And to add even more context to that, MLB.com stated that Sykora's incredible 46.7% K rate this season was the most "eye-popping" statistic from a Nationals prospect in 2025.
Nationals Fans Should Be Excited About Travis Sykora's Future
The 21-year-old has all the makings of a future ace for Washington. Ranked second in the team's prospect rankings, what he has done on the mound to start his professional career is nothing short of special. Unfortunately, it's going to be a while for Nationals fans to see him at the big league level since he's not expected to be back on the mound pitching until sometime in 2027.
Still, that shouldn't put a damper on how this fanbase views Sykora. The hope is he'll be able to keep that high strikeout rate when he comes back from Tommy John surgery, but even if he doesn't ring batters up at the same clip, he projects to be a high-end arm during his career.
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Brad Wakai graduated from Penn State University with a degree in Journalism. While an undergrad, he worked at the student radio station covering different Penn State athletic programs like football, basketball, volleyball, soccer and other sports. Brad became the Lead Contributor for Nittany Lions Wire of Gannett Media where he continued to cover Penn State athletics. Currently, Brad is the Publisher for Washington Nationals On SI and covers multiple teams across the On SI network. He is the host of the sports podcast I Said What I Said, where he and his co-host discuss topics across the NFL, College Football, the NBA and other sports. You can follow him on Twitter: @bwakai