The 2025 season was a disaster on many levels for the Washington Nationals. However, one of the biggest long term blows came in the farm system. Jarlin Susana and Travis Sykora, the Nats top two pitching prospects both went down with major injuries. Sykora will not pitch this year due to Tommy John, but Jarlin Susana has returned from his Lat surgery.
Susana did not return to action until August and the Nats have been taking things very slowly. He has made six starts so far, but has only thrown 14
innings in total. So far we have seen the whole Jarlin Susana package, for better and worse.
In his first outing back, he made a real statement with how loud his stuff was. His fastball was sitting 101-103 and he was uncorking nasty sliders as well. He showed how unique his right arm truly is. Even in this age of velocity, this kind of fire power is special.
It is tough to read too much into stats after only 14 innings. However, Susana has an especially wacky statline. His ERA is unimpressive at 5.14, but the underlying numbers are tremendous. Susana has 28 strikeouts in those 14 frames, showing how overpowering he is. A 45.2 K% is video game type stuff.
His underlying numbers are also stellar. Susana’s FIP is 2.68 and his xFIP is 2.43. Those data points suggest the elevated ERA is misleading. A .391 BABIP also suggests some bad luck is at play here. Susana has been dominating even if the run prevention has not necessarily shown that.
The book on Susana is that he can be wild. That has been true for the most part. He has 7 walks in those 14 innings and has also hit 3 batters. However, his 11.3% walk rate is actually a step in the right direction. In 2025, that walk rate was up at 13.9%. If Susana can keep his walk rate around 10%, his chances of starting will increase.
At this point, that is the biggest question with the right hander, along with health. With stuff this good, he should have big league success. As we have seen with Yovanny Cruz and Luis Perales, huge velocity is not everything. However, Susana is even bigger and badder than both those guys. His fastball is harder, his slider is nastier and he is tougher to square up.
With the quality of his stuff, there are folks wondering if Susana should get a cup of coffee in the bullpen down the stretch. He will have to be added to the 40-man roster after this season anyways, so it could be worth giving him a look. A few extra appearances would help him build up as well.
Susana has not pitched above AA, but the quality of his stuff is beyond questioning. He will get whiffs at the big league level. Skipping players over AAA is not unprecedented either. In fact, we have seen a couple recent examples of this with Kade Anderson and Josue De Paula.
With the season lost and Susana needing to join the 40-man roster anyways, there is not much to lose here. The bullpen can also use all the help it can get. Susana’s elite stuff would also generate plenty of buzz.
When Susana is on his game, he is jaw dropping to watch. For one, he is an absolutely massive human. Susana is officially listed at 6’6 235 pounds on the MILB website. However, in the Nationals media guide, he was listed at 6’7 283 pounds. If Susana were born in America, he would probably be a left tackle in the NFL. Seeing that sort of body dominating on the mound is mesmerizing.
Getting in as many innings as possible before next season should also be a goal for Susana. A few outings in the big leagues down the stretch could be part of that. The AA season ends this week, so maybe he could get called up after that.
I would also like to see Susana in the Arizona Fall League. That would give him more opportunities for innings. A selfish reason I want to see both of these is so I can actually see the metrics on his pitches. Those stuff grades must be totally out of control.
In his 14 innings this season, Jarlin Susana has looked like Jarlin Susana. If he can stay healthy and moderately improve his command, he can be a top of the rotation arm. Even if those strides do not happen, he has a long future in the bullpen. It is great to see him back on the mound. He is a true unicorn of a pitcher.
