Travis

Sykora

The hard-throwing 20-year-old righty was a third-round selection by the Nationals from the 2023 draft class and has blossomed into one of the top pitching prospects in the game. He registered a 2.33 ERA, 0.91 WHIP and a stellar 129/27 K/BB ratio over 85 innings at Single-A Fredericksburg. The Nationals are going to take every possible precaution here so don’t expect to see him jump up to the Double-A level until the end of the season.

Sykora continues to dominate in the lower minors after being selected in the third round of last year’s MLB Draft. The hard-throwing 20-year-old righty has notched at least eight strikeouts in three consecutive starts and has allowed just five baserunners over 15 innings during that span. He’ll undoubtedly close out the year at High-A Wilmington and could reach the upper minors at some point early next season. He’s rapidly evolving into an upper-echelon fantasy pitching prospect and should be rostered in all dynasty formats.

Sykora has been absolutely electric this season in his professional debut after being taken in the third round of the 2023 MLB Draft as a prep pitcher from Texas, who received a staggering $2.6 million vastly over-slot deal from the Nationals. The hard-throwing 20-year-old righty lowered his full-season totals on Friday to a sparkling 2.67 ERA, 0.94 WHIP and 86/21 K/BB ratio across 57 1/3 innings. He was on the map already for dynasty managers, but his performance over the last few months should have him rocketing up the way-too-early 2025 dynasty rankings.

Universally-regarded as one of the top prep arms in the entire draft class, the Nationals were willing to hand Sykora a staggering $2.6 million signing bonus, which is nearly $1.6 million above slot value for the 71st overall selection. The 19-year-old righty from Texas possesses a triple-digit fastball and will be one of the more interesting arms to monitor over the next few years.