The Nationals announced that right-hander Jhancarlos Lara cleared outright waivers and has been assigned to Double-A Harrisburg. This is his first career outright assignment and he has less than three years of service time, so he does not have the right to elect free agency.
Lara, 23, is a power arm with control issues. The righty averages around 98 miles per hour with both his four-seamer and sinker. As is often the case for pitchers with that kind of power, getting the ball over the plate can be a challenge. From 2022 to 2025, Lara struck out 29.7% of the batters he faced in the minors but also gave out walks at a massive 16.4% clip.
He did most of that work as a starter but has been in a pure relief role this year. That hasn’t helped matters. He has thrown 16 Double-A innings this year, allowing 18 earned runs. He has racked up 22 strikeouts but given out 31 walks, one third of the 93 batters he has faced. As if that weren’t enough, he has also hit a batter and uncorked ten wild pitches.
Despite the wildness, Atlanta gave him a 40-man spot and called him up in September of last year. Three days later, the club signed Charlie Morton for a ceremonial send-off, with Lara optioned to the minors without appearing in a game. He stuck on the 40-man until June when Atlanta called up Rowdy Tellez. Lara was designated for assignment to open a spot for Tellez and landed with the Nats via waiver claim. Less than two weeks later, the Nats claimed Justin Lawrence off waivers and bumped Lara back into DFA limbo.
Now that Lara has cleared waivers, the Nats can keep him without him using a roster spot. As mentioned, he doesn’t have the right to elect free agency, so he has to accept this assignment. If he can find a way to rein in his powerful stuff, he could earn another look in the majors.
Photo courtesy of Lauren Witte, Imagn Images
