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In an ideal world, Jackson Kent’s innings would look more like his fourth inning against the Phillies on Tuesday.

A two-pitch at-bat against Bryson Stott resulted in a groundout. Kent then struck out J.T. Realmuto on four pitches before ending the inning by striking out Derek Hill.

One inning, 11 pitches, three outs. Efficiency is the biggest issue Kent’s facing so far in his major-league career. In his last outing against the Padres, the rookie southpaw struggled with two-strike execution, which leads to high pitch counts and short outings. Kent allowed a .500 slugging percentage in two-strike counts against San Diego.

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In Tuesday’s 6-3 win against the Phillies, Kent improved as the outing progressed and pitched at least five innings for the third time in his young career. He kept the game close, allowing the offense to mount a rally in the seventh inning.

Back-to-back singles put runners on first and second, and Nasim Nuñez’s sacrifice bunt moved the runners over. Daylen Lile then entered the game as a pinch hitter and hammered a first-pitch changeup for a three-run bomb that gave the Nationals the lead.

In the minors, Kent developed a reputation for his command and ability to throw strikes. The added velocity on his fastball allowed his other pitches to be more effective, particularly his nasty changeup.

But Kent struggled in his first time through the Phillies’ lineup. He walked All-Star slugger Kyle Schwarber on five pitches to open the game before recording back-to-back outs. Instead of ending the inning without the walk burning him, Kent walked Luis Arraez and allowed a line-drive RBI single to Alec Bohm on an 0-1 fastball near the heart of the zone. He rebounded and prevented further damage after getting Bryan De La Cruz called out on strikes.

The second inning was an improvement. Kent was getting ahead of batters by throwing strikes in the zone. He didn’t fall behind any of the three hitters he faced and recorded a 1-2-3 inning.

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Pitching held the Nationals back this season, preventing an explosive offense from having a full season of wild-card contention. The organization is cognitive of its dearth of pitching talent, which played a role in the team’s deals sending out Curtis Mead and Luis García Jr. for an influx of young arms.

Kent solidifying a place in the rotation would be a win for the team’s player development operation.