On Tuesday, the Washington Nationals promoted starting pitchers Josh Randall and Isaac Lyon from the Wilmington Blue Rocks after both pitchers shined during their time in Wilmington.
Randall’s promotion comes after establishing himself as one of the top arms in the Blue Rocks rotation. While he struggled in 2025, finishing the season with a 6.44 ERA, Randall made a significant leap in 2026, lowering his ERA to 4.40 while becoming one of Wilmington’s most reliable starters.
Randall made his way to the Nationals organization at last year’s trade deadline. He was acquired along with pitching prospect R.J. Sales in exchange for reliever Kyle Finnegan. Since arriving in Wilmington, Randall has shown middle-of-the-rotation upside with his ability to pound the strike zone and limit walks. His fastball-slider-changeup mix consistently keeps hitters off balance while generating swings and misses.
It was no coincidence Randall received the call on Tuesday. His promotion came just days after one of his best outings of the season against Jersey Shore on Sunday. The California native tossed six innings, struck out six batters, and walked just one in Wilmington’s 2-1 win over the BlueClaws.
“The mindset doesn’t really change regardless of the situation,” Randall said after the win. “Whether nobody’s on base or the bases are loaded, as a pitcher you have to stay in attack mode every single pitch. You treat every hitter like he’s the only thing that matters in that moment.”
That mindset has helped Randall take a major step forward this season, and now he’ll get the opportunity to prove himself at the Double-A level with Harrisburg.
As for Lyon, he quietly became one of the most reliable arms in the Wilmington rotation. The 22-year-old finished May with a sparkling 0.57 ERA along with 19 strikeouts and just five walks.
Lyon arrived in the Nationals organization in the same trade that sent top prospect Harry Ford to Washington in exchange for reliever Jose A. Ferrer. While Lyon flew under the radar in Seattle due to the organization’s abundance of pitching talent, he quickly carved out a role for himself in the Nationals system.
While Lyon doesn’t overpower hitters with velocity, the former Grand Canyon University standout generates plenty of swings and misses, especially with his breaking ball. Lyon struck out six batters in just four innings against the Asheville Tourists on May 2. His best outing came against Winston-Salem on May 14, when he struck out seven and walked just one over 4.1 innings.
Randall and Lyon now join a loaded Harrisburg rotation that features four top-30 prospects in the Nationals organization, including former Blue Rocks pitchers Travis Sykora, Alex Clemmey, and Jarlin Susana.
While these losses will hurt Wilmington in the short term, the Nationals are loaded with pitching talent throughout the lower levels of the system that could soon make the jump to High-A. Tuesday’s promotions were another sign that Wilmington has become one of the organization’s most important proving grounds for its next wave of pitching prospects.