Washington Nationals Top Prospect Looks Prepared for Successful Rookie Season

This Washington Nationals prospect got a taste of the Majors last year, and now he's poised to have a breaktou

Mar 4, 2025; West Palm Beach, Florida, USA; Washington Nationals outfielder Dylan Crews (3) catches the ball for an out against the St. Louis Cardinals during the fourth inning at CACTI Park of the Palm Beaches. | Rich Storry-Imagn Images

With spring training nearly reaching the halfway point for the Washington Nationals, the young core will have a chance to impress soon. 

Despite years of rebuilding, the Nationals feel like they are heading in the right direction with an impressive core of talent that they have developed and acquired over the past several years. 

In 2024, players like CJ Abrams and Luis Garcia Jr. really emerged as solid players for Washington in the middle of the infield. Abrams was able to make his first All-Star team and Garcia played a similar caliber of baseball throughout the campaign. 

While it was great to see those two take a step forward in 2024, but the Nationals have a couple of other young stars that everyone will be keeping their eye on in 2025. 

Last season, both James Wood and Dylan Crews were able to make their debuts. As former top picks, there was a lot of excitement with both being called up. Wood had a bit more time in the majors and was more effective than Crews, but there is a lot of potential and talent there for both of them. 

Now, seeing what the two can accomplish in 2025 will be something fun to watch. 

Jim Bowden of The Athletic (paid subscription required) recently spoke about Crews and praised him for his development so far this spring compared to last year. 

“Crews, 23, looks more poised and composed this spring. I’m excited to see how he does in his first full major-league season," he wrote.

The former number two overall pick in the 2023 MLB draft is one of the top prospects in all baseball and a contender for the Rookie of the Year award in the National League. 

While he didn’t hit the ground running after being called up late last year, the 23-year-old did show some signs of his high-end talent. Overall, he slashed 218/.288/.353 with three home runs and 12 stolen bases. 

The talented young outfielder has a nice mix of power and speed, and could become the first Nationals rookie to ever reach the 20/20 plateau. 

So far this spring, the talented slugger has been really impressive, slashing .391/.481/.478 with seven RBI and three stolen bases. 

With the ability to play well defensively too, there isn't much that Crews can’t do on the baseball field. 

Washington will be hoping that their young outfielder will be able to have a similar rookie season to his former teammate in college, Paul Skenes. 

Expectations are certainly high for Crews, but he has looked great this spring and that is a very encouraging sign heading into the year.