This Might Be Devin Fitz-Gerald's Future Position, Which Could Be Great for Nationals

The Washington Nationals could get a major boost if this were to happen.

Washington Nationals manager Blake Butera | Reinhold Matay-Imagn Images

One of the biggest storylines surrounding the Washington Nationals this year is how great things are going down on their farm.

President of baseball operations Paul Toboni has the goal of creating an elite pipeline to push the franchise's rebuild forward, and that means they need returns in their farm system. So far, they are getting a huge return on investment, as multiple young prospects have become breakout stars.

One of those is Devin Fitz-Gerald, a high-upside infielder who was a key part of the return in the MacKenzie Gore trade with the Texas Rangers. The 20-year-old got off to a scorching-hot start at High-A this season when he hit eight home runs in 10 games. And while he cooled off a bit before getting promoted to Double-A, Fitz-Gerald still did enough to make evaluators consider him a top 100 prospect in the sport.

Keith Law Thinks Devin Fitz-Gerald Will Be Long-Term Second Baseman

Washington Nationals prospect Devin Fitz-Gerald | Patrick Oehler/Poughkeepsie Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Keith Law of The Athletic (subscription required) made his way to Wilmington to see Fitz-Gerald in person before the young star got sent to Harrisburg. And the former front office member gave his analysis on what position Fitz-Gerald will likely play going forward.

"I still believe he's going to hit, and having seen him at three positions now I'd put him at second base (eventually), where a 55 to 60 hit tool with average power would make him at worst a strong regular," he wrote.

There are two things to unpack from that assessment that bodes well for the Nationals. The first pertains to the player, as Fitz-Gerald came up the prep ranks as a shortstop and has played at second base, third base and shortstop this season. If Washington views the talented youngster as someone who could man the keystone for them at the major league level, then allowing him to primarily focus on that position will help him improve his defensive prowess at that spot on the diamond.

And when it comes to how that could benefit the Nationals, having a "strong regular" at that position would be a huge boost for them compared to what they are getting right now.

Nationals Need a Clear Upgrade at Second Base

Washington Nationals logo | Scott Taetsch-Imagn Images

Entering Thursday's action, there wasn't a team across the majors that has gotten less production out of second base than Washington.

Per FanGraphs, the Nationals' second basemen have a cumulative slash line of .194/.283/.220 with a wRC+ of 49. They also have an fWAR of minus-0.3, so even Nasim Nunez's high-end defense hasn't been able to push them into a positive number because of how bad they have been at the plate.

This is something Washington has to figure out for the long term. There's a thought that top prospect Seaver King could eventually take over at the keystone. And that might come as soon as this season. However, if the front office decides to trade CJ Abrams ahead of this year's trade deadline or during the upcoming offseason, then King would likely slide over to shortstop.

That's where Fitz-Gerald enters into the mix. While the home run barrage he had at the beginning of this campaign might have been an outlier compared to what his actual power numbers could be going forward, he still has a high-end hit tool that could allow him to become an impactful offensive player for them in the majors.

But if Fitz-Gerald is able to find a consistent power stroke as he gets older and stronger, then the sky could be the limit for the rising star, which would turn second base from a clear position of need into one that might be a strength in the coming years.