Nationals Claim Former Top 100 Yankees Prospect Off Waivers in High-Upside Swing
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Before Saturday's game, the Washington Nationals announced some major news.
They revealed that right-handed pitcher Chase Hampton was claimed off waivers from the New York Yankees. He was subsequently optioned to Double-A Harrisburg. As a corresponding move, right-hander Matt Waldron was transferred to the 60-day injured list, which officially ends his season.
For those Nationals fans who might think Hampton's name sounds familiar, that's because he was frequently mentioned as a possible return piece for Washington in a potential CJ Abrams trade. The 25-year-old, who was selected in the sixth round of the 2022 draft, peaked at No. 4 in the Yankees' farm system back in 2024 and was considered the No. 92 overall prospect in the sport.
Nationals Add More Upside to Their Farm System After Claiming Chase Hampton
The fact that the Nationals were able to land him for free instead of acquiring him as a featured part of a return package for Abrams is telling on multiple fronts.
For one, it shows that this front office regime correctly valued Abrams and other players and prospects being offered to them when they were asking for a king's ransom. Pair that with the strong early results from the MacKenzie Gore deal this past winter, and it looks like president of baseball operations Paul Toboni and his other evaluators know what they are doing when it comes to trades. Secondly, this shows that Hampton could be a lottery ticket at this stage of his career, since New York wouldn't have given up on him at this point if they still saw upside.
Washington has to bank on the fact that he can return to his previous form before he underwent Tommy John surgery in 2025. Because he posted a combined 3.63 ERA across 20 starts at High-A and Double-A with 145 strikeouts to 37 walks over 106 2/3 innings during his first professional season in 2023. While he dealt with arm fatigue the following year and was limited to just seven outings, he was still impressive with a 2.41 ERA despite the fact he only recorded 16 K's to nine walks across 18 2/3 innings pitched.
But following his Tommy John procedure, he hasn't looked like the same pitcher.
Hampton posted am 8.18 ERA across 17 total starts this year. That includes a figure of 9.59 over 11 starts at the Double-A level. Command has been a huge problem for him, as he's issued 28 walks in 35 2/3 innings in Double-A. So this will not be an easy fix for the Nationals, who have their own pitching problems they have to deal with.
Still, adding someone with Hampton's profile for free is good business. While he might never become the star pitcher that evaluators envisioned, Washington will try to see if he can reach his ceiling wearing their uniform.
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Brad Wakai graduated from Penn State University with a degree in Journalism. While an undergrad, he worked at the student radio station covering different Penn State athletic programs like football, basketball, volleyball, soccer and other sports. Brad became the Lead Contributor for Nittany Lions Wire of Gannett Media where he continued to cover Penn State athletics. Currently, Brad is the Publisher for Washington Nationals On SI and covers multiple teams across the On SI network. He is the host of the sports podcast I Said What I Said, where he and his co-host discuss topics across the NFL, College Football, the NBA and other sports. You can follow him on Twitter: @bwakai