Nationals Pull Off Huge Win by Signing All Four of Their 2026 Day 1 Draft Picks

All four of the Washington Nationals' Day 1 draft picks have signed deals.

Washington Nationals president of baseball operations Paul Toboni | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

On paper, the Washington Nationals had a strong showing on Day 1 of the 2026 MLB Draft.

Not only did they take college infielder Chris Hacopian at No. 11 overall -- who has one of the best hit tools in the class with a top-tier combination of contact and power -- but they also landed a high-ceiling outfielder in the second round by selecting TCU's Chase Brunson. They then rounded out the day by drafting two prep stars; shortstop Luke Williams and right-handed pitcher Cooper Harris in Rounds 3 and 4, respectively.

When it came to their selections of Williams and Harris, however, it wasn't a given that either of them would start their professional journeys with the Nationals. Williams was committed to play at Vanderbilt, and Harris was committed to play at Texas. So Washington needed to convince them to sign instead of enrolling in college.

And according to Jim Callis of MLB Pipeline, the Nationals were able to do exactly that, as the insider reported that all four of Washington's Day 1 picks in this year's draft were signed to a contract.

Luke Williams, Cooper Harris Set to Begin Their Professional Careers

MLB logo | USA TODAY Sports

Per Callis, Williams signed for $2.5 million. That is way higher than the slot value of $1,069,600 that is recommended for the No. 78 overall pick. Similarly, Washington also went above the slot value for Harris, who was signed for $1.5 million instead of the $740,500 that is recommended for the No. 106 pick in the draft.

That shouldn't be surprising, though. For the Nationals to convince this duo to forego their college eligibility and turn professional right now, they needed to incentivize both Williams and Harris to make that happen. And by going well above the slot value for where they were drafted, that allowed Washington to add two talented youngsters to their farm system.

Williams, who is a speedster from Franklin Regional High School in Pennsylvania, is one of the most intriguing non-first-round prep players in this class. He has some raw power in his hitting profile, and that could turn him into a top 100 prospect at some point in his career if he can become a consistent hitter to match his elite speed.

As for Harris, he's an exciting pitching prospect from Flower Mound High School in Texas. At 18 years old, he sits in the mid-90 mph range with his fastball and has two breaking pitches to pair with it. He could become a frontline starter by the time he reaches the bigs, which is something this franchise desperately needs.

Chase Brunson Signs Under-Slot Deal Just Like Chris Hacopian

TCU logo | USA TODAY Sports via Reuters Connect

A lot of the credit for Washington's ability to sign Williams and Harris should go to Hacopian and Brunson, who both signed under-slot deals after they were drafted in the first and second rounds, respectively.

Hacopian, who was the first to sign with the Nationals, did so for $5.7 million compared to the recommended amount of $6,133,500. While the roughly $450,000 worth of savings isn't a ton, every dollar counts when trying to sign each player who was drafted.

Brunson took an even bigger discount on his deal, as Callis reported he signed for $1.8 million instead of the slot value of $2,388,800. That is roughly a $600,000 difference, so with around $1 million in savings on Hacopian and Brunson, Washington was able to use that to sweeten the pot for Williams and Harris, who signed for roughly $2.1 million over their combined slot values.

The Nationals did a tremendous job of convincing their draft picks to sign with them. And after they finalized contracts with all of their selections from 2025, they are now on their way to doing that once again for the 2026 class by signing all four of their Day 1 picks.