Washington Nationals Farm System 'On the Upswing' With Recent Talent Infusion
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The Washington Nationals have done a lot of losing over the last few years, with 71 victories in a single season being their most since winning the World Series in 2019.
While the product on the field hasn’t been great, there is one positive that's come from all of the losing; the chance to add high-end young talent to the roster via the draft.
In that regard, the Nationals have done well, which is why the light at the tunnel is getting closer and closer.
2024 was a major breakthrough for the franchise, as their young core got a chance to play at the highest level and showed some real signs of improvement.
Shortstop CJ Abrams was named an All-Star. Second baseman Luis Garcia Jr. had a career year at the plate and improved defensively, locking down the keystone for the foreseeable future.
Left fielder James Wood made his much-anticipated debut and finished the season on a strong note after some early struggles. Center fielder Jacob Young is already a Gold Glove-caliber defender.
On the mound, MacKenzie Gore performed like an ace out of the gate and down the stretch with some struggles in between during the summer. Jake Irvin has been solid behind him and DJ Herz and Mitchell Parker excelled as rookies.
That foundation is very strong and Washington has to be excited about the pieces who are following behind them.
Their top prospect, outfielder Dylan Crews, is expected to be the starting right fielder on Opening Day. Another one of their top prospects, Brady House, could earn the starting third baseman’s job.
With multiple players knocking on the door of the Major Leagues, it comes as somewhat of a surprise that Keith Law of The Athletic has ranked the organization’s farm system so low.
He currently has them in Tier 4, coming in at No. 17, right behind the Pittsburgh Pirates.
“The Nats’ talent is on the upswing, but they promote guys so quickly that they may end up in the playoffs before they have a top-10 system,” Law wrote.
Where the team has failed to restock the farm system is with their international signings. They haven’t hit on very many in recent years, which has led to some lulls.
But, Law lauded them for how well they did infuse talent into the system via the 2024 MLB draft.
“They had a great draft last year to inject a lot of highly polished college players into the system, backed up with some upside plays,” he added.
This is a farm system, despite all of the recent graduations and more anticipated this year, that is on the rise.
The next wave of prospects is incredibly strong, headlined by the pitching trio of Jarlin Susana, Travis Sykora, Alex Clemmey and shortstop Seaver King.
That group will be added to in June, as the Nationals won the draft lottery and are expected to select phenom Ethan Holliday, the brother of Baltimore Orioles star Jackson and son of former All-Star Matt.
