This Prospect 'Has the Most Value' Out of All the Nationals Triple-A Outfielders

If the Washington Nationals are going to add pieces to their major league roster to help them make a push for the playoffs this year, then they will have to ship out some of their top 30 prospects.

Considering this franchise is still in the midst of a rebuild, there are some clear untouchables throughout the farm system who they won't even think about trading. However, some solid depth has been created in the pipeline, and that could allow president of baseball operations Paul Toboni to acquire some help if he chooses to go down that route.

A prospect to keep an eye on when it comes to the possibility of getting dealt is Christian Franklin, the 26-year-old outfielder with Triple-A Rochester who, according to Spencer Nusbaum of The Athletic (subscription required), is someone who teams around the league might covet.

Christian Franklin Might Have Highest Value Amongst Team's Triple-A Outfielders

Washington Nationals prospect Christian Franklin | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

"From what I've been told, Christian Franklin has the most value of the Triple-A group ...," the insider reported.

Franklin, who was acquired by the Nationals along with breakout prospect Ronny Cruz from the Chicago Cubs ahead of last season's trade deadline in exchange for Michael Soroka, has yet to make his MLB debut despite performing well in Triple-A.

Following the trade last year, Franklin slashed .290/.382/.427 with four home runs, eight extra-base hits and 23 RBIs across 31 games with Rochester. That made it seem like he could push for a spot in Washington's big league outfield this season, but he was sent to Triple-A to start this campaign and hasn't been called up yet. Some of that is due to his .240/.370/.357 slash line this year, but the other reason is the fact that Jacob Young is having a much better showing at the plate, and the organization seems determined to give Dylan Crews a runway to figure things out in The Show.

Because of that, the best thing for the Nationals might be to use Franklin, the team's 19th-ranked prospect, to acquire an impactful bullpen arm or starter that will help this pitching staff improve for the second half of the season.

Trading Christian Franklin Would Be Major Blow to Nationals' Outfield Depth

While there are likely plenty of people in the fan base who are so tired of seeing this pitching staff struggle that they wouldn't think twice about shipping out someone like Franklin if that means some upgrades would be coming back to the nation's capital, there's no doubt that not having the 26-year-old in this pipeline would weaken the team's overall depth.

Franklin looks like he can be a solid hitter at the big league level whenever he's promoted, so if Young, Crews, Daylen Lile or James Wood get hurt at any point this season or in the future, not having Franklin to call upon if that happens would be a blow.

Beyond that, Franklin is one of seven top 30 prospects in Washington's farm system, per MLB Pipeline. However, he and Andrew Pinckney are the only ones at the Triple-A level, with the other five competing in Double-A or lower. So, while there are some other high-end outfield prospects in their farm system right now, only Franklin and Pinckney are on the verge of being big leaguers.

Those are the trade offs that front offices have to make when it comes to acquiring talent, though. And if the Nationals want to bring in an impact arm or two, then some depth might have to be sacrificed by trading away Franklin.

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