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Longenhagen should have the Nats prospect report for FG later this week.
The outgoing regime left Paul Toboni and Co. a relatively full cupboard, as this system has above-average impact (both in terms of 50-grade players and 40+ or better guys) and overall depth. It is, however, a very volatile system. Even when we include young big leaguers and guys like Dylan Crews (who I’m still on) and Brady House who have graduated but have yet to establish themselves, there are lots of players with risky profiles occupying those tops spots. Harry Ford might struggle to hit the same way Crews and House have. Travis Sykora, Jarlin Susana and Alejandro Rosario are hurt. Ronny Cruz and Gavin Fien have sketchy slider recognition. Landon Harmon and Miguel Sime Jr. are teenage pitchers… You get the idea.So while this system is exciting, there is probably going to be attrition in these ranks, and the demos these players come from suggest the hit rate on this group may be lower than the baseline for a typical system with this kind of depth. That said, the impact of the players who do hit from this group will be meaningful. If things click for Harmon, he’s going to be awesome, not just some backend starter. I think that boom or bust dynamic applies to a lot of these guys. This pattern was a hallmark of the Mike Rizzo era.
Interesting that they bumped up Cruz between Tuesday and today. On Tuesday's chat, Gawlowski said that there were no Nats having their prior grade bumped to 50 and said he and Eric L talk over the 50s and higher on their lists. Must have a talk in light of the last week or so.
shocking that they have Cruz up to 4. Also surprising to see Rosario at 6 given he won't even pitch until 2027. Jamison Jones at 22 is surprising as well. And Angel Feliz being lower than Andry Lara is also surprising.
My Early May Top 10 Nats Prospects1. Eli Willits2. Jarlin Susana3. Travis Sykora4. Ronny Cruz (⬆️8)5. Devin Fitz-Gerald (⬇️1)6. Seaver King (⬇️1)7. Gavin Fien8. Miguel Sime Jr (⬆️9)9. Harry Ford (⬇️3)10. Luis Perales (⬇️2)HM: Harmon, Cabrera, Dickerson, Petry
new BBA top-100 is out:24 — Eli Willits, SS59 — Jarlin Susana, RHP96 — Ronny Cruz, SS99 — Seaver King, SS
Second base: Devin Fitz-Gerald, Nationals (No. 10)Fitz-Gerald played 41 games last year, only 10 of which were above the Arizona Complex League, before suffering a season-ending left shoulder injury and later being traded to the Nationals in the offseason MacKenzie Gore deal. Washington believed it could push the 20-year-old infielder to High-A despite that limited full-season experience, and he’s rewarded that confidence by ranking fourth at the level with 11 homers and a .650 slugging percentage and fifth with a 1.073 OPS. He’s accomplished that while playing in a notoriously pitcher-friendly home park in Wilmington, and he’s also marrying the power gains with good swing decisions and bat-to-ball skills. Shortstop: Ronny Cruz, Nationals (No. 4/MLB No. 91)Cruz was frequently the talk of the backfields of West Palm Beach in his first Spring Training with the Nationals, and that combination of tools and performance has carried into the regular season. Picked up from the Cubs at last year’s Deadline, the 19-year-old infielder burst past Single-A with a .333/.460/.627 line, three homers and 15 steals in 14 games, and Washington promoted him to get him more priority shortstop work at High-A. His aggressiveness and high swing rate have caught up to him in Wilmington, but the other tools are loud enough to make the industry take notice while he’s still a teenager.
