The Future for the Nationals on paper is bright. There’s a lot of young talent already in the MLB and scheduled to be in the MLB within the next three years. As of the New Year, the Nationals jumped eight positions in farm system ranks, all while having four top prospects graduating to the majors. CJ Abrams made the leap to becoming the everyday SS and really seemed more comfortable at the plate the last month and a half. He was batting a respectable .304 average, .312 OBP, and .402 slug while only striking out eight times in the month of September in 92 ABs. With only five games being played in October, he also had a .294 average, .294 OBP, and added two more strikes outs to the list. Abrams seemed he was starting to adjust to the pitching at the MLB level. If he can work on being more selective at the plate to draw some more walks moving forward would be a massive step in the right direction for this young man. He only had five walks throughout the whole season between the Padres and the Nationals. Ranking in the 91st percentile in speed, more walks could lead to more stolen bases or advancing from first to third with balls being put into play. Improving his arm strength moving forward should be a priority, and he ranked in the 51st percentile. With the other talent the Nationals have in their farm system with true SS, learning a new position like second could also be in the cards. Brady House, who is also a true SS, is expected to make his MLB debut within the next year or two and is a top 5 prospect in the Nationals organization. House is known for his ability to hit the gaps, and his arm strength is his most significant upside. House could also Transition into 3rd base, given the gap the Nationals have at that position. Carter Kieboom, a top Prospect for the Nationals for a couple of years and a true 3rd basemen, has been more of a bust at the MLB level not panning out the way fans or the organization would have liked to fill the void left by Tony Two Bags at third. There’s also Armando Cruz, who also has a stronger arm than Abrams having a 92 MPH throw from the SS position to first. Cruz has more speed than house and would make him more ideal than House at SS if Abrams's arm strength doesn’t improve. Abrams could transition over to 2nd base giving his arm strength. This would make the middle of the infield extremely fun to watch, with Cruz at short and Abrams at second, covering the gaps up the middle. It will just leave one hole at the first base position and knock out my current Nationals player Luis Garcia who as well is a true SS but does not have the arm strength or speed to play the position. Hints at why the farm system moved him over to 2nd base before calling him back up to the MLB. Why not try first? Learning a new position again and adequately one of the hardest positions to learn in baseball. The 22-year-old has a lot of upside with a lot of heart. Start giving him practice reps this year while having Smith handle the day-to-day.
The Future
The Future
The Future
The Future for the Nationals on paper is bright. There’s a lot of young talent already in the MLB and scheduled to be in the MLB within the next three years. As of the New Year, the Nationals jumped eight positions in farm system ranks, all while having four top prospects graduating to the majors. CJ Abrams made the leap to becoming the everyday SS and really seemed more comfortable at the plate the last month and a half. He was batting a respectable .304 average, .312 OBP, and .402 slug while only striking out eight times in the month of September in 92 ABs. With only five games being played in October, he also had a .294 average, .294 OBP, and added two more strikes outs to the list. Abrams seemed he was starting to adjust to the pitching at the MLB level. If he can work on being more selective at the plate to draw some more walks moving forward would be a massive step in the right direction for this young man. He only had five walks throughout the whole season between the Padres and the Nationals. Ranking in the 91st percentile in speed, more walks could lead to more stolen bases or advancing from first to third with balls being put into play. Improving his arm strength moving forward should be a priority, and he ranked in the 51st percentile. With the other talent the Nationals have in their farm system with true SS, learning a new position like second could also be in the cards. Brady House, who is also a true SS, is expected to make his MLB debut within the next year or two and is a top 5 prospect in the Nationals organization. House is known for his ability to hit the gaps, and his arm strength is his most significant upside. House could also Transition into 3rd base, given the gap the Nationals have at that position. Carter Kieboom, a top Prospect for the Nationals for a couple of years and a true 3rd basemen, has been more of a bust at the MLB level not panning out the way fans or the organization would have liked to fill the void left by Tony Two Bags at third. There’s also Armando Cruz, who also has a stronger arm than Abrams having a 92 MPH throw from the SS position to first. Cruz has more speed than house and would make him more ideal than House at SS if Abrams's arm strength doesn’t improve. Abrams could transition over to 2nd base giving his arm strength. This would make the middle of the infield extremely fun to watch, with Cruz at short and Abrams at second, covering the gaps up the middle. It will just leave one hole at the first base position and knock out my current Nationals player Luis Garcia who as well is a true SS but does not have the arm strength or speed to play the position. Hints at why the farm system moved him over to 2nd base before calling him back up to the MLB. Why not try first? Learning a new position again and adequately one of the hardest positions to learn in baseball. The 22-year-old has a lot of upside with a lot of heart. Start giving him practice reps this year while having Smith handle the day-to-day.