Washington Nationals: Top 10 Rookie-Eligible Prospects for 2018
We have reached the point of the offseason where prospect lists abound. We continue our top 10 prospects for every team with the Washington Nationals!
Our team top 10 prospect lists at Call to the Pen are spearheaded by Benjamin Chase. Today, he gives us the top ten prospects for the Washington Nationals.
This season, we will be going through teams by division, in order of 2017 record. The AL East will be first, followed by the AL Central and AL West. Then the focus will shift to the National League in the same order.
The format will be as it was last season for the same lists, with a system review, which will include last season’s list. The top 10 will follow in reverse order, two players per page in order to give adequate space to each player. Major trades or international signings will lead to an updated top 10!
Finally, don’t go away after #1 is revealed as each list will also contain a player either signed in the 2017 international free agent class or drafted in 2017 that isn’t part of the top 10 and should be tracked. Last season’s mentions in that area made over half of the top 10s this season, so this is a great way to get to know a player who could be making a big splash in the organization.
System overview
The Washington Nationals used their prospect capital last offseason to acquire pieces for the major league club, specifically Adam Eaton. They continued to do more of that in the season, making trades to put together a fairly solid bullpen for their playoff run.
That has left the system dry of the top-100 types of prospects, but that certainly does not mean the team is devoid of talent as the Nationals continue to work the Latin market well, arguably scouting middle infielders in Latin America better than any team in baseball.
With this being quite possibly the last season for the main core of their players, the Nationals could cash in more chips on this list to make a run in 2018, but Nationals fans should not fret as the team has shown the ability to replenish in a hurry and develop well.
Let’s take a look at that system….
Next: #9 and #10