Washington Nationals: Wil Crowe waiting in the wings to join rotation

Depending on how long the shutdown lasts, when games resume we could look up and see Wil Crowe in the Washington Nationals rotation.

The Washington Nationals have positioned themselves well when it comes to pitching depth. They have a legitimate three-headed monster at the Major League level and now have a stable of arms in the minors who could play a key role once the shutdown has subsided. Wil Crowe is one of those arms.

Crowe was a highly sought after pitcher coming out of South Carolina when the Nationals selected him in the 2nd round of the 2016 draft. He is currently the fourth-ranked prospect in the Nationals system and second-ranked pitcher, behind Jackson Rutledge, the team’s 1st round pick of last year.

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Crowe has seen mixed results thus far while pitching in the Nationals minor league system. He performed well at the Double-A level before running into some difficulties at Triple-A Fresno.

After being invited to his first big league spring training this year, Crowe held his own in six innings, striking out four and allowing just one run.

Crowe has a good repertoire of pitches featuring an above-average changeup to complement his 92-94 mph fastball. He also throws in a slider and curveball at times to keep hitters off balance.

Crowe has already endured a Tommy John surgery, though so have many of the other pitcher’s Nationals GM Mike Rizzo invests in.

The trio of players who seem to battle over the fifth spot in the starting rotation each year is Joe Ross, Austin Voth, and Erik Fedde. Ross is the most veteran of the bunch and in five years really hasn’t been able to keep hold of a rotation spot.

Both Voth and Fedde have made spot starts, but have also spent a good amount of time coming out of the bullpen as well. Realistically they’ll get the first chance to prove themselves yet once more as starters before Crowe is beckoned from the minors.

As Crowe continues to get seasoning in the minors I would not be surprised to see him in the 2021 rotation as the number five starter for the Washington Nationals.