The Nationals picked first overall for the first time since taking Stephen Strasburg and Bryce Harper in back to back drafts in 2009 and 2010, and they did so more or less on the fly after firing General Manager Mike Rizzo shortly before the draft. In Mike DeBartolo's sole draft at the helm, he continued Rizzo's strategy of pouring money into the first several picks before paying pennies to the handful in the back half of day two. In fact, Washington gave $85,000 combined to their five picks from rounds six through ten after giving out five straight bonuses of at least $2 million to start the draft. Preps were the early focus here, with four high schoolers receiving a combined $15.2 million at the top of the draft. Interestingly, DeBartolo heavily favored power bats, grabbing the all time home run leaders at both Mississippi State (Hunter Hines, 70) and Oregon (Jacob Walsh, 59) as well three more guys who came close South Carolina's Ethan Petry (54), Wright State's Boston Smith (51), and Butler's Jack Moroknek (31). Interestingly, Washington also drafted four hulking first basemen in Petry (6'4", 235 pounds), Hines (6'3", 210), Walsh (6'4", 225), and Juan Cruz (6'5", 240), They can't all play, so whoever provides the most thump will be the one to lift himself up to the majors.
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Note that the number before a player's name indicates their draft position. For example, "2-50" would indicate that a player was taken in the second round with the fiftieth overall pick.
1-1: SS Eli Willits, Fort Cobb-Broxton HS [OK]
Slot value: $11.08 million. Signing bonus: $8.2 million ($2.88 million below slot value).
My rank: #2. MLB Pipeline: #5. Baseball America: #3.
With their first pick, the Nationals went all-in on a young shortstop from a small town in Oklahoma, and they got him at a big discount. Eli Willits' $8.2 million signing bonus, while the third largest in the class behind Ethan Holliday ($9M, Rockies) and Kade Anderson ($8.8M, Mariners), represented just over the value of the #5 pick and netted the Nationals nearly $3 million in savings, the largest under slot bonus of the entire draft. Willits is a stud and has a chance to grow into a star. The son of former Angels outfielder Reggie Willits, Eli brings the mature feel for the game you'd expect from a coach's son at an extremely young age. Having reclassified up into the 2025 class, he was the age of a high school junior and anywhere from six months to a year and a half younger than the rest of his high school graduating class. Still, he can play with the best of them. He is a switch hitter who repeats a simple operation in the box from both sides of the plate, enabling him to execute his attack plan as consistently as anybody at that age. His accurate barrel shoots line drives around the field and has constantly performed not just against elite competition on the showcase circuit, but against much older elite competition on the showcase circuit. The innate confidence in the box at his age is uncanny. For now, his power plays closer to fringy as he focuses on line drives and hitting for average, but again, he is just seventeen years old (still, as I write this nearly five months after the draft) and has plenty of room and time to grow into his 6'1" frame. The Nationals will move him at his pace, allowing him to grow into his body and learn to elevate the ball more as the power comes. That should help him project for 15-20 home runs per season, perhaps more if he shifts his approach to become power conscious, but the real draw is that he could flirt with .400 on-base percentages at the big league level. With his above average speed, he has a classic leadoff profile with the power to fill that role in today's modern game. Willits plays shortstop and should stick there, with a polished glove and above average arm that help him steadily make all of the plays that come his way. There are four above average or better tools here combined with the baseball IQ to make all of it play up, and the power is coming too. The kid from tiny Fort Cobb, Oklahoma (population 518, some sixty miles southwest of Oklahoma City) should grow into a steady leader that will pace the Nationals for years to come.
My rank: #2. MLB Pipeline: #5. Baseball America: #3.
With their first pick, the Nationals went all-in on a young shortstop from a small town in Oklahoma, and they got him at a big discount. Eli Willits' $8.2 million signing bonus, while the third largest in the class behind Ethan Holliday ($9M, Rockies) and Kade Anderson ($8.8M, Mariners), represented just over the value of the #5 pick and netted the Nationals nearly $3 million in savings, the largest under slot bonus of the entire draft. Willits is a stud and has a chance to grow into a star. The son of former Angels outfielder Reggie Willits, Eli brings the mature feel for the game you'd expect from a coach's son at an extremely young age. Having reclassified up into the 2025 class, he was the age of a high school junior and anywhere from six months to a year and a half younger than the rest of his high school graduating class. Still, he can play with the best of them. He is a switch hitter who repeats a simple operation in the box from both sides of the plate, enabling him to execute his attack plan as consistently as anybody at that age. His accurate barrel shoots line drives around the field and has constantly performed not just against elite competition on the showcase circuit, but against much older elite competition on the showcase circuit. The innate confidence in the box at his age is uncanny. For now, his power plays closer to fringy as he focuses on line drives and hitting for average, but again, he is just seventeen years old (still, as I write this nearly five months after the draft) and has plenty of room and time to grow into his 6'1" frame. The Nationals will move him at his pace, allowing him to grow into his body and learn to elevate the ball more as the power comes. That should help him project for 15-20 home runs per season, perhaps more if he shifts his approach to become power conscious, but the real draw is that he could flirt with .400 on-base percentages at the big league level. With his above average speed, he has a classic leadoff profile with the power to fill that role in today's modern game. Willits plays shortstop and should stick there, with a polished glove and above average arm that help him steadily make all of the plays that come his way. There are four above average or better tools here combined with the baseball IQ to make all of it play up, and the power is coming too. The kid from tiny Fort Cobb, Oklahoma (population 518, some sixty miles southwest of Oklahoma City) should grow into a steady leader that will pace the Nationals for years to come.
2-49: OF Ethan Petry, South Carolina
Slot value: $1.98 million. Signing bonus: $2.09 million ($105,800 above slot value).
My rank: #64. MLB Pipeline: #59. Baseball America: #36.
With millions in potential over slot money to play around with, the Nationals dipped just a little into that pot to bring in one of the best college sluggers of the past couple seasons. Ethan Petry garnered significant draft interest at Cypress Creek High School in the Tampa suburbs, but made it to campus at South Carolina where you could say things went pretty well. He blasted five home runs in his first seven games as a Gamecock and finished his freshman year with 23 while hitting .376/.471/.733 across 63 games and being named Perfect Game's National Freshman of the Year. While he couldn't quite match that success in 2024, he still hit 21 home runs and put up a .471 on-base percentage, then shoulder problems ended his 2025 season early as he finished his South Carolina career with 54 home runs and an impressive .336/.462/.661 slash line over 168 games. Listed at 6'4" and 235 pounds, Petry looks every bit of the slugger he is. Using a no-nonsense operation in the box, he just chucks the barrel at the baseball and sends it soaring, effortlessly showing plus-plus power with elite exit velocities to back up his home run totals. He gets the ball in the air consistently and always seems to be finding the barrel, making for one of the more daunting at bats in the country for pitchers. For that reason, Petry has rarely seen good pitches to hit especially over the last two seasons, helping him run high walk rates despite a propensity to chase. The bat to ball is average, so if he can stay in the strike zone more consistently (which should be easier as pro pitchers give him more to hit), he has a chance to hit for decent averages and strong on-base percentages with all those home runs. In fact, he demolished Cape Cod League pitching in 2024 to the tune of a .360/.480/.760 slash line with 11 home runs in 31 games, so between the Cape and the SEC he is no stranger to elite pitching. Though he was drafted as an outfielder, Petry is a well below average athlete who doesn't run much and will be limited to first base at best, if not to DH later in his career. There is something of a Pete Alonso comp here if he can put it all together and keep the strikeouts down.
Slot value: $1.98 million. Signing bonus: $2.09 million ($105,800 above slot value).
My rank: #64. MLB Pipeline: #59. Baseball America: #36.
With millions in potential over slot money to play around with, the Nationals dipped just a little into that pot to bring in one of the best college sluggers of the past couple seasons. Ethan Petry garnered significant draft interest at Cypress Creek High School in the Tampa suburbs, but made it to campus at South Carolina where you could say things went pretty well. He blasted five home runs in his first seven games as a Gamecock and finished his freshman year with 23 while hitting .376/.471/.733 across 63 games and being named Perfect Game's National Freshman of the Year. While he couldn't quite match that success in 2024, he still hit 21 home runs and put up a .471 on-base percentage, then shoulder problems ended his 2025 season early as he finished his South Carolina career with 54 home runs and an impressive .336/.462/.661 slash line over 168 games. Listed at 6'4" and 235 pounds, Petry looks every bit of the slugger he is. Using a no-nonsense operation in the box, he just chucks the barrel at the baseball and sends it soaring, effortlessly showing plus-plus power with elite exit velocities to back up his home run totals. He gets the ball in the air consistently and always seems to be finding the barrel, making for one of the more daunting at bats in the country for pitchers. For that reason, Petry has rarely seen good pitches to hit especially over the last two seasons, helping him run high walk rates despite a propensity to chase. The bat to ball is average, so if he can stay in the strike zone more consistently (which should be easier as pro pitchers give him more to hit), he has a chance to hit for decent averages and strong on-base percentages with all those home runs. In fact, he demolished Cape Cod League pitching in 2024 to the tune of a .360/.480/.760 slash line with 11 home runs in 31 games, so between the Cape and the SEC he is no stranger to elite pitching. Though he was drafted as an outfielder, Petry is a well below average athlete who doesn't run much and will be limited to first base at best, if not to DH later in his career. There is something of a Pete Alonso comp here if he can put it all together and keep the strikeouts down.
3-80: RHP Landon Harmon, East Union HS [MS]
Slot value: $1.01 million. Signing bonus: $2.5 million ($1.49 million above slot value).
My rank: #41. MLB Pipeline: #48. Baseball America: #65.
Two years ago, the Nationals dropped a massive bonus on prep arm Travis Sykora in the third round, which has worked out very well so far. They did it again here with savings from Eli Willits, handing Landon Harmon roughly the value of the #39 pick to sign here at #80 rather than attend Mississippi State. The upside here is hard to match, especially in the third round. This is a profile led by an electric fastball, one that sits in the low to mid 90's and touches 99 at peak with cutting action. While the shape is fairly ordinary, he does come from a low release that puts flat plane on the pitch and helps it zip over bats. He has yet to find much consistency with his breaking stuff, though his slider has flashed plus at its best with nasty late snap and could become a true putaway weapon as he hones his feel for the pitch. His curveball can get slurvy but has the makings of an average pitch. Similarly, his changeup has shown nice run at times, but he can drop his arm and give hitters a better look. Above all, the 6'5" righty is an explosive athlete with one of the more impressive deliveries in the prep class. He moves extremely well on the mound with an elastic delivery that efficiently generates power and will be very conducive to even further strength gains as he fills out that extremely projectable frame. The command is not yet pinpoint, but he stays around the zone pretty well considering how electric his arm is, and he should get to average command as he works up. While far from a finished product, Harmon has exceptional building blocks to develop into a frontline starter at the big league level. The Nationals will move him slowly, fine tuning his offspeed stuff and helping him put on weight to potentially start touching triple digits. Like Willits, he comes from a small town in northeastern Mississippi and should rocket forward in the Nationals' system, much like Sykora.
Slot value: $1.01 million. Signing bonus: $2.5 million ($1.49 million above slot value).
My rank: #41. MLB Pipeline: #48. Baseball America: #65.
Two years ago, the Nationals dropped a massive bonus on prep arm Travis Sykora in the third round, which has worked out very well so far. They did it again here with savings from Eli Willits, handing Landon Harmon roughly the value of the #39 pick to sign here at #80 rather than attend Mississippi State. The upside here is hard to match, especially in the third round. This is a profile led by an electric fastball, one that sits in the low to mid 90's and touches 99 at peak with cutting action. While the shape is fairly ordinary, he does come from a low release that puts flat plane on the pitch and helps it zip over bats. He has yet to find much consistency with his breaking stuff, though his slider has flashed plus at its best with nasty late snap and could become a true putaway weapon as he hones his feel for the pitch. His curveball can get slurvy but has the makings of an average pitch. Similarly, his changeup has shown nice run at times, but he can drop his arm and give hitters a better look. Above all, the 6'5" righty is an explosive athlete with one of the more impressive deliveries in the prep class. He moves extremely well on the mound with an elastic delivery that efficiently generates power and will be very conducive to even further strength gains as he fills out that extremely projectable frame. The command is not yet pinpoint, but he stays around the zone pretty well considering how electric his arm is, and he should get to average command as he works up. While far from a finished product, Harmon has exceptional building blocks to develop into a frontline starter at the big league level. The Nationals will move him slowly, fine tuning his offspeed stuff and helping him put on weight to potentially start touching triple digits. Like Willits, he comes from a small town in northeastern Mississippi and should rocket forward in the Nationals' system, much like Sykora.
4-111: RHP Miguel Sime Jr., Poly Prep HS [NY]
Slot value: $687,800. Signing bonus: $2 million ($1.31 million above slot value).
My rank: #92. MLB Pipeline: #86. Baseball America: #88.
With the other half of their savings from Eli Willits, Washington roped in an arm just as electric as Landon Harmon. A Queens native coming from the Brooklyn prep ranks, Miguel Sime completely shut down New York City high school pitching to nearly a comical degree with his blazing fastball. Coming in even harder than Harmon's, it sits mid to upper 90's and set an MLB Draft League record by touching 101 miles per hour. With its riding action, it comes in like a rocket ship and could be an 80 grade pitch when all is said and done. For now, as with Harmon, it's the fastball that carries the profile. His breaking ball is still searching for its identity working between slider and curveball shape, flashing plus at its best with hard bite down but frequently backing up into a fringy offering. He has shown some aptitude for a fading changeup, and while it will need significant refinement, he does have a nice foundation. The 6'4" righty is already extremely physical and clocks in at 235 pounds as an eighteen year old, so while he may lack much projection at this point, the arm strength is already off the charts. Washington will work to help him streamline a delivery that features some effort and head whack and long arm action in the back, which often impacts his command especially inside and outside. There is of course significant reliever risk considering the command and his lack of consistent secondary pitches, but the upside is tremendous as a triple digit flamethrower who has shown flashes of quality secondary stuff. The Nationals will move him slowly and work on one thing at a time as he climbs the rungs. Previously committed to LSU, his $2 million signing bonus roughly fit in with the slot value for Ethan Petry's #49 pick.
Slot value: $687,800. Signing bonus: $2 million ($1.31 million above slot value).
My rank: #92. MLB Pipeline: #86. Baseball America: #88.
With the other half of their savings from Eli Willits, Washington roped in an arm just as electric as Landon Harmon. A Queens native coming from the Brooklyn prep ranks, Miguel Sime completely shut down New York City high school pitching to nearly a comical degree with his blazing fastball. Coming in even harder than Harmon's, it sits mid to upper 90's and set an MLB Draft League record by touching 101 miles per hour. With its riding action, it comes in like a rocket ship and could be an 80 grade pitch when all is said and done. For now, as with Harmon, it's the fastball that carries the profile. His breaking ball is still searching for its identity working between slider and curveball shape, flashing plus at its best with hard bite down but frequently backing up into a fringy offering. He has shown some aptitude for a fading changeup, and while it will need significant refinement, he does have a nice foundation. The 6'4" righty is already extremely physical and clocks in at 235 pounds as an eighteen year old, so while he may lack much projection at this point, the arm strength is already off the charts. Washington will work to help him streamline a delivery that features some effort and head whack and long arm action in the back, which often impacts his command especially inside and outside. There is of course significant reliever risk considering the command and his lack of consistent secondary pitches, but the upside is tremendous as a triple digit flamethrower who has shown flashes of quality secondary stuff. The Nationals will move him slowly and work on one thing at a time as he climbs the rungs. Previously committed to LSU, his $2 million signing bonus roughly fit in with the slot value for Ethan Petry's #49 pick.
5-142: SS Coy James, Davie County HS [NC]
Slot value: $508,900. Signing bonus: $2.5 million ($1.99 million above slot value).
My rank: #69. MLB Pipeline: #94. Baseball America: #49.
The over slot bonuses keep on flowing, and this time Washington went back to the prep shortstop demographic for Coy James. To pry him away from Ole Miss, they hit him with the same $2.5 million signing bonus they gave third rounder Landon Harmon, close to the value of the #39 pick and roughly five times the slot value for the #142 pick. James, for whatever reason, has driven a wide discrepancy in opinions over the course of the draft cycle. He's fairly raw, but the tools are there. The North Carolina native has strong bat to ball that enables him to get to balls all over and outside the zone, shooting line drives with authority to all fields. While he's not huge at a pretty standard 6', 185 pounds, James packs plenty of strength into his skinnier frame to show average power when he stays within himself, with a tight right handed swing that wastes little movement. He can also let loose and turn on the ball for above average power if he chooses to, though he is borrowing from his contact ability when he does that. James does have a relatively aggressive approach at the plate that causes his offensive profile to play down at times, which was the case last summer on the showcase circuit after standing out as a potential first rounder early in his high school career. At this point, there are many directions he could develop in offensively, from an aggressive power-over-hit guy who can crush 20+ home runs per season with low on-base percentages to more of a balanced profile with 10-15 home runs per season and higher batting averages. That would seem to be Jonathan Schoop or Danny Espinosa (offensively) at one end or perhaps a Chris Taylor/Starlin Castro deal on the other. Defensively, opinions are split on James as well. Washington drafted him as a shortstop, though not all scouts agree that he has the quickness to stick at that key position depending on the day they saw him. He has good hands in the dirt and enough arm to make the left side of the infield work, though the profile may fit better at second or third base especially when sharing a draft class with Eli Willits. There are some who like him better in the outfield, where he may end up in a corner. To me, the most likely outcome is that of a bat-first second baseman who relies on power and contact to drive an offensive profile that won't feature a ton of walks.
Slot value: $508,900. Signing bonus: $2.5 million ($1.99 million above slot value).
My rank: #69. MLB Pipeline: #94. Baseball America: #49.
The over slot bonuses keep on flowing, and this time Washington went back to the prep shortstop demographic for Coy James. To pry him away from Ole Miss, they hit him with the same $2.5 million signing bonus they gave third rounder Landon Harmon, close to the value of the #39 pick and roughly five times the slot value for the #142 pick. James, for whatever reason, has driven a wide discrepancy in opinions over the course of the draft cycle. He's fairly raw, but the tools are there. The North Carolina native has strong bat to ball that enables him to get to balls all over and outside the zone, shooting line drives with authority to all fields. While he's not huge at a pretty standard 6', 185 pounds, James packs plenty of strength into his skinnier frame to show average power when he stays within himself, with a tight right handed swing that wastes little movement. He can also let loose and turn on the ball for above average power if he chooses to, though he is borrowing from his contact ability when he does that. James does have a relatively aggressive approach at the plate that causes his offensive profile to play down at times, which was the case last summer on the showcase circuit after standing out as a potential first rounder early in his high school career. At this point, there are many directions he could develop in offensively, from an aggressive power-over-hit guy who can crush 20+ home runs per season with low on-base percentages to more of a balanced profile with 10-15 home runs per season and higher batting averages. That would seem to be Jonathan Schoop or Danny Espinosa (offensively) at one end or perhaps a Chris Taylor/Starlin Castro deal on the other. Defensively, opinions are split on James as well. Washington drafted him as a shortstop, though not all scouts agree that he has the quickness to stick at that key position depending on the day they saw him. He has good hands in the dirt and enough arm to make the left side of the infield work, though the profile may fit better at second or third base especially when sharing a draft class with Eli Willits. There are some who like him better in the outfield, where he may end up in a corner. To me, the most likely outcome is that of a bat-first second baseman who relies on power and contact to drive an offensive profile that won't feature a ton of walks.
6-171: C Boston Smith, Wright State
Slot value: $386,700. Signing bonus: $50,000 ($336,700 below slot value).
My rank: unranked. MLB Pipeline: unranked. Baseball America: unranked.
Just about out of bonus pool money, it came time to save and for Washington that began with sixth rounder Boston Smith. Above all else, power is the name of the game here. He has clubbed 45 home runs in 113 games over the past two seasons at Wright State, including smashing the single season Wright State and Horizon League records with 26 home runs in 2025, a total that tied Reds fourth rounder Mason Neville (Oregon) for the NCAA Division I lead. In all, he hit .332/.500/.774 as he led the Raiders to a regional appearance in Nashville. Unsurprisingly, Smith has plus power that plays up in games because he gets on plane with the ball early and builds his swing to launch the ball to the pull side. He primarily works in the air to right field and shoots line drives up the middle, an approach that played extremely well in the Horizon League against admittedly mediocre pitching. A very disciplined hitter, he walked over 20% of the time in 2025 and carried that into the MLB Draft League, where he hit .226/.391/.434 with an 18.8% walk rate with wood bats. The pure bat to ball is below average and pro pitchers will attack Smith inside the strike zone, where he'll have to keep making quality contact as he faces better and better stuff. That will be the primary key in his development. In a really tough early season eleven game stretch of games against Auburn, Miami, Ole Miss, and NC State, he hit .270/.413/.351 with just one home run and a 32.6% strikeout rate. Behind the plate, the Dayton-area product showcases a strong arm that threw out nine of 24 attempted stolen bases in the Draft League. While he was exclusively a catcher for the Raiders this spring, he has seen time all over the field including at shortstop and stole sixteen bases for them this year. In all, Smith brings power, patience, and defensive versatility to the team, but as a senior sign who has not shown a mastery of the all important in-zone contact metric against better pitching, he'll need to clean that aspect of his game up quickly.
Slot value: $386,700. Signing bonus: $50,000 ($336,700 below slot value).
My rank: unranked. MLB Pipeline: unranked. Baseball America: unranked.
Just about out of bonus pool money, it came time to save and for Washington that began with sixth rounder Boston Smith. Above all else, power is the name of the game here. He has clubbed 45 home runs in 113 games over the past two seasons at Wright State, including smashing the single season Wright State and Horizon League records with 26 home runs in 2025, a total that tied Reds fourth rounder Mason Neville (Oregon) for the NCAA Division I lead. In all, he hit .332/.500/.774 as he led the Raiders to a regional appearance in Nashville. Unsurprisingly, Smith has plus power that plays up in games because he gets on plane with the ball early and builds his swing to launch the ball to the pull side. He primarily works in the air to right field and shoots line drives up the middle, an approach that played extremely well in the Horizon League against admittedly mediocre pitching. A very disciplined hitter, he walked over 20% of the time in 2025 and carried that into the MLB Draft League, where he hit .226/.391/.434 with an 18.8% walk rate with wood bats. The pure bat to ball is below average and pro pitchers will attack Smith inside the strike zone, where he'll have to keep making quality contact as he faces better and better stuff. That will be the primary key in his development. In a really tough early season eleven game stretch of games against Auburn, Miami, Ole Miss, and NC State, he hit .270/.413/.351 with just one home run and a 32.6% strikeout rate. Behind the plate, the Dayton-area product showcases a strong arm that threw out nine of 24 attempted stolen bases in the Draft League. While he was exclusively a catcher for the Raiders this spring, he has seen time all over the field including at shortstop and stole sixteen bases for them this year. In all, Smith brings power, patience, and defensive versatility to the team, but as a senior sign who has not shown a mastery of the all important in-zone contact metric against better pitching, he'll need to clean that aspect of his game up quickly.
10-291: 1B Hunter Hines, Mississippi State
Slot value: $193,800. Signing bonus: $5,000 ($188,800 below slot value).
My rank: unranked. MLB Pipeline: unranked. Baseball America: unranked.
Hunter Hines is a case study in how draft stock can fluctuate. He was not exactly the centerpiece of Mississippi State's 2021 recruiting class, but he burst onto the scene with a huge freshman year in 2022 in which he slashed .300/.393/.600 with 16 home runs for the Rebels, earning Freshman All-American honors from some outlets and making a name for himself in the SEC practically overnight. He blasted 22 more home runs in 2023 and was named First Team All-SEC as a sophomore, then entered his junior season as a potential top-five rounds pick. He hit 16 more home runs, but swing and miss caught up to him and he went undrafted despite ranking well on some boards. Hitting exactly 16 home runs for the third time in four years in 2025, Hines failed to rebuild his draft stock and signed with the Nationals for just $5,000 as a senior sign. In the end, he ended up breaking Rafael Palmeiro's forty year old Mississippi State home run record and finished with 70 bombs and 221 RBI in 228 games. Obviously, the calling card is power. Listed at 6'3", 210 pounds, he looks every bit of it and clobbers baseballs with great force, showing plus power that he has gotten to both in SEC games and with wood bats in the Cape Cod League, where his thirteen regular season home runs in 2023 set the league's single season record. He's a pull hitter that loves to launch the ball in the air, an approach that has worked well for him so far but may start to crack in pro ball. Hines is an aggressive hitter who, despite being a premier power threat and Mississippi State's all time home run record, holds a modest 11.7% career walk rate that admittedly reached a career-high 13.2% in 2025. Still, that is primarily a factor of pitchers not giving him much to hit rather than patience on his part. Hines also has below average bat to ball and has struck out in over a quarter of his at bats over his four years, though again he had modest improvement to 24% in 2025. The Jackson-area native will need significant polish all around his hit tool if he wants to tap that power in pro ball, furthering the gains he's made with discipline outside the zone while making more contact in the zone. He has enough power that he should be able to employ a more contact-oriented approach while still bringing thump, but it's a long way to go for a senior sign who turned 23 at the start of this offseason. He's also a non-athlete who will be limited to first base and potentially DH down the line, a position he'll have to fight off against Ethan Petry and Jacob Walsh in this draft class as well as many others in the Nationals' system. If Hines can clean up his hit tool, he has a chance to be a platoon bat in the mold of Matt Adams at his best.
Slot value: $193,800. Signing bonus: $5,000 ($188,800 below slot value).
My rank: unranked. MLB Pipeline: unranked. Baseball America: unranked.
Hunter Hines is a case study in how draft stock can fluctuate. He was not exactly the centerpiece of Mississippi State's 2021 recruiting class, but he burst onto the scene with a huge freshman year in 2022 in which he slashed .300/.393/.600 with 16 home runs for the Rebels, earning Freshman All-American honors from some outlets and making a name for himself in the SEC practically overnight. He blasted 22 more home runs in 2023 and was named First Team All-SEC as a sophomore, then entered his junior season as a potential top-five rounds pick. He hit 16 more home runs, but swing and miss caught up to him and he went undrafted despite ranking well on some boards. Hitting exactly 16 home runs for the third time in four years in 2025, Hines failed to rebuild his draft stock and signed with the Nationals for just $5,000 as a senior sign. In the end, he ended up breaking Rafael Palmeiro's forty year old Mississippi State home run record and finished with 70 bombs and 221 RBI in 228 games. Obviously, the calling card is power. Listed at 6'3", 210 pounds, he looks every bit of it and clobbers baseballs with great force, showing plus power that he has gotten to both in SEC games and with wood bats in the Cape Cod League, where his thirteen regular season home runs in 2023 set the league's single season record. He's a pull hitter that loves to launch the ball in the air, an approach that has worked well for him so far but may start to crack in pro ball. Hines is an aggressive hitter who, despite being a premier power threat and Mississippi State's all time home run record, holds a modest 11.7% career walk rate that admittedly reached a career-high 13.2% in 2025. Still, that is primarily a factor of pitchers not giving him much to hit rather than patience on his part. Hines also has below average bat to ball and has struck out in over a quarter of his at bats over his four years, though again he had modest improvement to 24% in 2025. The Jackson-area native will need significant polish all around his hit tool if he wants to tap that power in pro ball, furthering the gains he's made with discipline outside the zone while making more contact in the zone. He has enough power that he should be able to employ a more contact-oriented approach while still bringing thump, but it's a long way to go for a senior sign who turned 23 at the start of this offseason. He's also a non-athlete who will be limited to first base and potentially DH down the line, a position he'll have to fight off against Ethan Petry and Jacob Walsh in this draft class as well as many others in the Nationals' system. If Hines can clean up his hit tool, he has a chance to be a platoon bat in the mold of Matt Adams at his best.
11-321: OF Jack Moroknek, Butler
Slot value: up to $150,000. Signing bonus: $200,000 ($50,000 against bonus pool).
My rank: unranked. MLB Pipeline: unranked. Baseball America: #396.
You don't see many 22 year olds sign above slot value, but Jack Moroknek has only played two years of college ball and had a transfer commitment to Texas in hand to push up his price. He did not appear in a college game until 2024, when he was already nearly 21 years old, but in the last two seasons he has demolished Big East pitching to the tune of 31 home runs and a .350/.427/.646 slash line over 109 games. He started off the 2025 season red hot, hitting .494/.537/1.037 with a dozen home runs through his first 21 games, and while he couldn't quite maintain that pace, the impression had been made. Moroknek has plus-plus raw power from a violent left handed operation in which he brute forces baseballs into the atmosphere. While power is certainly the calling card, the bat to ball is sneaky here. He is a very aggressive hitter who would not allow Big East pitchers to pitch around him, attacking balls in the shadow zone just outside the strike zone and doing so with success. Despite the chase-heavy approach, he ran a moderate 16.2% strikeout rate and showed the ability to get to balls all around the plate. He was, unsurprisingly, at his best inside the strike zone where he rarely let a strike get by him, doing some of the best damage in the country when pitchers came into his wheelhouse. The Indianapolis-area native has a pull-heavy approach that features an exaggerated step in the bucket, so while it has been no issue at all against Butler's relatively weak schedule, pro pitchers will be more apt to take advantage and draw him out of that wheelhouse. Moroknek's combination of power and bat to ball is nonetheless impressive and gives the new regime plenty to work with, so if he can shore up the approach a little bit, he could seriously outplay his draft position as an everyday lineup option. He has almost exclusively played the corners at Butler and figures to stay that way in pro ball, slotting into left or right field depending on where the Nationals need him.
Slot value: up to $150,000. Signing bonus: $200,000 ($50,000 against bonus pool).
My rank: unranked. MLB Pipeline: unranked. Baseball America: #396.
You don't see many 22 year olds sign above slot value, but Jack Moroknek has only played two years of college ball and had a transfer commitment to Texas in hand to push up his price. He did not appear in a college game until 2024, when he was already nearly 21 years old, but in the last two seasons he has demolished Big East pitching to the tune of 31 home runs and a .350/.427/.646 slash line over 109 games. He started off the 2025 season red hot, hitting .494/.537/1.037 with a dozen home runs through his first 21 games, and while he couldn't quite maintain that pace, the impression had been made. Moroknek has plus-plus raw power from a violent left handed operation in which he brute forces baseballs into the atmosphere. While power is certainly the calling card, the bat to ball is sneaky here. He is a very aggressive hitter who would not allow Big East pitchers to pitch around him, attacking balls in the shadow zone just outside the strike zone and doing so with success. Despite the chase-heavy approach, he ran a moderate 16.2% strikeout rate and showed the ability to get to balls all around the plate. He was, unsurprisingly, at his best inside the strike zone where he rarely let a strike get by him, doing some of the best damage in the country when pitchers came into his wheelhouse. The Indianapolis-area native has a pull-heavy approach that features an exaggerated step in the bucket, so while it has been no issue at all against Butler's relatively weak schedule, pro pitchers will be more apt to take advantage and draw him out of that wheelhouse. Moroknek's combination of power and bat to ball is nonetheless impressive and gives the new regime plenty to work with, so if he can shore up the approach a little bit, he could seriously outplay his draft position as an everyday lineup option. He has almost exclusively played the corners at Butler and figures to stay that way in pro ball, slotting into left or right field depending on where the Nationals need him.
12-351: LHP Ben Moore, Old Dominion
Slot value: up to $150,000. Signing bonus: $150,000.
My rank: unranked. MLB Pipeline: #237. Baseball America: #243.
Round twelve saw the Nationals pull in a local kid from Frederick County, one who grew up less than ten miles away from current Nationals infielder Trey Lipscomb. A graduate of Linganore High School about nine miles east of Frederick, Ben Moore has had an up and down career at Old Dominion down in Virginia. Immediately a trusted reliever as a freshman, he was lights out as a sophomore in 2024 (2.68 ERA, 0.86 WHIP, 39/11 K/BB) before intriguing scouts with a loud fall ahead of his junior season. A move to the rotation did not go as well as hoped as his ERA ballooned to 6.64 ERA, his WHIP to 1.66, his strikeout rate dropped from 27.7% to 19.1%, and his walk rate jumped from 7.8% to 10.4% in 2025. Still, Washington saw what he could do at his best and wants the talented lefty on their side. Moore sits in the low 90's as a starter and can reach back for 97 in short stints out of the bullpen, coming in with sinking action from a high slot. He works his above average slider around the zone well with nice finish, while his changeup is more of a third pitch. Moore has shown average command on his best days but has lost it on others, especially when trying to stretch out deeper into games, so it probably profiles as fringy right now. The 6'4" lefty is built like a big league starter and does not throw with a lot of effort, aiding his chances at starting, but he'll need to learn to repeat his delivery a bit better and his arm slot does have the tendency to wander, anywhere from straight over the top to low three quarters. While that can be something some amateur pitchers do in order to mess with hitters' sight lines (I'm guilty of it myself, having once finished off a save in a men's league game by dropping to submarine), you don't see it much in pro ball. If Moore can get more consistent with his command and bring his changeup along, he has a chance to be a back-end starter, or in the bullpen he could live in the mid 90's and let his sinker/slider combination go to work.
Slot value: up to $150,000. Signing bonus: $150,000.
My rank: unranked. MLB Pipeline: #237. Baseball America: #243.
Round twelve saw the Nationals pull in a local kid from Frederick County, one who grew up less than ten miles away from current Nationals infielder Trey Lipscomb. A graduate of Linganore High School about nine miles east of Frederick, Ben Moore has had an up and down career at Old Dominion down in Virginia. Immediately a trusted reliever as a freshman, he was lights out as a sophomore in 2024 (2.68 ERA, 0.86 WHIP, 39/11 K/BB) before intriguing scouts with a loud fall ahead of his junior season. A move to the rotation did not go as well as hoped as his ERA ballooned to 6.64 ERA, his WHIP to 1.66, his strikeout rate dropped from 27.7% to 19.1%, and his walk rate jumped from 7.8% to 10.4% in 2025. Still, Washington saw what he could do at his best and wants the talented lefty on their side. Moore sits in the low 90's as a starter and can reach back for 97 in short stints out of the bullpen, coming in with sinking action from a high slot. He works his above average slider around the zone well with nice finish, while his changeup is more of a third pitch. Moore has shown average command on his best days but has lost it on others, especially when trying to stretch out deeper into games, so it probably profiles as fringy right now. The 6'4" lefty is built like a big league starter and does not throw with a lot of effort, aiding his chances at starting, but he'll need to learn to repeat his delivery a bit better and his arm slot does have the tendency to wander, anywhere from straight over the top to low three quarters. While that can be something some amateur pitchers do in order to mess with hitters' sight lines (I'm guilty of it myself, having once finished off a save in a men's league game by dropping to submarine), you don't see it much in pro ball. If Moore can get more consistent with his command and bring his changeup along, he has a chance to be a back-end starter, or in the bullpen he could live in the mid 90's and let his sinker/slider combination go to work.
13-381: RHP Tucker Biven, Louisville
Slot value: up to $150,000. Signing bonus: $150,000.
My rank: unranked. MLB Pipeline: unranked. Baseball America: #347.
Tucker Biven is a big arm to give the Nationals a buy-low opportunity. A three year contributor on the Louisville pitching staff, he has made 63 appearances (nine starts) during his time with the Cardinals and earned stints with the US Collegiate National Team and in the Cape Cod League. The stuff is absolutely there. His fastball sits low 90's as a starter and can touch 97 in short stints, coming in with plenty run and sink to avoid hard contact. He has a hard upper 80's slider that stands out more for its power than its movement, showing the tendency to back up at times but at others looking like a reliable weapon. He adds a curveball and changeup that he uses less, but with the way the ball runs out of his hand, the Nationals should be able to at least help bring the changeup along. The 6'1" righty is very physical and looks the part of a big league pitcher, and while he lacks projection, he should be durable enough to handle a full season in the majors. With a late arm and some effort in his delivery, Biven is more control over command, attacking hitters in the zone to stay ahead in the count rather than pinpointing his pitches to the corners. That led to a concerningly low 17.9% strikeout rate in 2025, often getting hit when he left pitches over the plate and lacking the command or quality offspeed stuff to get too many chases down out of the zone. To develop as a starter, the local Louisville-area native will need to get more consistent with his secondary stuff and deepen the arsenal overall, which in turn will help him miss more bats in the zone. Getting on time with his delivery and sharpening that command a touch would also go a long way. More likely, he looks like a sinker/slider reliever who can sit mid 90's in short stints and provide a quality bullpen arm for Washington.
Slot value: up to $150,000. Signing bonus: $150,000.
My rank: unranked. MLB Pipeline: unranked. Baseball America: #347.
Tucker Biven is a big arm to give the Nationals a buy-low opportunity. A three year contributor on the Louisville pitching staff, he has made 63 appearances (nine starts) during his time with the Cardinals and earned stints with the US Collegiate National Team and in the Cape Cod League. The stuff is absolutely there. His fastball sits low 90's as a starter and can touch 97 in short stints, coming in with plenty run and sink to avoid hard contact. He has a hard upper 80's slider that stands out more for its power than its movement, showing the tendency to back up at times but at others looking like a reliable weapon. He adds a curveball and changeup that he uses less, but with the way the ball runs out of his hand, the Nationals should be able to at least help bring the changeup along. The 6'1" righty is very physical and looks the part of a big league pitcher, and while he lacks projection, he should be durable enough to handle a full season in the majors. With a late arm and some effort in his delivery, Biven is more control over command, attacking hitters in the zone to stay ahead in the count rather than pinpointing his pitches to the corners. That led to a concerningly low 17.9% strikeout rate in 2025, often getting hit when he left pitches over the plate and lacking the command or quality offspeed stuff to get too many chases down out of the zone. To develop as a starter, the local Louisville-area native will need to get more consistent with his secondary stuff and deepen the arsenal overall, which in turn will help him miss more bats in the zone. Getting on time with his delivery and sharpening that command a touch would also go a long way. More likely, he looks like a sinker/slider reliever who can sit mid 90's in short stints and provide a quality bullpen arm for Washington.
15-441: 1B Jacob Walsh, Oregon
Slot value: up to $150,000. Signing bonus: $150,000.
My rank: unranked. MLB Pipeline: unranked. Baseball America: unranked.
Jacob Walsh gives the Nationals a third power hitting first baseman. After earning some Freshman All-American looks in 2022, he blasted sixteen, eighteen, and nineteen home runs over the past three seasons. He actually set Oregon's all time home run record halfway through his junior season, then played his senior season and finished with 59, nearly double Tanner Smith's previous record of 31. Additionally, he has improved as a hitter every season, bumping his slash line from .241/.302/.500 as a sophomore to .254/.348/.548 as a junior to .332/.435/.651 this year as a senior. Previously an extremely aggressive hitter, he has toned down his approach to simply moderately aggressive and bumped his walk rate from 7.8% as a freshman to 11.6% as a junior to 13.0% as a senior. Staying in the strike zone has helped him tremendously improve his contact rates, so his strikeout rate had a corresponding drop from 29.4% to 26.2% to 18.1%. That helps him improve from a 30 grade hit tool to more of a 40, which is playable with the power he possesses. Listed at 6'4", 225 pounds, Walsh generates tremendous torque with his left handed swing to lift and launch baseballs deep into the night, stinging line drives at equally impressive rates that might leave opposing first and second basemen getting set a few steps back out of self preservation. Even with his improvement, it's unlikely that Walsh possesses the approach and bat to ball to play every day in the big leagues at a position like first base where the offensive bar is very high, profiling more as a platoon bat that can torch right handed pitchers. I compared Hunter Hines to Matt Adams, and I think a very similar projection applies for Walsh. Unlike Hines and Ethan Petry, the other big swinging first basemen drafted earlier, Walsh is a fairly lithe defender around the bag and should be a net positive there. The Las Vegas native is a pretty good athlete for his size and stole eight bases in 2025, showing the defensive awareness to make numerous impressive plays along the first base wall and dugout during his time in Eugene. At first base, it's all about who provides the most impact in the lineup, but showing a slicker glove than most can only help.
Slot value: up to $150,000. Signing bonus: $150,000.
My rank: unranked. MLB Pipeline: unranked. Baseball America: unranked.
Jacob Walsh gives the Nationals a third power hitting first baseman. After earning some Freshman All-American looks in 2022, he blasted sixteen, eighteen, and nineteen home runs over the past three seasons. He actually set Oregon's all time home run record halfway through his junior season, then played his senior season and finished with 59, nearly double Tanner Smith's previous record of 31. Additionally, he has improved as a hitter every season, bumping his slash line from .241/.302/.500 as a sophomore to .254/.348/.548 as a junior to .332/.435/.651 this year as a senior. Previously an extremely aggressive hitter, he has toned down his approach to simply moderately aggressive and bumped his walk rate from 7.8% as a freshman to 11.6% as a junior to 13.0% as a senior. Staying in the strike zone has helped him tremendously improve his contact rates, so his strikeout rate had a corresponding drop from 29.4% to 26.2% to 18.1%. That helps him improve from a 30 grade hit tool to more of a 40, which is playable with the power he possesses. Listed at 6'4", 225 pounds, Walsh generates tremendous torque with his left handed swing to lift and launch baseballs deep into the night, stinging line drives at equally impressive rates that might leave opposing first and second basemen getting set a few steps back out of self preservation. Even with his improvement, it's unlikely that Walsh possesses the approach and bat to ball to play every day in the big leagues at a position like first base where the offensive bar is very high, profiling more as a platoon bat that can torch right handed pitchers. I compared Hunter Hines to Matt Adams, and I think a very similar projection applies for Walsh. Unlike Hines and Ethan Petry, the other big swinging first basemen drafted earlier, Walsh is a fairly lithe defender around the bag and should be a net positive there. The Las Vegas native is a pretty good athlete for his size and stole eight bases in 2025, showing the defensive awareness to make numerous impressive plays along the first base wall and dugout during his time in Eugene. At first base, it's all about who provides the most impact in the lineup, but showing a slicker glove than most can only help.
16-471: LHP Levi Huesman, Vanderbilt
Slot value: up to $150,000. Signing bonus: $150,000.
My rank: unranked. MLB Pipeline: unranked. Baseball America: unranked.
A second hometown lefty for this class, Levi Huesman brings a high prospect pedigree that is admittedly short on results. A native of Hanover, Virginia about half an hour north of Richmond, Huesman was the top prospect in the state while at Hanover High School but ultimately headed south to Coastal Carolina rather than go pro. While he quickly earned a prominent role on the Chanticleers pitching staff as a freshman, he proved far too hittable and struggled to a 9.36 ERA and transferred to Vanderbilt. In Nashville, he didn't see the mound much over his two years but improved significantly from his sophomore (6.00 ERA, 21.7% / 16.7% K/BB) to his junior (2.81 ERA, 29.9% / 6.0% K/BB) seasons. Huesman stood out for his flat low 90's fastball as a freshman, though at the time his lack of projection was noted as a minor concern. His velocity has largely remained the same three years later, topping out around 96 in short stints, and it has proven hittable when he falls behind in the count. His slider has become a real weapon, coming in with mid 80's velocity and hard, late sweep to miss a ton of bats, and he uses it liberally. He can also turn it over into a curveball in the mid to upper 70's, but the slider is clearly his bread and butter. As was the case three years ago, his changeup remains a fringier option. At this point, the 6' lefty looks like a full time bullpen option as he has neither started a game nor thrown more than two innings at a time since 2023, pitching just 28 innings combined over the last two seasons. Slight of stature, he'll instead be a slider-heavy lefty in the Nationals organization who can hopefully find more success with his flat fastball in a big league development program. Huesman throws from a low slot and has improved his command significantly during his time in college, so if those command gains hold, he could be a quality lefty option in future Nationals bullpens.
Slot value: up to $150,000. Signing bonus: $150,000.
My rank: unranked. MLB Pipeline: unranked. Baseball America: unranked.
A second hometown lefty for this class, Levi Huesman brings a high prospect pedigree that is admittedly short on results. A native of Hanover, Virginia about half an hour north of Richmond, Huesman was the top prospect in the state while at Hanover High School but ultimately headed south to Coastal Carolina rather than go pro. While he quickly earned a prominent role on the Chanticleers pitching staff as a freshman, he proved far too hittable and struggled to a 9.36 ERA and transferred to Vanderbilt. In Nashville, he didn't see the mound much over his two years but improved significantly from his sophomore (6.00 ERA, 21.7% / 16.7% K/BB) to his junior (2.81 ERA, 29.9% / 6.0% K/BB) seasons. Huesman stood out for his flat low 90's fastball as a freshman, though at the time his lack of projection was noted as a minor concern. His velocity has largely remained the same three years later, topping out around 96 in short stints, and it has proven hittable when he falls behind in the count. His slider has become a real weapon, coming in with mid 80's velocity and hard, late sweep to miss a ton of bats, and he uses it liberally. He can also turn it over into a curveball in the mid to upper 70's, but the slider is clearly his bread and butter. As was the case three years ago, his changeup remains a fringier option. At this point, the 6' lefty looks like a full time bullpen option as he has neither started a game nor thrown more than two innings at a time since 2023, pitching just 28 innings combined over the last two seasons. Slight of stature, he'll instead be a slider-heavy lefty in the Nationals organization who can hopefully find more success with his flat fastball in a big league development program. Huesman throws from a low slot and has improved his command significantly during his time in college, so if those command gains hold, he could be a quality lefty option in future Nationals bullpens.
