Prospects To Watch For The Washington Nationals In The 2nd Round As Draft Nears

Winning the draft lottery is great for an organization not only because you get your choice of any prospect in the draft first overall, but also the bonus pool of money that comes with it. The Nationals have roughly 16.6 million dollars to work with in this year’s draft, the 4th most behind only the Mariners, Rays, and Angels. This money becomes an even bigger deal when you factor in the savings the Nats will likely have from the 1st overall pick.

The slot value for first overall in 2025 is about 11 million, a number that would be a record-breaking bonus. However, the MLB Draft is all a numbers game, and with no prospect standing out and having the leverage to demand this high a bonus, The Nats will almost surely save at least a million dollars that can be used on later picks, even more if they choose an underslot prospect such as Eli Willits.

I tell you all this to say that with these savings, the Nats have a great opportunity to strike a deal with a highly ranked prospect and buy them down to their later picks, such as when the Pirates drafted Henry Davis 1st overall underslot in 2021, and bought down Bubba Chandler, a top 20 prospect in the class, to their 3rd round selection.

Here, I will break down some of my favorite possible options for the Nats to buy down to their second selection, the 49th overall pick, in the 2025 MLB Draft.

Minor Savings Targets (1st Overall: Ethan Holliday, Kade Anderson)

If one of Holliday or Anderson is the selection 1st overall for the Nats, they will likely have about 1.5 million dollars in savings to play around with for their later picks. These are prospects who are likely mid-to-late first-round selections, but could drop to the Nats if a deal is struck.

Josh Hammond 3B Wesleyan Christian HS (NC) (MLB.com’s 26th-Ranked Draft Prospect)

Hammond is a name I am praying gets called for the Nationals on draft night, as I think he is heavily undervalued by the general public as a prospect. For starters, he may be the best athlete in the entire class (check out my article about measuring prep prospects’ athleticism in a formula for more on that), boasting an impressive blend of power, arm strength, and run times. He was a 2 way player in high school, with some scouts thinking he may have been better as a pitcher, but he wanted to be a hitter long-term and has proven consistently that he is good enough to be one. In his senior season, he hit .471 with 6 homers in 29 games, racking up 20 extra base hits in total. He showed incredible plate discipline, walking 29 times and striking out only 8, putting his on-base percentage at a whopping .613. In summer ball, an important time for prep prospects as it’s really the only time scouts can get their advanced data from games, he had one of the best combinations of contact skills and power, ranking near the top of the class in hard hit percentage and in-zone contact percentage. The mixture of athleticism plus talent is rare for prep prospects to have, and is why I think he will translate so well to the next level. Most mocks have him in the late-first round or so, meaning the Nats could jump many of those teams in the signing bonus they can afford to offer him, such as they did with Luke Dickerson in last year’s draft.

Jack Bauer LHP Lincoln-Way East HS (IL) (MLB.com’s 44th-Ranked Draft Prospect)

Bauer exploded onto the scene when he hit 103 on the radar gun in a game this spring, a number that would be ridiculous for any pitcher, especially a left-handed prep one. He’s seen his stock rise to about the late-first to early-second round since then, as command issues have limited him from soaring any higher. The concerns are valid, as he has struggled with location in both the summer showcase and spring ball, possibly due to a lack of repetition in his mechanics. You can’t teach the kind of stuff Bauer has though, and the risk of the command issues winning over is well worth the reward of a flamethrowing left-hander. His fastball is his bread and butter, obviously, but he has flashed a solid changeup and slider as well, both of which play off his high heat well. Bauer also has room to grow into his 6’3” frame still, weighing roughly 190 pounds currently, which should allow him to hold his velocity later into his starts than he does now. All in all, it’s a tantalizing package that I would love to see the Nationals take a swing at.

Other names to know: Quentin Young, Xavier Neyens, Slater de Brun

Major Savings Targets (1st Overall: Seth Hernandez, Eli Willits, Etc.)

If practically anyone other than Holliday or Anderson is the Nationals’ selection 1st overall, they will come with some major savings for the club, likely well over 2 million. This would allow them to get really creative with their bonus pool money in the later picks, even snagging a top 15-20 player in the class all the way down at 49.

Kayson Cunningham SS/2B Johnson HS (TX) (MLB.com’s 14th-Ranked Draft Prospect)

Despite being a borderline top 10 ranked prospect in the entire class, I rarely, if ever, see Cunningham mocked in the top 10-15 picks of the draft, often ending up in the back-half of the first round. I understand the size concerns, with him standing at around 5’9”, but pound-for-pound Kayson Cunningham may be the best prospect in the entire class. He displays one of the best hit tools in the draft, ranking near the top in in-zone contact percentage, and has shown some solid raw power as well. His great bat speed and athleticism should allow him to hit up to 20 or so home runs in his prime to go along with a high batting average and on-base percentage. He also happens to be a baserunning threat, posting great run times and having a good head on his shoulders on the basepaths. I believe he is athletic enough and has a strong enough arm to stick at shortstop in pro ball, but many scouts do think he will wind up at second base longterm, where he should be a good defender. Overall, this is an incredible bat and athlete that would be in the conversation to go top 5 if he was just a little bigger. Unless a team in the top 12 or so loves his abilities and grabs him, he could absolutely be in play for the Nats in round 2.

Daniel Pierce SS Mill Creek HS (GA) (MLB.com’s 13th-Ranked Draft Prospect)

Pierce is very similar to Cunningham in that he offers a great combination of hit tool and speed, with Pierce making up for his slightly worse hit tool with his bigger frame and better defense. Pierce is incredible disciplined at the plate, working counts and spraying the ball all over the field versus summer ball and high school pitching. His power grades out about average, likely topping out around 15 home runs in his prime, but he makes up for it in all other aspects of his game. He has plus speed which he makes the most of thanks to great baserunning instincts, and he is fluid at shortstop and a lock to stick there in pro ball. The combination of hit tool, speed, and defense make Pierce an exciting prospect, and if he can add more power as he grows into his frame, look out. I’ve seen Pierce mocked anywhere between 12th overall and the late-first round, so if you see him still on the board entering the end of the first, watch out for the Nats to call his name.

Other names to know: Kruz Schoolcraft, Steele Hall