Picking up where we left off, here are Washington’s nos. 16 through 31 in the 2014 Baseball America Prospect Handbook:
| 16. Pedro Severino | 21. Jefry Rodriguez | 26. Nick Lee |
| 17. Drew Ward | 22. Nick Pivetta | 27. Robert Benincasa |
| 18. Aaron Barrett | 23. Blake Treinen | 28. Rafael Bautista |
| 19. Jeff Kobernus | 24. Christian Garcia (6) | 29. Erik Davis |
| 20. Eury Perez (7) | 25. Brett Mooneyham (19) | |
| 31. Anderson Franco |
As mentioned in the comments, Severino’s defensive prowess has been noticed outside our little bubble. It’s encouraging to see some “love” shown for the GCLers, beginning with Ward at #17 and continuing with Jefry Rodriguez at #21 and Bautista at #28.
Ward and Pivetta are two of the four on this list who were drafted in 2013, leading us to the breakdown of how the Top 31 was “built.”
2013 Draft — Johansen (8), Voth (15), Ward (17), Pivetta (22)
2012 Draft — Giolito (1), Renda (13), Mooneyham (25), Benincasa (27)
2011 Draft — Goodwin (3), Skole (4), Purke (11), Burns (12), Lee (26)
2010 Draft — Cole* (2), Ray (5), Solis (6), Barrett (18)
2009 Draft — Taylor (7), Karns (9), Kobernus (19)
2008 Draft — Nieto (30)
2007 Draft — Souza (10)
Int’l Free Agents — Severino (16), Perez (20), Rodriguez (21), Bautista (28), Franco (31)
Domestic Free Agent — Garcia (24)
Trade — Cole* (2), Walters (14), Treinen (23), Davis (29)
* Take your pick: the Nats originally drafted Cole, traded him away, then reacquired him via trade
The five IFAs represents a high-water mark in the five seasons I’ve been running this site. Four of them were co-signed by Johnny DiPuglia, the veteran scout the Nationals signed after the 2009 season, or more importantly, roughly six months after “Smiley-gate.” That may not be enough for some folks’ tastes, but it’s more than it’s been in several years.
Perhaps more encouraging is that Rodriguez is BA’s breakout prospect for 2014, which may have some significance for the folks who recall that Taylor Jordan was given the same anointment in 2013. Likewise, they’re tabbing Franco as a “sleeper” (same as Pleffner last year) despite the Dominican having signed for $900,000 on his 16th birthday last August.
BA has ditched the three-year projection of the parent club’s starting lineup, which may be just as well because it always seemed a bit pie-in-the-sky (e.g. Cole & Solis were projected to be this year’s nos. 3 and 4 SPs in 2011, with Derek Norris at 1B and Eury Perez in CF) and basically ignored trades, age, and/or diminished skills (i.e. next year’s projected 1B Michael Morse)
Instead, I’ll leave you with the top unranked guys on BA’s minor-league depth chart at position/role. Call them nos. 32-43 if you want 😉
| C – Jhonatan Solano | SS – Jason Martinson | LHSP – Danny Rosenbaum |
| 1B – Shawn Pleffner | LF – Estarlin Martinez | LHRP – David Napoli |
| 2B – Ricky Hague | CF – Narciso Mesa | RHSP – Blake Schwartz |
| 3B – Cody Gunter | RF – Brandon Miller | RHRP – Taylor Hill** |
** Hey, that’s what BA “said”… Treinen and Lee were also listed as a relievers