Today, the Arizona Fall League released its 2022 rosters, including a sizable contingent from Washington to fill out the roster of the Peoria Javelinas:
- C Drew Millas*
- OF Yasel Antuna
- 2B Darren Baker
- LHP Tim Cate*
- 1B Will Frizzell
- OF Robert Hassell III
- LHP Lucas Knowles*
- C Brady Lindsly
- RHP Orlando Ribalta*
- RHP Amos Willingham*
* Rule 5 Draft Eligible
It’s worth noting that only Tim Cate is Rule-5 eligible which may mean that the Nats have already made up their minds on everyone else.
After sending just two Rule 5 Draft Eligible last year, it’s five this year, though Cate was passed over last year and it’s highly unlikely anyone would take him this December.
It’s fairly obvious that Frizzell’s inclusion was to ensure a few more reps, given that he did not start playing until July. Likewise that Hassell3 was the marquee guy that the Nats had to send.
Weirdly, the Nats love to send catchers, and neither Millas nor Lindsly put on a lot of miles (both caught 61G) so that seems to make sense. Perhaps the same goes for Willingham, who started the season in Low-A and didn’t exactly dazzle in High-A (unlike Ribalta who did better after getting the bump).
I’m sure there’ll be a lot of opinion and conjecture about the rest (Antuna, Baker, Knowles) as well as the sheer size of the contingent (10), so I’ll leave off here so you can discuss in the comments.