Three Nats Make the MLB Pipeline Top 100
With the release of the 2025 edition, that’s three straight years with multiple players on the MLB Pipeline Top 100 for the Washington Nationals.
Alas, it’s SSDL as it’s the same three guys that were on the BA counterpart: Dylan Crews, Travis Sykora, and Jarlin Susana.
Crews is ranked #4 in what should be his final appearance, given that he’s justbarelyunder the rookie thresholds and will likely exceed those by the time MLB publishes its post-preseason Top 100 (or is that the pre-midseason?).
Sykora is ranked #70, which I suppose may get some undergarments bundled, but this is your semi-regular reminder that these lists are mostly for generating clicks and views for…
…the ads. Like BA, the MLB evaluators are concerned that Sykora may struggle to get hitters out at High-A the way he did at Low-A (chasing pitches out of the zone), which, of course, is true for all pitchers.
Susana comes in at #79, which is 12 spots lower than BA, if that matters to you (is this your cat?). MLB is more bullish on Susana’s chances of remaining a starter, but also mentions the same concerns that LHBs aren’t fazed by his substandard changeup, citing the sizable gap in OPS (.751 OPS vs. .516).
NATS SIGN IFA NOT FROM THE AMERICAS
Though it’s pretty clear the signing of LHP Shinnosuke Ogasawara is more related to the big club than “our guys,” it’s always possible that he could spend some time in Rochester. One effect it will definitely have is making it harder for the likes of Brad Lord and Tyler Stuart to get the call, never mind Mitchell Parker and DJ Herz remaining in the rotation as both have options remaining.
For those wondering, the scouting report on Ogsawara is control-over-velocity (a.k.a. a pitcher, not a thrower) that lefties are allowed to be. He won’t pile up the K’s and his fastball barely cracks 90mph, but has a deep arsenal of pitches (CH, SPL, CV, SL) that range from the low 70s to the low-80s [insert obligatory golf joke here].
Can someone check on Will? He may have fainted after reading this.
Well, well, well… after I went off on a rant here on the Nats stupidity of purposely ignoring the Asian market,, they go and do this.
It’s a start and hopefully it will lead to investing more in that market.
But heck Rizzo, you are always behind the times. First with the use of data analytics and then this. Is it any wonder we’ve been so bad for so long?
Haha, I am surprised, Asian market aside (this is history in the making!), just because I don’t really understand where Ogasawara fits given that we’ve already signed Williams and Soroka to pitch in the rotation. Maybe Ogasawara starts in AAA to get up to speed, but he’s signed for only two years, so this isn’t some long game to play with him… but who among Gore, Parker and Herz (not to mention Gray should return at some point this year, and Cavalli is still theoretically a baseball player) gets demoted?
I’d be more than happy to move Soroka to the pen, but he and Rizzo have already spoken about him being used in the rotation… and Rizzo isn’t the kind of guy to backtrack on a promise. So is Herz or Parker the fall guy?
Or does Rizzo go crazy and use a 6 man rotation? Might make sense given how little attention he’s paid to the bullpen to date.
Hey, I’ve been lobbying for a while for paired “starters,” like they do in the minors, who throw three or four innings apiece in a game. That concept makes more sense than having an “opener” and a “bullpen game.”
Wouldn’t be the worst idea. Herz, for example, had the following ERA per inning 1-6 (has never made it into the 7th): 2.37, 3.32, 1.45, 8.27, 6.57, 5.40. Obviously, VERY small sample sizes, but Herz is still learning how to get through the order a second time. Not sure this approach would teach him much, but it would shelter him a bit, while increasing his workload (his 127 IP last season was a sizeable increase on his previous innings record)
With this many starter candidates, and so many pitchers having short outings, I wonder if it’s time to take a serious look at piggy-backing some starters. I know it’ll get laughed at, but, for example, having Parker and Herz as the 2 pitchers for the whole game would be pretty nice. It’d give the bullpen a rest, and give innings to good pitchers.
Sorry Kevin — I didn’t see your post before saying just about the same thing. They do this in the minors from time to time, particularly early in seasons — you see two guys pitch three or four innings on the same days together. It seems like a logical concept, and as you say, it would actually save the bullpen.
I’d vary it up more, though, like have four innings of Parker and his junkballing and then three from Cavalli throwing 8-10 mph harder.
“Too many starting pitchers” is a concern that pops up from time to time in the offseason and yet is rarely an issue during the season. Injuries and struggles will tend to make the issue moot. And since of all of the pitchers involved except for Williams and Soroka have minor league options the Nats have a lot of flexibility even before you consider moving anyone to the bullpen (in DC or AAA).