GOTC - Washington Nationals 2014 Top 15 Prospects

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#15

Zach Walters – SS
Date of Birth: September 5, 1989
Height/Weight: 6’2″/220 lbs
Acquired: Traded by the Arizona Diamondbacks to Washington for Jason Marquis on July 30, 2011; originally drafted by Arizona in 9th round of the 2010 draft
2013 Stats:

Year	Age	Tm	Lg	Lev	Aff	G	PA	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	SB	CS	BB	SO	BA	OBP	SLG	OPS
2013	23	Syracuse	IL	AAA	WSN	134	521	487	69	123	32	5	29	77	4	3	20	134	.253	.286	.517	.803

Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 12/31/2013.

Analysis: Zach Walters earns credit for being major league ready, having made his big league debut in 2013 for the Nationals. He had a huge explosion in power in 2013, going from 12 home runs in 484 plate appearances (over three levels) in 2012 to 29 home runs in 521 plate appearances in Triple-A Syracuse in 2013. Interestingly, that uptick in power didn’t come at the expense of too many other attributes. He had a lower strikeout rate in 2013 (although it’s still very high) than he did in about 100 Triple-A at bats in 2012 and his walk rate only fell about 1% overall. While scouts love his defense, especially his arm, Walters isn’t going to walk a lot and much of his value is going to come from his power. If that proves to be a fluke, he’ll end up as a light-hitting utility infielder.
Luke says: “Playing in AAA Syracuse last season, Walters posted a .253 average and a solid .803 OPS. He got a cup of coffee at the big league level last season, playing eight games and hit .375. With Lombardozzi gone to Detroit, Walters, who can play three infield spots, can be a utility guy off the bench for Washington.”
2014 Prognosis: Walters makes the Nationals as a utility man. If he hits like he did last year in Syracuse, he may get more playing time than most think.

#14

Christian Garcia – RHP
Date of Birth: August 24, 1985
Height/Weight: 6’5″/230 lbs
Acquired: Signed as a free agent with the Nationals on July 21, 2011; originally drafted by the New York Yankees in the 3rd round of the 2004 draft.
2013 Stats:

Year	Age	Tm	Lg	Lev	Aff	W	L	W-L%	ERA	G	GS	GF	IP	H	R	ER	HR	BB	SO	HBP	WP	WHIP	H/9	HR/9	BB/9	SO/9	SO/BB
2013	27	3 Teams	3 Lgs	AAA-AA-A-	WSN	1	1	.500	2.70	11	4	2	13.1	10	6	4	0	8	16	0	1	1.350	6.8	0.0	5.4	10.8	2.00
2013	27	Harrisburg	EL	AA	WSN	0	1	.000	2.25	3	2	1	4.0	5	2	1	0	2	4	0	0	1.750	11.2	0.0	4.5	9.0	2.00
2013	27	Syracuse	IL	AAA	WSN	1	0	1.000	3.24	7	2	1	8.1	5	4	3	0	6	10	0	1	1.320	5.4	0.0	6.5	10.8	1.67
2013	27	Auburn	NYPL	A-	WSN	0	0		0.00	1	0	0	1.0	0	0	0	0	0	2	0	0	0.000	0.0	0.0	0.0	18.0

Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 12/31/2013.

Analysis: Yes, Garcia is 28 years old and I was very seriously considering omitting him from this list. However, Jonathan Mayo at MLB.com is still counting Garcia as one of the team’s top prospects so that’s good enough for me. Garcia’s been around forever but has fought through two Tommy John surgeries and his career has truly taken off with the Nationals, making his big league debut in 2012 before spending much of 2013 injured. He has three quality pitches but just fringe-average control so it’s unlikely that his role going forward will be as a starter (particularly with the arm problems he’s had).
Luke says: “Garcia, who missed a bunch of time in 2013 due to injury, posted a very quality 2.70 ERA for three different affiliates in 13.1 innings. Garcia also has been said to have the best changeup in Washington’s system.”
2014 Prognosis: It looks like Garcia has a good chance to make the Nats out of Spring Training.

#13

Pedro Severino – C
Date of Birth: July 20, 1993
Height/Weight: 6’1″/180 lbs
Acquired: International free agent out of the Dominican Republic in 2011; $55,000 signing bonus
2013 Stats:

Year	Age	Tm	Lg	Lev	Aff	G	PA	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	SB	CS	BB	SO	BA	OBP	SLG	OPS
2013	19	Hagerstown	SALL	A	WSN	84	302	282	28	68	19	2	1	45	1	0	13	54	.241	.274	.333	.608

Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 12/31/2013.

Analysis: Young Dominican catcher Severino may not look like a big prospect but if you look at what he did with the bat and the glove and the age and level at which he’s done it, there definitely might be something there. One of the most impressive numbers you’ll see is his 40% caught stealing percentage which, for a 19/20 year old in his first year of full-season ball, is pretty impressive. Another thing to note is that Severino is getting rave reports about his work ethic and his ability to learn English, which is a big boost for him to lead the pitching staff.
Luke says: “Severino, a catcher, spent 2013 in A Hagerstown. He hit .241 in 84 games while driving in 45. He is only 20, so he is very young and is tabbed as the best defensive catcher in the system, which is very impressive.”
2014 Prognosis: Severino will likely be in Potomac for 2014. I’ve said it before but the general consensus is that it takes young catchers a little bit longer than other players to develop their hitting so the fact that he’s been able to hold his own offensively so far bodes well for future development.

http://gradingonthecurve.com/2013/12/31/washington-nationals-2014-top-15-prospects/