Washington Nationals: Top Five First Round Draft Picks

With tonight being the MLB Draft, we look back at the top five first round picks in Washington Nationals history

Tonight, in Secaucus, New Jersey, the Washington Nationals will be making three selections on Day One of the MLB Draft. They have two picks in the first round due to Jordan Zimmermann and Ian Desmond leaving via free agency (picks 28 and 29).

This is the first time that the Washington Nationals will be making a pick in the first round since they took pitcher Erick Fedde with the 18^th pick back in 2014. The Nats did not have a first round pick last year because of the free agent signing of Max Scherzer.

Since becoming the Washington Nationals in 2005, the organization has made a total of 15 first round draft picks. Some of those players have not panned out as the organization might have hoped, some have become superstars, and other have been used as key pieces in trades.

For example, back in 2011, the Nats took pitcher Alex Meyer with the 23^rd pick out of Kentucky. He ended up being traded in November of 2012 to the Minnesota Twins for center fielder Denard Span.

Also, there have been cases where the player hasn’t signed, such as when the Nats took pitcher Aaron Crow with the ninth pick back in 2008. The Royals would end up signing Crow in 2009 after they drafted him with the 12^th pick.

So, before the Nats make their two selections tonight and you can watch the draft at 7 p.m ET on MLB Network, here are my top five first round picks in the short history of the Washington Nationals:

Next: Number Five

Drew Storen – 10^th pick, 2009

Due to the Washington Nationals not being able to sign Crow in 2008, they were able to get an extra top ten pick in the 2009 draft. After taking Strasburg with the top pick, they selected a right-handed reliever out of Stanford named Drew Storen with the tenth pick. In his last season with Stanford, he went 7-1 with a 3.80 ERA. had seven saves, and had 66 strikeouts in 42.2 innings.

He would make his Major League debut less than a year later on May 17, 2010 against the Cardinals. Even though Storen is well known for his postseason struggles and his bad second half last year after the team traded for Jonathan Papelbon, he had a strong career in DC.

In his six years with the Nats, Storen went 21-13 with a 3.02 ERA and had 95 saves. During his first full season with the Nats (2011), Storen had 43 saves, which was the fourth most of any reliever in the National League. His 95 saves in 116 chances were the second most saves in Nats’ history. The player who has the most is Chad Cordero (128), who was drafted with the 20^th pick by the then Montreal Expos in 2003, where he had 15 saves in 2003-04.

This offseason, Storen was traded to the Toronto Blue Jays for center fielder Ben Revere. Even though Storen didn’t shine in the big moments with the Washington Nationals, he has still been the best reliever the organization has drafted.

Next: Number Four

Anthony Rendon – 6^th pick, 2011

Back in 2011, the Washington Nationals had three of the first 34 picks in the draft. The first of those three picks was Anthony Rendon. Rendon was selected with the sixth pick out of Rice University. In his time with the Owls, he hit 52 home runs in three seasons, including 26 home runs in his sophomore year (2010), when he hit .394 with a .539 on-base percentage in 63 games.

Rendon would make his big league debut with the Nats on April 21, 2013 against the New York Mets. In his 3+ seasons with the Nats, his best season was back in 2014. Rendon, who was 24 at the time, drove in 111 runs (led the NL), hit 21 home runs, drove in 83 runs, and finished fifth in the MVP voting.

When you look back at the 2011 MLB Draft, there were many good players taken with the first 15 picks. Some of those names include Gerrit Cole (Pirates), Francisco Lindor (Indians), George Springer (Astros), and Jose Fernandez (Marlins). Also, the A’s drafted Sonny Gray with the 18^th pick.

During that first round, the Nats took Meyer (23^rd) and outfielder Brian Goodwin (34^th). Goodwin is still in the organization at triple-A Syracuse. In a recent article by Jim Callis of MLB.com, he had the Nats taking Gray instead of Rendon when he re-did the first round.

While Gray would have been another good young arm in the Washington Nationals rotation, it’s safe to say the Nats are happy with their selection of Rendon as he has bounced back from his early season struggles this year.

Next: Number Three

Stephen Strasburg – 1^st pick, 2009

In the first of two years where the Washington Nationals had the top pick, they selected a right-handed pitcher out of San Diego State named Stephen Strasburg. In his final season with the Aztecs, Strasburg was 13-1 with a 1.32 ERA and had 195 strikeouts in 109 innings.

Six years ago yesterday, Strasburg made his debut at Nats Park and struck out 14 Pittsburgh Pirates over seven innings. The early portion of Strasburg’s career was tough when you consider he underwent Tommy John surgery and got shut down before the 2012 postseason due to an innings limit.

However, the Nats have seen a much different Strasburg of late. Since the second half of 2015, he’s been one of the best pitchers in baseball as he has gone 15-2 in his last 23 starts and has 192 strikeouts. In his career, he is 63-37 in 144 starts with a 3.07 ERA and has 1,001 strikeouts (a Nats record).

Of course, while Strasburg is number three on my countdown, he has a chance to be higher if we re-visit this topic in the next few years. Last month, Strasburg signed a seven-year, $175 million contract to remain in DC throughout his prime years.

It has been an eventual six years of Strasburg in DC, but it’s safe to say that while Strasburg hasn’t lived up to the lofty expectations that were placed on him on draft night, he has been one of the top two pitchers in Washington Nationals history along with Jordan Zimmermann.

Next: Number Two

 Ryan Zimmerman – 4^th pick, 2005

This might be somewhat of a controversial choice, but the best Nats first round pick for me has to be their first one. With their first pick as the Washington Nationals, they selected Ryan Zimmerman, a third baseman from the University of Virginia.

During his junior season with the Cavaliers, Zimmerman hit .393 with six home runs, 59 RBI’s, and had a .469 on-base percentage in 61 games. It didn’t take long for him to reach the big leagues as he made his debut on September 1 of that season and played in 20 games.

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Ever since he made his debut, Zimmerman has been arguably the face of the franchise. The All-Star in 2009 has a career batting average of .282 with 209 home runs and 811 RBI’s. He has the most home runs and RBI’s of any player that has worn a curly W uniform.

In 2014, Zimmerman made the switch over from third base to first base for a few games. In the last two years, he has played 142 games at first base and has handled the position well.

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While Strasburg and Harper helped get the Nats to a couple postseason appearances, Zimmerman has been a franchise player that helped start it all and is one of the core players that the team has built around since its move to the Nation’s Capital. Even in a draft with Justin Upton, Alex Gordon, Ryan Braun, Troy Tulowitzki, and Andrew McCutchen taken within the first 11 picks, the Nats made the right choice in taking Zimmerman.