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Washington Nationals Prospect Profile: Ian Sagdal

By Ricky Keeler |
Mar 21, 2016; Melbourne, FL, USA; Washington Nationals player hats and gloves sit inside the dugout in the ninth inning against the Houston Astros at Space Coast Stadium. The Washington Nationals won 5-3. Mandatory Credit: Logan Bowles-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 21, 2016; Melbourne, FL, USA; Washington Nationals player hats and gloves sit inside the dugout in the ninth inning against the Houston Astros at Space Coast Stadium. The Washington Nationals won 5-3. Mandatory Credit: Logan Bowles-USA TODAY Sports

Earlier this week, we had the chance to talk to Washington Nationals first base prospect Ian Sagadal about his play in Potomac so far this season. 

Last year, one of the Washington Nationals prospects that was on the rise in the farm system was Ian Sagdal. Sagdal was named a postseason All-Star by MILB.com for his strong performance at low-A Hagerstown last season. Now, he is at high-A Potomac, looking to continue his development.

This season, the 24-year-old has a slash line of .239/.304/.391 with four home runs and 13 RBI’s coming into today. He is second on the team in home runs (Taylor Gushue has seven) and tied for third on the team in walks (eight). Last night, his RBI single in the top of the eighth broke a 2-2 tie as Potomac ended up winning 4-2 over the Down East Wood Ducks (Texas Rangers).

Sagdal was selected in the 16th round of the 2015 MLB Draft out of Washington State University. In his first three years at Washington State, the left-handed hitter did not hit one home run. Now, in the last year and a half at the Nats system, he has hit 14 home runs (four this season at Potomac).

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On Monday, I had the chance to talk to Sagdal before the Potomac Nationals began their road series against Down East. During our interview,he told me about some of the changes that were made to his swing and who has helped him accomplished that:

“I have to credit our coaching staffs and coordinators (Hagerstown and Potomac). I have to give them credit because coming out of Washington State, having my last year be the only year I hit home runs. They’ve really helped me fix my swing.”

When I asked him about the specific changes that he has made to his swing, this is what he told me:

“I had too much movement with my head. They straightened me out in the box, I lowered my hands a little bit. It was just like something last year clicked with me and everything seemed to find my barrel. When I go up to the plate, I am just looking to hit the ball hard somewhere.”

Since last season, Sagdal has been valued for his versatility in the Washington Nationals organization. With Hagerstown in 2016, he played four different positions (first base, second base, third base, and left field).

When I talked to his manager at Hagerstown, Patrick Anderson, he told me last year that he reminded him of a super utility player in the big leagues today:

“Sagdal’s a jack of all trades. He reminds me kinda like Ben Zobrist. He can swing it, his bat potential is really high, and defensively, he came to instructional league and worked in the infield.”

At Potomac, Sagdal has been playing mainly first base, but he told me that he has been taking groundballs at third base (Kelvin Gutierrez is the current starter for Potomac). Here’s what he had to say about his comfort level at specific positions:

“It’s a toss up between first base and second base. They want me to feel comfortable about third base. Being able to play multiple positions opens up the field for you. I just try to get my work in at multiple positions each day.”

Since being drafted by the Washington Nationals, Sagdal has shown good plate discipline at the plate. Last year, he was fourth on the Suns in walks with 36 and had an on-base percentage of .362. Even in his first professional season in 2015 (short-season Auburn), he had 20 walks in 49 games.

When moving up into a new league, there’s always new challenges. When asked about some of the challenges in the Carolina League, Sagdal told me that he’s “adjusting to the higher-up pitching, You don’t get those do over pitches like you do in the Sally League.”

In the rest of the interview below, you will find more on who some of the tougher pitchers Sagdal has faced in his career so far, his draft day experience, what his goals are for this season, and much more:

Next: Nats Report Card Day For April

We thank Ian for taking the time to do this interview with us and we wish him nothing but the best the rest of the way. He may not be a top 30 prospect right now, but he is someone to watch going forward.

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