Washington Nationals: The organization’s best prospect at each position

First Base – KJ Harrison

Next up: Jose Marmolejos, Blake Chisholm, Andry Arias

The Washington Nationals major league first base situation seems to be under control for a couple more seasons at least with Ryan Zimmerman and Matt Adams. But after that, their minor league depth there is thin, with newly acquired KJ Harrison potentially the best of the bunch.

Harrison came over to the Nationals in the trade that saw Gio Gonzalez head to the Milwaukee Brewers last August. Although he was drafted out of Oregon State as a catcher, he doesn’t appear to have a future there and has been slowly shifting to a full-time first baseman.

In his pro debut in 2017, Harrison slashed an impressive .308/.388/.546 to go with 10 home runs in just 48 games with the Helena Brewers. However, he slowed down a little in 2018 slashing just .228/.298/.384 in Single-A with the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers before he was traded.

But despite the down season, Harrison’s bat should bounce back and be a good fit at first base in the future. The raw power is there as he profiles to be a guy who can hit at least 30 homers a year, but he has to cut down on the strikeouts that plagued him in his first full season.

Although this is the first list like this we’ve done here at District on Deck, had we done it in previous years, this would basically have been the Jose Marmolejos spot at first base. Blake Chisholm and Andry Arias are both still in rookie ball but have flashed some impressive talent at a young age.