First Round: Eli Willits, SS (Round 1, Pick 1)
There is usually huge hype around the first overall pick. While many people anticipated the Nationals could select shortstop Ethan Holliday, who is from a baseball family. His brother, former first overall pick Jackson, plays on the other side of the Capital Beltway; his uncle, Josh, is the head coach at Oklahoma State; and his father is former MLB all-star Matt Holliday. Instead, the Nationals selected Eli Willits, another shortstop, also from Oklahoma, like Ethan Holliday.
The Nationals' first overall selection is paying off, I would say. Currently at Single-A Fredericksburg, Willits is batting .270, with 38 hits, 26 RBI, 24 stolen bases, a .842 OPS (On-Base-Plus-Slugging percentage), and four home runs, among many other high-performing stats. Eli Willits is tied for 6th in the Carolina League in RBI and is in 2nd place in the Carolina League in stolen bases.
Eli Willits will soon get the call-up to either High-A Wilmington, marking his first promotion en route to the major leagues. I believe Eli Willits has a high probability of being named Rookie of the Year when he gets called up, and most definitely, a multi-time all-star for the Nats. He is a player the Nationals must hold on to if they want a chance at competing for a World Series Championship, because he will play a massive role in a championship run.
Second Round: Ethan Petry, 1B/OF (Round 2, Pick 49)
Ethan Petry, drafted out of the University of South Carolina, is currently at high-A Wilmington after spending 2025 with single-A Fredericksburg and in the Arizona Fall League. In 2026, Petry is doing absolutely incredible at the plate. In 129 at-bats, he has a .310 batting average, a .983 OPS, 40 hits, 32 RBI, nine homers, and seven doubles. Petry has shown immense power and an ability to get extra-base hits, with a high batting average, and has shown that he is worthy of a hopefully fast-track to the major league club.
Third Round: Landon Harmon, RHP (Round 3, Pick 80)
Landon Harmon did not play for any Nationals-affiliated teams or in the Arizona Fall League after getting drafted in the third round of the 2025 MLB Draft. He is getting his first professional ball experience in 2026, and while currently on the Fredericksburg Nats' roster, he is on the seven-day injured list, but has pitched in four games, starting all of them.
Harmon currently sits at a 1-0 record, 1.88 ERA (earned run average), 6.9 strikeouts per nine innings, and a .907 WHIP (walks and hits per innings pitched). While these statistics are superb, his injuries have prevented him, as of right now, from qualifying for league-leading stats in the Carolina League. Harmon is capable of doing great things in the Nationals organization, and his stats before his injury have shown that.
Fourth Round: Miguel Sime Jr., RHP (Round 4, Pick 111)
The Nationals' fourth-round pick might not have any minor league wins to date, but is doing quite well. Sitting at a 0-2 record through eight starts in 2026 for Fredericksburg, Miguel Sime Jr. currently has a 3.43 ERA, 3.86 runs allowed per nine innings, a 1.38 WHIP, and 8.1 walks per nine. However, he is dominating in the strikeout department, with 44 strikeouts, and almost 19 strikeouts per nine innings, sitting at 18.9.
While Sime Jr. must limit his walks significantly, he is doing quite well outside of that. Limiting his walks will also help improve his ERA and pretty much all of his stats, helping him move up the ranks quicker, because this guy can pitch and belongs in the MLB sooner rather than later.
Fifth Round: Coy James, SS (Round 5, Pick 142)
Like Willits, Coy James is also a shortstop at Single-A Fredericksburg. Both players have such high ceilings; however, James is not performing as well as Willits, as of the writing of this article. The Nats' fifth-round pick from 2025 made his minor league debut this season and is currently batting to a .203 average, with 27 hits, including four doubles, a triple, and five home runs, with 28 RBI.
While the average needs to be improved significantly, he has decent power to get extra-base hits and great speed, as he has stolen 14 bases. While the numbers may not be great, especially his average, he will be an interesting player to see develop in the Nats' farm system.
The Nationals' 2025 draft class has a lot of talent, especially among the higher draft picks, and I would say I am most excited to watch Ethan Petry develop and reach the big leagues because of his power, something the Nationals need more of if they want to compete.
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