Over the last 48 hours or so, there have been a bunch of smaller pieces that would have been tough to get different articles written about concerning each one, so I decided to give a quick Nationals News roundup here.
Jake Alu retires from baseball
On Thursday afternoon, in a bit of news that came as quite a surprise to me, former Washington Nationals' Top 30 Prospect Jake Alu has decided to retire from baseball. At just 27-years-old and a guy who had already made it to the show once, it is a bit puzzling as to why Alu decided to retire, but we will hopefully have some more clarity on that soon.
Alu had a great story, going from 24th-round pick and a true afterthought to a Major Leaguer. After breaking out in AA and AAA in 2022, Alu was ranked as the #27 prospect in the organization going into the next season, and earned his first call up to the show in 2023. He played in 51 games for the Nats that season and homered twice across 175 plate appearances. Although he likely wishes his career had played out a bit differently after getting his first taste of big league action and somewhat holding his own, he accomplished a ton more than I or most of us reading this article probably have.
Congrats to Jake on his retirement, and the staff here at District on Deck wishes him nothing but the best in whatever his future endeavors hold!
Andres Chaparro is on a mission
In case you have not been keeping tabs on the Venezuelan Winter League, Andrés Chaparro, one of the Nationals' 2024 trade deadline acquisitions, has been absolutely tearing the cover off the baseball. The El Vigia, Venezuela native is currently a member of the Aguilas del Zulia, on a team with a bunch of current and former big leaguers like Jackson Chourio, Freddy Galvis, Rougned Odor, and even former Nationals' catcher Sandy León, among others.
But despite being on a team with all of that talent, including Chourio who finished 3rd in NL Rookie of the Year voting behind Paul Skenes and Jackson Merrill, it is Chaparro who has been the driving force for a lot of the team's recent success.
In fact, in yesterday's playoff game, Chaparro actually set a new organization record for the most home runs hit by one player in a single postseason with 6 (see video below). We knew Chaparro had serious pop when he was acquired from the Arizona Diamondbacks for Dylan Floro given that he now has 3 consecutive seasons hitting above 20 homers, and man would it be great if he can figure it out at the MLB level. He figures to be in a battle to get consistent playing time heading into 2025 with the acquisitions of Josh Bell and Nathaniel Lowe, but if he keeps hitting like this, the team is going to have to find a way to get him more at-bats.
¡CHAPARRO PARA LA CALLE! 🔥🦅
— BeisbolPlay (@beisbolplaycom) January 16, 2025
Jonrón #6 de Andrés Chaparro en el Round Robin y es el record de Águilas en postemporada#MAG 1-2 #ZUL | 1er inning 🔽
Video: 1Baseball
Compra tu pase de postemporada para ver TODOS LOS JUEGOS de la LVBP a nivel mundial en streaming:… pic.twitter.com/AeSOCOJgZK
Nationals make a couple more MiLB signings
On Thursday, the Nationals added to their growing collection of MiLB signings when they brought in yet another pair of guys who figure to serve more as organizational depth than anything else. The team brought in outfielder Donta' Williams, who was last in the Baltimore Orioles' organization, and then also signed righty Yeuris Jimenez, who was previously in the Miami Marlins' organization.
Williams, a 25-year-old outfielder and a 4th-round pick of the Orioles back in 2021 out of the University of Arizona, has not been great throughout his time in the lower levels of the minors so far, and figures to serve as nothing more than a depth piece for Fredericksburg or Wilmington at this point.
Jimenez is a 23-year-old righty reliever who has been in the Marlins organization since he debuted back in 2018 as a 17-year-old. His career numbers in the minors are not spectacular by any means, with just a 5.45 career ERA over 6 seasons, but since he is still young he has a chance to hopefully figure some things out next season. He has not pitched above High-A yet so I would anticipate him starting at either Wilmington or Fredericksburg next year as well.
What was your favorite piece of Nationals News from the last couple days? As always, please let me know on X, @DCBerk.