Every year, MLB Pipeline makes pretty regular changes to their MLB Draft prospect rankings, and those rankings typically represent changes in performance for players throughout their high school and college seasons. However, after their latest update, we might finally have some clarity on what players the Washington Nationals might be pursuing with the #1 overall pick in July's 2025 MLB Draft.
According to Jonathan Mayo, an MLB Draft and Prospect expert for MLB.com, the Nationals are reportedly zeroing in on 4 players with that 1st overall pick in July, with a handful of names that should have Nationals fans everywhere very excited for the future.
The first name is probably the favorite at this point and was one that I wrote about way back when the Nationals won the MLB Draft Lottery back in December, which is Ethan Holliday, the younger brother of current Baltimore Orioles infielder Jackson Holliday. In case you aren't super familiar with Ethan's game, he is the youngest son of former big leaguer Matt Holliday, who was a 7-time All-Star and 4-time Silver Slugger winner.
He stands at 6'4" and 200 pounds, and currently plays shortstop, although he might be better suited to play third base at the professional level. He is putting up some insane numbers during his senior season for Stillwater High School in Oklahoma, and is committed to Oklahoma State University. He has some of the best raw power in the class, but does have some swing-and-miss concerns to his game that might make him an interesting fit in the Nationals organization, who has been unable to fix issues on a previous high pick in Elijah Green.
Outside of Holliday, it appears as if the Nationals are focusing their efforts on Corona High School righty Seth Hernandez, who I wrote about recently after it was rumored he could be in play for the #1 pick in July. Besides Hernandez, the other names that appear to be in play are Florida State lefty Jamie Arnold and Oregon State infielder Aiva Arquette, both of whom have been some of the best players in college baseball this season.
Arquette is probably the safest bat in this year's draft class, and his stock continues to rise after a recent hot streak in which he homered as many times as he struck out in the month of April. He could be a guy that soars through the minor leagues, and could be an impact bat in the Nationals' lineup as soon as next season.
Arnold is a lefty from Florida State with some unreal stuff, and probably represents the safest floor in terms of college arms. We know that Mike Rizzo loves to take elite starting pitching talent with high draft picks, and Arnold could be a guy that gets to the big leagues as soon as next season.
The bottom line is that the race for the #1 pick in this year's draft is still completely wide open, and nobody really knows who the Nationals might take right at this moment. There is still a lot of time and a lot of baseball left to be played by these top prospects at both the high school and college levels before the draft, and stocks will surely rise and fall over the next couple months.
Who do you want the Nationals to take at #1? As always, please let me know on X, @DCBerk.