Washington Nationals' MiLB 3 Stars of the Night - Saturday 09/14/2024

Before they were leading the Washington Nationals back to the promised land in the big leagues, guys like Dylan Crews, James Wood, and others were once grinding through the team's minor league system waiting to get their opportunity in the show. As the 2024 season nears a close, I will continue seeking to provide daily Minor League updates by taking a page out of hockey's playbook, and award the 3 Stars of the Night for Nats minor leaguers that aren't with the big league club. This is an attempt to shine a spotlight on 3 future Nats who happen to have big time performances the night before, in hopes to give them a bit of limelight and exposure that they wouldn't normally get to experience.

In case you are unfamiliar with hockey's concept of the 3 Stars of the Game, according to Wikipedia: "The three stars in ice hockey are the three best players in a game, with the "first star" considered the best of the three players, akin to the player of the match in other sports. Media representatives of the home team choose the three stars, who are usually the top point scorers or outstanding goaltenders from either team."

With only the AAA Rochester Red Wings and AA Harrisburg Senators in action on Saturday night, finding 3 Stars for the evening was tough, as the Senators were shut out and held to just 3 hits. Due to the struggles of Harrisburg, the Red Wings are going to hog all of the spotlight here from Saturday night, as they had many candidates in an 8-6 victory.

⭐️⭐️⭐️ Third Star of the Night: DH Joey Meneses - AAA Rochester

He just keeps finding his way into these posts doesn't he? Although I don't personally believe he will make it back to the MLB, Joey Meneses is doing some good things down in AAA. On Saturday night, he went 2/5 with a solo homer and sacrifice fly, driving in 2 of the team's 8 runs in their victory. Meneses, who has played a lot of DH since being sent down to the minors, hit his 8th homer of the MiLB season, and raised his OPS to a .769 mark in AAA. His performance was good enough to earn him the Third Star of the Night on Saturday.

⭐️⭐️ Second Star of the Night: OF Robert Hassell III - WSH #13 - AAA Rochester

Recently-promoted outfielder Robert Hassell III earns Tuesday's Second Star of the Night, having his first rock solid performance since earning the call to AAA not even 2 weeks ago. The 23-year-old went 2/4 with a pair of doubles, 1 of them driving in a run, and also drew a walk. As I outlined in my post talking about RH3's promotion 9 days ago, he has a chance to earn a spot in the future outfield of this organization. I am expecting him to get a call to the show at some point next season, and hopefully he is able to continue to generate positive momentum as the MiLB season winds down.

⭐️ First Star of the Night: 3B Brady House - WSH #2, MLB #65 Prospect - AAA Rochester

The First Star of the Night down on the farm for the organization on Saturday night has to go to 3B and current #65 prospect in baseball, Brady House. The kid has been doing some good things at the plate recently for AAA Rochester, as he put together his second 3-hit game in 3 days, going 3/6 with a double and an RBI on Saturday. House's recent stretch has raised his average to .265, and his OPS to .694. While not ready yet, the 21-year-old is continuing to show why the organization views him as the guy at the hot corner long-term, and he is seemingly on a path to having an opportunity to make the club in Spring Training next year. While I do think he needs more time in AAA instead of being rushed to the show, we should definitely see him in the majors by next summer.

Which of these 3 players are you most excited to see in Washington one day? Do you think I missed someone more deserving? As always please let me know your thoughts on X,@DCBerk.

All stats in this article were provided by MiLB.com and MLB.com.