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 just two affiliates in action on Wednesday night, picking for this segment were slim. The pickings became even more slim when realizing that one of the two affiliates in action got shutout last night in the Harrisburg Senators. The High-A season has some to an end for the Wilmington Blue Rocks, and the Fredericksburg Nationals have begun postseason play, meaning they will not be in action every night. Unfortunately for the lower levels of the organization, both the Rochester Red Wings and Harrisburg Senators lost, however, there were still 3 Stars of the Night to salvage for this piece.
⭐️⭐️⭐️ Third Star of the Night: 1B Joey Meneses - AAA Rochester Red Wings
Due to the lack of options from Wednesday night's action, we will go with a repeat option, in former big leaguer Joey Meneses. Last night, he went 2/4 with an RBI double in the 9th inning. Although the Red Wings' comeback effort fell a bit short, Meneses raised his OPS in AAA to .754, which isn't great, but perhaps he can build himself back up a bit towards the end of the season.
⭐️⭐️ Second Star of the Night: OF Jeremy De La Rosa - AA Harrisburg Senators
In yesterday's piece, outfielder Jeremy De La Rosa became our first repeat choice of the series with a true standout performance. Last night, while not quite doing what he did on Tuesday evening, JDLR did have a solid performance, going 2/4 with a double. As I said earlier, Harrisburg got shutout on Wednesday night, but JDLR has been able to continue to create some real momentum before the end of the season, and perhaps we see him regain Top 30 Prospect status soon.
⭐️ First Star of the Night: SP Dustin Saenz - AA Harrisburg Senators
Wednesday's First Star of the Night is lefty Dustin Saenz, the Nats' 4th-round pick back in 2021. This year has been a struggle for the 25-year-old, but last night he put together a solild outing despite taking a loss. He went 6.0 innings, struck out 3, walked 3, and allowed just 3 hits and 1 earned run. Overall for the season he has just a 1-6 record, 6.54 ERA, and 1.69 WHIP in 13 starts across 3 levels. His appearances in Rookie Ball and Low-A were for rehab purposes which lowered his overall pitching line for the season, but last night's start was a step in the right direction for Saenz.
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.