The Arizona Fall League recently kicked off on Monday evening, and there are a handful of Nationals prospects who will be participating this year. For those of you who are unfamiliar with the concept of the Arizona Fall League, it is basically a development league for teams to send some of their prospects to get more work after the end of the season.
With that being said, the team's decision to send 2 of their Top 13 prospects to the AFL makes complete sense when you realize that they both are looking to rebound after some injury-riddled seasons.
Who are those two prospects you might ask? Those would be 3B Cayden Wallace, the Nats' #11 prospect, and OF Robert Hassell III, the Nats' #13 prospect. Both of them have dealt with a fair extent of injuries, as Wallace was only able to play in just 15 games after being acquired from the Kansas City Royals along with draft compensation that ended up being California catcher Caleb Lomavita (WSH #10) in exchange for Hunter Harvey at the deadline. Hassell III is still looking to fully regain the form that once had him as a Top 100 prospect in baseball when he came over to the Nats in the Juan Soto deal from San Diego.
Joining the two top prospects in the AFL will be lefties Matt Cronin and Dustin Saenz, righties Michael Cuevas, Chase Solesky and Luke Young, as well as catcher Maxwell Romero Jr. In total, the organization is sending 8 total minor leaguers to get extended reps in the AFL, and all of these players are at different levels of the minors with the club.
Hassell represents the team's lone representative from the AAA Rochester Red Wings, although he spent the majority of his season with the AA Harrisburg Senators. Most of the players are from the Senators, as Wallace, Cronin, Cuevas, Saenz, and Solesky are all at this level. The High-A Wilmington Blue Rocks claim the other two representatives with Young and Romero.
Overall, here is the chart for each player that the organization will be sending to the 2024 Arizona Fall League, complete with their age, position, and current MiLB level:
Name | Age | Position | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
Robert Hassell III | 23 | OF | AAA Rochester |
Cayden Wallace | 23 | 3B | AA Harrisburg |
Matt Cronin | 27 | LHP | AA Harrisburg |
Dustin Saenz | 25 | LHP | AA Harrisburg |
Michael Cuevas | 23 | RHP | AA Harrisburg |
Chase Solesky | 27 | RHP | AA Harrisburg |
Luke Young | 22 | RHP | High-A Wilmington |
Maxwell Romero Jr. | 23 | C | High-A Wilmington |
The AFL began on Monday and will conclude in November with the Championship being played on November 16th. All of the organization's representatives will be members of the Salt River Rafters, and will look to create some positive momentum heading into the offseason.
Which prospect are you most excited to keep up with in the Arizona Fall League? As always, please let me know on X, @DCBerk.