As Opening Day fast approaches, the time has come for MLB Pipeline to update its rankings of the Washington Nationals' top 30 prospects. First-overall selection Eli Willits heads the class, and several trade acquisitions land behind him in the rankings. The team's four top prospects all land in Pipeline's top 100 overall.
No. 1: SS Eli Willits (18, 2025 Draft [1st pick] - 60 FV, 2028 ETA)
The team's first draft selection in a post-Mike Rizzo era, Willits is the only player in the Nationals system awarded a 60 Future Value score. The prep shortstop doesn't have any singular standout tool, but his all-around prowess has him ranking 13th overall according to Pipeline. Other publications, it should be mentioned, are less favorable towards Willits--Baseball America's top 100 ranks him 31st, and Jarlin Susana is the only other Nationals system member present.
Eli, son of former major leaguer Reggie Willits, is a switch-hitter standing 6'1". Obviously after being drafted while still too young to vote, he's got some room to fill in that frame, and the Nationals seem to be ready to start him in full-season play as he debuted at Class-A Fredericksburg last year. With CJ Abrams not expected to remain a National in the long-term (and unlikely to stick at shortstop, for that matter), the Nationals finally have a headlining prospect that could hold down the position.
No. 2: RHP Travis Sykora (21, 2023 Draft [71st pick] - 55 FV, 2028 ETA)
Sykora underwent UCL reconstruction in August of last year after 45 electric innings across 12 starts in the low minors. In that span, he managed a ludicrous 36.7 K-BB%, which was far and away the highest among all minor league pitchers with at least 40 innings in 2025, ahead of burgeoning big leaguers like Chase Burns, Trey Yesavage, Payton Tolle, and Jonah Tong. Sykora's not expected to pitch in 2026 as he recovers, and he was among the first cuts from big league camp as he gears up to continue building up strength.
No. 3: C Harry Ford (23, Acquired from Seattle for LHRP Jose A. Ferrer - 55 FV, 2026 ETA)
Ford, co-captain of Great Britain's World Baseball Classic team with Jazz Chisholm, reached a series of milestones with the Mariners in 2025, finally making his MLB debut in about as stressful of an environment as one could imagine and driving in the game-winning run. He went on to collect his first Postseason hit in mid-October, and now joins the Nationals for 2026.
The competition for the starting catching job is tight but not particularly exciting. The expectation is that the role will belong to Keibert Ruiz, and indeed Ruiz has received the most plate appearances of the four top options this spring. Ford, at present, probably ranks behind Drew Millas but ahead of Riley Adams. He struck out in 6 of his 12 plate appearances in Nationals camp, slashing .200/.333/.300, before heading off to join Great Britain for the World Baseball Classic. Seasoning at the big league level will, one might imagine, have to come at the expense of Ruiz.
No. 4: RHP Jarlin Susana (21, 2022 J15 Class - 55 FV, 2027 ETA)
After undergoing surgery to repair a tear in his right lat in September, the 21-year-old Susana is looking to return to game action in mid-2026. Susana struggled with walks but otherwise obliterated hitters in 11 Double-A starts before going down, and it's not unthinkable that with a strong return to form, he could be on the 2027 Opening Day roster (barring a lost season due to a hypothetical lockout). Equipped with an elite fastball-slider pairing, Susana will need to rein in his command of the strike zone and likely add a third effective pitch to be a long-term starting option, but his floor still looks like that of a filthy backend relief option.
No. 5: 3B/SS Gavin Fien (18, Acquired from Texas for LHSP MacKenzie Gore - 50 FV, 2029 ETA)
The Texas Rangers made Gavin Fien their 12th-overall selection in the 2025 Draft because of his power potential. Already 6'3" at 18 years old, Fien has room to round out his large frame, and Paul Toboni made him the headliner in the blockbuster trade of MacKenzie Gore in January. Fien projects to stay on the left side of the infield, but he's still a ways off having been taken out of high school. FanGraphs evaluators are more bearish, as Eric Longenhagen assessed him a 40+ FV, but opinions on the youngster vary wildly and only time can tell what he'll look like.
No. 6: RHP Luis Perales (22, Acquired from Boston for LHP Jake Bennett - 50 FV, 2026 ETA
Perales was picked up from the Red Sox in a one-for-one swap in December. I wrote about that trade when it happened, with the main takeaway being that the Nationals felt they could get more out of Perales on merit of his younger age. Perales, by virtue of being on the 40-man roster, is present in big league camp with the team, but has yet to appear in game action. Bennett, for his part, touched 97.6 MPH for the Red Sox in his only appearance, but neither man's projections have shifted dramatically in the 4 months since this trade took place.
No. 7: SS Seaver King (22, 2024 Draft [10th pick] - 45 FV, 2027 ETA)
Tom and I have both written about King's torrid Arizona Fall League showing that's given us some hope on him going forward. You can find my brief blurb on him here and Tom's piece that focuses specifically on his AFL showing here.
No. 8: MI Luke Dickerson (20, 2024 draft [44th pick] - 45 FV, 2028 ETA)
Jeremy wrote about Dickerson in January, and you can find that piece here (even if I think he's being a little overly optimistic about the team's chances this year).
No. 9: INF Devin Fitz-Gerald (20, Acquired from Texas for LHSP MacKenzie Gore - 45 FV, 2028 ETA)
Besides having a quintessential Baseball Name, Devin Fitz-Gerald is a bit of a wild card. The Rangers' fifth-round selection in the 2024 Draft, Fitz-Gerald had an impressive professional debut last year before a shoulder injury ended his season in June. Hopefully now healthy, he'll try to climb the ranks with a new organization this season.
No. 10: RHP Landon Harmon (19, 2025 Draft [80th pick] - 45 FV, 2029 ETA)
Another high school arm taken by Mike DeBartolo last year, FanGraphs evaluators like Harmon as someone who has a path to develop a wicked breaking ball. The kid's yet to make his professional debut in game action, but the lanky 6'5" right-hander has the physical makings of a quality arm going forward.
Other players in the Nationals' top 30:
No. 11: LHP Alex Clemmey (20, Acquired from Cleveland in 2024 for OF Lane Thomas - 45 FV, 2027 ETA)
No. 12: OF/1B Ethan Petry (21, 2025 Draft [49th pick] - 45 FV, 2028 ETA)
No. 13: RHP Yoel Tejeda Jr. (22, 2024 Draft [14th round] - 45 FV, 2027 ETA)
No. 14: LHP Jackson Kent (23, 2024 Draft [4th round] - 45 FV, 2027 ETA)
No. 15: RHP Alejandro Rosario (24, Acquired from Texas for LHSP MacKenzie Gore - 45 FV, 2028 ETA)
No. 16: RHP Miguel Sime Jr. (18, 2025 Draft [4th round] - 45 FV, 2029 ETA)
No. 17: SS Coy James (19, 2025 Draft [5th round] - 45 FV, 2029 ETA)
No. 18: OF Christian Franklin (26, Acquired from Cubs for RHP Michael Soroka - 40 FV, 2026 ETA)
No. 19: OF Andrew Pinckney (25, 2023 Draft [4th round] - 40 FV, 2026 ETA)
No. 20: OF Yeremy Cabrera (20, Acquired from Texas for LHSP MacKenzie Gore - 40 FV, 2028 ETA)
No. 21: MI Marconi German (18, 2025 J15 Class - 40 FV, 2030 ETA)
No. 22: OF Sam Petersen (23, 2024 Draft [8th round] - 40 FV, 2027 ETA)
No. 23: MI Angel Feliz (19, 2024 J15 Class - 40 FV, 2029 ETA)
No. 24: 1B Abimelec Ortiz (24, Acquired from Texas for LHSP MacKenzie Gore - 40 FV, 2026 ETA)
No. 25: SS Ronny Cruz (19, Acquired from Cubs for RHP Michael Soroka - 40 FV, 2029 ETA)
No. 26: RHP Eriq Swan (24, Acquired from Dodgers for LF Alex Call - 40 FV, 2027 ETA)
No. 27: RHP Sean Paul Liñan (21, Acquired from Dodgers for LF Alex Call - 40 FV, 2027 ETA)
No. 28: C Caleb Lomavita (23, 2024 Draft [39th pick] - 40 FV, 2027 ETA)
No. 29: CI Yohandy Morales (24, 2023 Draft [40th pick] - 40 FV, 2026 ETA)
No. 30: OF Nauris De La Cruz (18, 2025 international class - 40 FV, 2030 ETA)