Nationals Former Top Prospect Is Team's Best Kept Secret on Major League Roster

The Washington Nationals had incredibly high hopes for Cole Henry when they selected him in the second round of the 2020 MLB draft.

He showcased incredible potential during his time with the LSU Tigers, but staying healthy was a major concern for him.

Henry made only four appearances in his final season at LSU before being selected by the Nationals.

The injury woes continued to plague him as a professional, making only 11 appearances in 2021 between Rookie Ball and High-A. Six more appearances were made in the Arizona Fall League so he could try and make up for lost time.

2022 wasn’t much better from a health perspective with Henry making only nine appearances, but encouragingly, he dominated at Double-A Harrisburg.

2023 and 2024 were more of the same, pitching in 14 and eight games, respectively, but not pitching above the Double-A level despite reaching Triple-A in 2022.

This year, Henry began in the minor leagues with Triple-A Rochester. After two appearances, he was promoted to the Major Leagues, where he has turned into one of the most reliable relief pitchers for manager Dave Martinez.

That has made him the best kept secret on the team in the opinion of Tim Kelly of Bleacher Report.

“Continued production at a level even close to that would make the former second-round pick a godsend considering Dave Martinez's squad is 28th in bullpen ERA at 6.03,” he wrote.

Moving Henry to the bullpen was a smart decision for the organization to make.

He has the stuff to dominant, but with such a spotty track record with his health, this could be a way to help keep him on the mound more consistently.

It has paid off to this point, with the former top prospect registering an impressive 2.08 ERA across his first 21.2 Major League innings. He has added 22 strikeouts and surrendered only one home run.

Moving up the pecking order for Martinez, Henry is seeing his responsibility increase, beginning to be called upon later in games during high-leverage situations.

It was being done out of necessity at first with so many relievers struggling, but he has earned the opportunity with his production as well, along with veteran Andrew Chafin, who could be a trade chip in the coming weeks.

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