Nationals Will Need To Exhibit Patience With Potential Steal of MLB Draft

The Washington Nationals shocked everyone right at the start of the 2025 MLB draft, selecting prep shortstop Eli Willits with the No. 1 overall pick.

While he was thought to be one of the best prospects in the draft class, no one pegged him being selected as the first pick.

It is a big risk for a franchise that is going to be under new management in the near future following the firing of general manager Mike Rizzo and manager Dave Martinez earlier this month.

Predicting what the Nationals were going to do in a draft being run by some people in interim positions was going to be a challenge.

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Early on, they put an emphasis on high school players, using four out of their first five picks on players who would be starting college in a few weeks.

One of those players is right-handed pitcher Landon Harmon.

Standing an imposing 6-foot-5, the East Union High School product is someone who drew the attention of R.J. Anderson of CBS Sports.

In a recent piece, he highlighted his favorite pick after the first round for each team in the draft.

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For Washington, it was Harmon who he was most intrigued by.

“I liked Harmon's potential enough entering the spring to place him within my preseason top 30. He didn't quite live up to that projection, but he's a well-built righty with good arm strength and some feel for a fuller arsenal,” Anderson wrote.

The Nationals could have come away with one of the biggest steals in the draft based on projections from earlier this year, having Harmon as a borderline first-round pick.

However, for him to realize his potential, Washington is going to have to exhibit a lot of patience in developing him.

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“The Nationals will need to be patient to get Harmon's development right; if they do, they could walk away with a legitimate big-league starter,” Anderson added.

A legitimate Major League starter is something the Nationals could certainly use more of. Beyond MacKenzie Gore and Jake Irvin, there isn’t much to get excited about with the current state of their starting rotation.

Mitchell Parker has taken some steps back after a strong rookie campaign in 2024 and DJ Herz had to undergo Tommy John surgery.

Former top prospects Cade Cavalli and Josiah Gray could offer help at some point down the stretch in 2025, but this is a team that could certainly use more impact performers on the mound.

The next wave of prospects that includes Travis Sykora, Jarlin Susana and Alex Clemmey will have some pressure on them to fill out the rotation for years to come.

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