Scouts Say Washington Nationals Are ‘Way Behind’ In This Key Area

The Washington Nationals have been lauded of late for their ability to draft and develop talent. In fact, a good portion of that young talent is on the Major League roster and expected to play a big role this season.

That what makes one particular result of a blind survey of 24 scouts by Baseball America all the more perplexing.

The site asked scouts several questions, including which teams were scout-friendly and which teams were not. The Nationals received a solid percentage of the vote for being scout-friendly at 23%. The high was the Dodgers at 81%. And, only 4% of the scouts polled said the Nationals were the least scout-friendly.

But it’s this percentage that is likely to raise eyebrows in the organization. Scouts were asked which organization is the worst at identifying talent. Washington ended up with 13% of the vote, which was tied with the Cubs, Reds and Red Sox.

Worse, none of the scouts listed the Nationals as the organization that is best at identifying talent.

Some scouts gave Baseball America additional feedback. One said that the Nationals, along with the White Sox, were “way behind” in the area of identifying talent.

That’s a rough evaluation from the men and women that scout talent throughout the U.S. While under 30 scouts participated in the blind survey, there are hundreds that work throughout baseball.

This feedback can be juxtaposed against the depth of young talent ready to try and push the Nationals out of the doldrums of five straight losing seasons and back-to-back 71-win seasons in 2025.

Several of the players that the Nationals received in the Juan Soto trade in 2022 are in the Majors, including outfielder James Wood. Washington's 2023 first-round pick, Dylan Crews, is expected to be the opening-day right fielder after making his debut last year.

The Nationals also have budding young stars in outfielder Jacob Young, shortstop C.J. Abrams and second baseman Luis Garcia Jr., along with catcher Keibert Ruiz. The expected starting rotation is led by young pitchers like MacKenzie Gore and D.J. Herz.

Washington has made notable moves, both in the batting order and in the starting rotation.

On the field, the Nats traded reliever Robert Garcia to the Texas Rangers to acquire first baseman Nathaniel Lowe, a move that addressed one of the team's main concerns in free agency — signing a power-hitting corner infielder. Washington also re-signed Josh Bell.

Washington signed starting pitcher Michael Soroka to a one-year deal, hoping that the former All-MLB starter in in 2019 can reclaim his former form after a lost season with the Chicago White Sox, preceded by missing two seasons due to an Achilles injury. The Nats also signed veteran Trevor Williams to a two-year contract.