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01/24/2008 11:33 AM ET
Nationals' Minor League system makes monumental progress according to Baseball America in publication's annual prospect handbook
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As part of its soon-to-be-released 2008 Prospect Handbook, Baseball America ranks the Washington Nationals minor-league system No. 9 among Major League Baseball's 30 clubs.
Washington's No. 9 ranking stands in stark contrast to last season, when the Nationals' system ranked 30th in baseball. The Nationals' ranking leap of 21 slots was the second-largest this decade, or since Baseball America began producing its Prospect Handbook in 2001 (Texas leapt 24 slots, from No. 28 to No. 4, in 2008).
"The Nationals' march up our prospect rankings isn't unprecedented, but it's extremely impressive," said Baseball America Editor In Chief John Manuel. "It shows a commitment to building an organization, not just a team, and to building it creatively, through trades for prospects, through the draft and through international signings. The Nats have shown that with the resources they now have, they intend to be players for top amateur talent. General Manager Jim Bowden should be commended especially for the team's 2007 draft class, because he brought in strong personalities and strong talent evaluators to the organization and got them to work together for the common goal of restocking the farm system, and the early returns on the '07 draft class indicate that mission was accomplished."
Prior to 2008, neither the Nationals nor Expos had ranked higher than 16th in BA's organizational rankings.
Six of the Nationals' top 11 players, as ranked by Baseball America, are products of Washington's 2007 First-Year Player Draft, which was rated as the "best in baseball" by BA in its November 5-18 issue. According to BA, 17 of the Nationals' top 20 prospects were either drafted or acquired since the Nationals moved to Washington in 2005.
Those interested in ordering Baseball America's Prospect Handbook can do so by calling 800.845.2726. On-line orders can also be placed at http://www.baseballamerica.com/store/store.cgi?p=MVAEDQ.
WASHINGTON'S TOP 20
PROSPECTS PER BA |
BA'S TOP 10
ORGANIZATIONAL
RANKINGS ('08) |
NATIONALS/EXPOS ORGANIZATIONAL
RANKINGS PER YEAR BY BA |
| 1. Chris Marrero, 1B/OF |
1. Tampa Bay Rays |
2001: 21 |
| 2. Ross Detwiler, LHP |
2. Boston Red Sox |
2002: 16 |
| 3. Collin Balester, RHP |
3. Cincinnati Reds |
2003: 29 |
| 4. Michael Burgess, OF |
4. Texas Rangers |
2004: 30 |
| 5. Jack McGeary, LHP |
5. New York Yankees |
2005: 26 |
| 6. Josh Smoker, LHP |
6. Los Angeles Dodgers |
2006: 24 |
| 7. J. Zimmermann, RHP |
7. Colorado Rockies |
2007: 30 |
| 8. Justin Maxwell, OF |
8. Atlanta Braves |
2008: 9 |
| 9. Colton Willems, RHP |
9. WASHINGTON NATIONALS |
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| 10. John Lannan, LHP |
10. Los Angeles Angels |
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| 11. Jake Smolinski, OF |
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| 12. Tyler Clippard, RHP |
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| 13. Adam Carr, RHP |
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| 14. Ian Desmond, SS |
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| 15. Garrett Mock, RHP |
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| 16. Stephen King, SS |
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| 17. Esmailyn Gonzalez, SS |
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| 18. Shairon Martis, RHP |
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| 19. Brad Peacock, RHP |
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| 20. Kory Casto, OF/3B |
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