Former first-rounder Willems retires

In a week that saw two former Nationals first-round picks promoted, a third has apparently decided to hang it up.

Colton Willems, Washington's first-round pick in the 2006 Draft, announced his retirement on May 1 after a rough outing with the Class A Hagerstown Suns. The Fort Pierce, Fla., native gave up two earned runs in 1 1/3 innings on Friday night, a day before informing the organization he was retiring.

Willems, 21, who was placed on the restricted list so that he'd still be under Nationals control in case he decides to make a comeback, drove back to Florida on Saturday. The move comes in the same week the Nationals announced the promotions of 2009 first-rounders Drew Storen and Stephen Strasburg to Triple-A Syracuse.

"He feels like it's the right move in his life," Nationals player development director Doug Harris told MASNsports.com. "We try to present everything so kids can look 10, 15, 20 years down the road and have no regrets. You can't put a gun to somebody's head. We wish him the best, and we're here for him. He's a good kid, a really good kid."

Willems was selected by the Nats out of John Carroll High School in Fort Pierce as the 22nd overall pick of the June 2006 First-Year Player Draft. He showed early success, earning New York-Penn League All-Star honors in 2007 with Vermont.

The 6-foot-4 right-hander was promoted the following spring to Hagerstown, where he finished the 2008 season 5-9 with a 3.70 ERA in 20 starts, holding left-handed hitters to a .223 batting average.

The Nats bumped the righty to Class A Advanced Potomac in 2009, but he struggled in what was a limited campaign, going 1-4 with a 7.40 ERA in only six starts. He gave up five earned runs over 3 1/3 innings with the Gulf Coast Nationals as well.

Willems was reassigned to Hagerstown out of Spring Training this season and, as of Friday, had given up 13 earned runs in 12 1/3 innings. Working strictly out of the bullpen, he was 0-1 with a 9.49 ERA and had allowed 18 hits and nine walks.

Friday's outing against Augusta proved to be a frustrating one. He entered the game in the sixth with two runners on and threw a wild pitch to the first batter he faced, allowing the runner on third to race home. Sharlon Schoop hit an RBI double, Ryan Lollis walked and Nick Liles lined a two-run double before Willems retired Evan Crawford to end the frame.

Willems worked around a walk and a wild pitch in the following inning, inducing Dan Cook to ground out to end the frame.

"He felt like his heart wasn't in it at this point," Harris said. "If you're stepping away from the Nationals and pro baseball, you're doing it as a human being. Ultimately, if they're at peace with that, it's fine. ... He's a great kid, a wonderful person. We want him to be happy."