All eyes turn to hurlers Sykora, Susana in Nats camp
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- Last year in Spring Training, Nationals manager Dave Martinez named the section of young hitting prospects in big league camp led by James Wood and Dylan Crews "Hope Row." While Robert Hassell III and Brady House are still prospects, Wood has graduated and Crews will
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- Last year in Spring Training, Nationals manager Dave Martinez named the section of young hitting prospects in big league camp led by James Wood and Dylan Crews "Hope Row." While Robert Hassell III and Brady House are still prospects, Wood has graduated and Crews will come off prospect lists in the early stages of the 2025 season, so it might be time for the Nationals to hold a naming contest for the next wave of baby Nats.
Only this time, it might be arms.
Once Crews does graduate, the top two prospects on the Nationals' Top 30 will not just be pitchers. They'll be two huge (6-foot-6 huge) right-handers who hit triple digits with their fastballs in Travis Sykora and Jarlin Susana. The duo finished second and third in the Minors among those with at least 80 innings pitched in K/9 rate. Sykora, the Nats' third-round pick in 2023 who got $2.6 million to sign, finished second among all those pitchers' xFIP as well in his first full season of A ball. Susana, acquired from the Padres in the 2022 Juan Soto blockbuster, topped 100 innings for the first time and got sharper as his year went on. The organization clearly has something cooking on the pitching development side of the ledger right now.
"The big thing is in between starts, the preparation, their bullpen days after their start, focusing on what went right, what went wrong, kind of a tuneup for that next start," Nationals farm director Eddie Longosz said.
Sykora's preparation is already reaching legendary status as he's long been fastidious about journaling and learning about his craft. The Nats' player development staff is trying to make sure all of the organization's arms are on the same level, even if each hurler does things a little differently.
"It's teaching them the same type of purpose," Longosz said. "That was the big thing with Susana especially, those in-between starts looking at counts where he threw pitches or when he got behind, what was his strategy going into that. And the pitching coaches did a really excellent job harnessing that on those off days. It's all about preparation for all these guys."
That also includes relative newcomer Alex Clemmey, now No. 6 on the club's Top 30. The Nationals got the left-hander from the Guardians in the Lane Thomas deal at last year's Trade Deadline, and like the other two, he misses a ton of bats. There's lots of room for improvement in terms of his ability to throw strikes, getting ahead early and not running deep counts, but there were some early signs of encouragement at the start of his first Spring Training with his new club.
He certainly fit right in immediately when he got to Single-A Fredericksburg. As another high school arm from the 2023 Draft, he and Sykora fell in sync with each other almost immediately.
"A lot of them know each other from the high school circuits and growing up and doing all the travel ball," Longosz said. "But the second Clemmey got in there, they were like two peas in a pod, inseparable. I think they feed off each other. They can rag and tease each other, but they are also learning from each other. That's huge, them being the same age, coming up together, going through everything together."
📩 SUBSCRIBE TO THE BASEBALL TRAVELER NEWSLETTER
Camp standout: Brad Lord
Not everyone in this next wave of pitching -- "Hurler Hall?" -- was an early-round pick or a big trade acquisition. Lord joined the Nationals in 2022 as a senior taken in the 18th round of the Draft. He likely didn't set off any prospect alarms with his first full season across two levels of A-ball in 2023 other than his ability to fill up the strike zone.
Then came his breakout in 2024, splitting nearly all of the season between the top two levels of the Minors, making 25 starts and amassing nearly 130 very effective innings. Now he's the No. 23 prospect in the system and has been making a good impression in big league camp, allowing just one earned run (two total) in 7 1/3 relief innings. It's a small sample in shorter stints, but his velocity has taken a nice step forward, from averaging around 92-93 mph in 2024 to sitting 95-96 in Grapefruit League action.
"He's a strike machine, gets ahead with a four-seamer and two-seamer," Longosz said. "The secondaries are good but he just fools with the fastball. He can sink it, he can run it. He was a great starter last year. He came out of nowhere."
Breakout candidate: Yoel Tejeda
Speaking of late-round college arms who could join that crop of pitching moving up -- "Velocity Rising?" -- keep an eye on Tejeda, their pick in Round 14 of last year's Draft, who got a bit over slot ($225,000) as a Draft-eligible sophomore out of Florida State. He actually started at rival Florida as a freshman, then moved to the Seminoles for the 2024 season, and he didn't pitch frequently, or well, at either. But he's 6-foot-8 with some big stuff, an arm without a ton of mileage or reps (42 1/3 IP in college total). Perhaps he's a bit of a lottery ticket, but the Nationals like the numbers they've drawn.
"He's a big guy with a tough angle," Longosz said. "There's velocity, deception and movement. It's an ugly at-bat, a tough look for a hitter. We're curious how he progresses.
"We want him to start; the stuff is too good to not try it out first. You want to give him the best chance to start before changing it. If it doesn't work, it doesn't work."
Something to prove: Armando Cruz
When the 2020-21 international signing period finally opened in January 2021, the Nationals went all in to sign Cruz for $3.9 million, which at the time was tied for the largest bonus given on the international market by the organization. Outside of some signs of life offensively when he made his U.S. debut in 2022, he's yet to gain any traction with the bat. He spent parts of three seasons with Single-A Fredericksburg and brings a career .572 OPS into the 2025 season.
It should be noted that he will be just 21 for all of the upcoming season and he has a relatively high floor because he can really defend up the middle, so it's not like this is some kind of make or break year for the infielder. This spring there have been a few glimmers of hope.
"He looks stronger," said Longosz, who thought Cruz will likely begin the year with High-A Wilmington, where he finished the 2024 season, while playing both shortstop and second. "I think he's really locked in on his swing and controlling the zone, not chasing, working on the heart of the zone. I think this is a year it will click."
Jonathan Mayo is a reporter for MLBPipeline.com. Follow him on Facebook and @JonathanMayo, and listen to him on the weekly MLB Pipeline Podcast.
Phillies' Moore, Fausnaught join MiLB podcast
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
Red Sox prospect rips double THROUGH Fenway-esque scoreboard
Red Sox No. 4 prospect Franklin Arias, an infielder for High-A Greenville, REALLY didn’t want to let visiting Asheville score any runs in the top of the eighth inning on Friday night. With runners on first and second base in the bottom of the fourth, Arias showed he apparently held
April's hottest hitting prospects -- one for each organization
The Minor League season is a month old and several of the game's best hitting prospects are off to fast starts. Red Sox outfielder Roman Anthony is tearing up Triple-A (just like he did at the end of last year), Padres shortstop Leo De Vries is leading the High-A Midwest
Check out the best -- and wackiest -- Minor League promos happening in May
Benjamin Hill travels the nation collecting stories about what makes Minor League Baseball unique. This excerpt from the Baseball Traveler newsletter, presented by Circle K, is a mere taste of the smorgasbord of delights he offers every week. Read the full newsletter here, and subscribe to his newsletter here.
Orioles' Honeycutt joins The Show Before the Show
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
MiLB podcast coming LIVE to a Somerset this June
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
New ballparks highlight 2025 MiLB road trip stops
Benjamin Hill travels the nation collecting stories about what makes Minor League Baseball unique. This excerpt from the Baseball Traveler newsletter, presented by Circle K, is a mere taste of the smorgasbord of delights he offers every week. Read the full newsletter here, and subscribe to his newsletter here.
Minor League Baseball partners with TruGreen
FRANKLIN, Tenn. -- TruGreen, the nation's leading lawn care treatment provider, is proud to announce a groundbreaking partnership with Minor League Baseball that includes activations across all 120 clubs, a makeover of the home dugout in each market, sponsorship of select MiLB team grounds crews, and a new initiative called
Podcast explains why the Syracuse Mets are looking for Jim Morrison
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
Dash im-prom-tu promo and Mets' Suero joins the podcast
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
Minor League Baseball partners with Circle K
Minor League Baseball announced a new national partnership with Circle K, which will see the convenience store giant become the “Official Convenience Store of Minor League Baseball.” During the 2025 season, the Circle K brand will be integrated into the MiLB in-stadium experience through in-game video board assets at most
These 15 moments led to season No. 15 of Minor League road trips
Benjamin Hill travels the nation collecting stories about what makes Minor League Baseball unique. This excerpt from his newsletter is a mere taste of the smorgasbord of delights he offers every week. Read the full newsletter here, and subscribe to his newsletter here.
MiLB podcast crew makes Opening Day predictions
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
Everything you need to know for Triple-A Opening Day
First, there was big league Opening Day. Now it's Triple-A's turn to take the spotlight. The Minor League season opens Friday when the Triple-A International League and Pacific Coast League seasons get underway for the first of MiLB’s two Opening Days. And right out of the gates, several of baseball's
Top prospects to watch at Triple-A -- one for each organization
It’s Triple-A’s turn up to bat on Friday. The regular season begins for the Minor Leagues’ highest level one day after the action starts on the Major League side. Fun fact: it’ll be the earliest start to a Minor League season since 1951 (March 27). Double-A, High-A and Single-A will
Here's where every Top 100 prospect is expected to start the season
The 2025 Opening Day prospect roster announcements began last week when the Cubs informed Matt Shaw (MLB No. 19) he was making the trip overseas to compete in the Tokyo Series. Roki Sasaki (No. 1) also received the good news, but his assignment was much less of a surprise. Now
Nationals prospect King joins MiLB podcast
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
Here are the 2025 All-Spring Breakout Teams
Fifteen games, several jersey swaps and countless highlights later, the second edition of Spring Breakout has officially concluded – and it lived up to its billing. Of the 16 contests sprinkled across four days, only one game (Dodgers vs. Cubs) was rained out. Coincidentally, the Cubs were one of two
Rox young sluggers aim to bring pop back to Coors Field
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- Coors Field may provide the best run-scoring environment in Major League Baseball, but the Rockies haven’t taken advantage of it in recent years. Even without adjusting for Coors, they have fielded offenses worse than the league average the past three seasons, and they scored the fewest runs
Astros brass sees potential in consistently 'underranked' farm system
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- The last time the Astros landed in the top 10 of MLB Pipeline’s farm system rankings was before the 2019 season. Since those rankings expanded to all 30 teams ahead of the 2020 season -- 11 lists in total -- they’ve never ranked higher than
Complete results and highlights from Spring Breakout
The second edition of MLB Spring Breakout is complete, and there was no shortage of highlights from the future stars of Major League Baseball over the four-day showcase. Here's a complete breakdown of the 16-game exhibition:
Southpaw Spring Breakout: White Sox future on display with Schultz, Smith
GLENDALE, Ariz. -- If all goes as planned for the White Sox, left-handers Hagen Smith and Noah Schultz won’t spend much time following each other to the mound in a single game. Schultz, the No. 1 White Sox prospect and No. 16 overall, per MLB Pipeline, and Smith, who is
In first pro game, Rainer offers pop, promise to Tigers fans
NORTH PORT, Fla. -- Bryce Rainer’s pro career consisted of workouts and batting practice until Sunday.
'Me and Brady on the dirt again': House, King reunite at Spring Breakout
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- The 2025 Spring Breakout was a flashback for Brady House and Seaver King. Over 10 years ago, the infielders were travel ball teammates in Georgia who shared the dream of making it to the Major Leagues. Now, they are top prospects in the same organization,
Lambert -- 'an adrenaline guy' -- hoping to be next Mets bullpen gem
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- Ryan Lambert loves throwing hard. He relishes the idea of getting to two strikes and blowing hitters away. “Get me in a game,” Lambert said, “cool things will happen.”