Nationals Farm Authority

The Potomac Nationals announced their 2006 opening day roster today. From a quick glance, the one thing that jumps out is the wealth of pitching in Woodbridge. Three of the top ten Nationals’ prospects (as judged by Baseball America) comprise the rotation with a fourth (Daryl Thompson) not too far behind. Collin Balester, Clint Everts, and Mike Hinckley give Potomac three very promising arms for the future. Fortunately, I had the chance to attend the Potomac Media Day so I could try and get a read on the rest of the starters:

Position	Starter	Backup/Platoon
CA	Devin Ivany	Luke Montz/Robert Rodriguez
1B	Luke Montz	Steve Mortimer
2B	Trey Webb	Greg Thissen
3B	Brandon Powell
SS	Marco Yepez	Seth Bynum
LF	Marvin Lowrance
CF	Rogearvin Bernadina	Ender Chavez
RF	Edgardo Baez
SP1	Collin Balester
SP2	Mike Hinckley (L)
SP3	Clint Everts
SP4	Ricardo Morales (L)
SP5	Greg Bunn
RP	Jim Henderson	Dan Kolb
RP	Alex Morales	Juan Ovalles
RP	Jeremy Plexico (L)	Tom Wilson (L)
CL	Brett Campbell

The players in bold will be tracked in the daily Farm Authority Reports. We will add names as the season goes along.

The two primary catchers, Ivany and Montz, bear watching. They present an interesting contrast behind the plate. Ivany’s calling card is his defense: he is touted as the best defensive catcher in the farm system. He told me he is looking forward to catching Balester, Everts, and Hinckley. Ivany is anxious to become a team leader and is focused on making the pitching staff trust him and feel comfortable on the mound. He is working on becoming more comfortable at the plate, continuing his adjustment to the wood bat and while his numbers improved in 2005, he still wants to become a better hitter.

Montz, on the other hand, is primarily a hitter who can work behind the plate. He understands that Ivany will be the primary catcher but has been told by management that he’ll spend time playing 1B, though he’d rather be behind the plate in order to work on his defense. He still believes he needs to work on his offense, hoping to show power to RF (all 19 of his 2005 HRs were to LF) as well as cutting down on his strikeouts (95 in 343AB). Potomac manager Randy Knorr told me that Robert Rodriguez will also get his share of starts behind the plate.

Joining Montz at 1B is Steve Mortimer. The 24-year old Mortimer had a non-descript season in Savannah hitting 10HR while amassing 135K in 101 games. The middle infield will be manned by three guys returning to Potomac with one new face, second base will likely be split between Trey Webb and Greg Thissen with Marco Yepez and Seth Bynum at SS. Yepez, Thissen, and Bynum are returning to Potomac again in 2006 while Webb is making the jump after three seasons in Savannah. None of the four are on the prospect radar for the Washington Nationals. Former Kansas City Royals 2B, Brandon Powell will be learning a new position, third base, with Potomac. He is focused on taking the next step to Double-A quickly.

In the outfield, Potomac is long on upside with the Savanannah starting OF moving en masse to High A Carolina. Marvin Lowrance, Rogearvin Bernadina, and Edgardo Baez will likely be starting in LF, CF, and RF respectively with the returning Ender Chavez the #4 OF. The Nationals like Lowrance’s LH bat and hope that a healthy 2006 season is in the offing (he missed two months with a fractured kneecap in 2005). If Lowrance can demonstrate improved plate discipline, he has an intersting upside. Bernadina finally escapes Low A after three seasons in Savannah. His calling cards are his speed and defense. He told me he is working on being more consistent at the plate and more aggressive on the basepaths. Rounding out the OF is Edgardo Baez who disappointed in Savannah in 2005. The Nationals are challenging him by his placement in Potomac. He is long on tools but has yet to show the progress hoped for … he is still 20 years old so he has time on his side.

Joining the Big Three (we need to work on a name for them) in the rotation are LH Ricardo Morales and RH Greg Bunn. Morales hopes to build on a solid season in Savannah (1.36WHIP; 6.5K/9; 2.6BB/9; 1.1HR/9). Bunn returns to Potomac after a disappointing 2005. Both are 23 and need to show the Nationals they are ready to take the next step. Potomac is hoping the presence of the Big Three will drive Morales and Bunn to pitch better. The bullpen is comprised of guys older than 23, none are projected as anything more than organizational guys. Closing games out will likely be the responsibility of Brett Campbell. The 24-year old Campbell had a breakout season in Savannah closing.