Baseball America has moved on to the NY/Penn League Top 20 prospects and the Nationals have three players on the list (BBA scouting reports)
- #4 CA Derek Norris
Norris hit just .203 in the Rookie-level Gulf Coast League in his pro debut last year, but he turned a corner as a 19-year-old in the NY-P. His power potential and plus arm were his best tools in high school, and he earned raves for both this summer. He has average or better pull power and is learning to use the whole field. Norris has a terrific feel for the strike zone and led the league with 63 walks—22 more than any other hitter in the NY-P—and a .444 on-base percentage.
Norris’ strong arm and quick release helped him throw out a league-best 47 percent of basestealers. He’s very aggressive throwing to every base and calls a good game. He’s also a surprisingly good receiver for someone who didn’t start catching until his senior year of high school, but he still needs to work on blocking because he has a tendency to try to pick pitches in the dirt.
- #10 RHP P.J. Dean
Like Barnese, Dean is a 19-year-old righthander who dominated older competition, allowing no more than one earned run in eight of his 10 starts. After he worked in the 88-91 mph range with his fastball last year in his pro debut, his velocity jumped in his first full season, sitting at 91-92 and touching 93-94. The life on his fastball makes it an above-average offering, and he could add more velocity as he fills out his 6-foot-3, 175-pound frame.
Dean complements his fastball with a pair of average secondary pitches: a hard curveball, and an improved changeup with good fade that he uses against both lefthanders and righthanders. He has a very good feel for pitching but needs to improve his fastball command, as he has a tendency to leave it up in the zone. He’s a quality athlete who fields his position well.
- #14 SS Danny Espinosa
Espinosa signed for an over-slot $525,000 bonus as a third-round pick right before the Aug. 15 deadline, then took the NY-P by storm, going 9-for-11 over his first four games. He finished at .328, though he didn’t deliver another extra-base hit after doubling in his first two games.
A switch-hitter, Espinosa hits for better average from the left side but shows more power potential from the right. Despite his lack of pop with Vermont, he’s capable of stinging hard line drives to all fields and producing occasional home runs. He showed more strike-zone discipline with the Lake Monsters than he did at Long Beach State.
Espinosa’s instincts and work ethic make his tools play up. He’s just an average runner but is aggressive and intelligent on the basepaths. His first-step quickness and ability to read the ball off the bat translate to good range at shortstop, and he has a strong, accurate arm, though his actions are unorthodox.
As with the GCL, not much to quibble with here.
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