Nationals Take High School SS Eli Willits dengan Pilihan No. 1 di Draft 2025 MLB
The Washington Nationals selected Oklahoma high school shortstop Eli Willits on Sunday night with the No. 1 pick in Major League Baseball’s amateur draft in a selection seen by some as a surprise.
The 17-year-old Willits is the youngest player taken at No. 1 overall since Ken Griffey Jr. with Seattle in 1987. He’s the son of ex-big leaguer Reggie Willits, who played six seasons with the Los Angeles Angels and also coached with the New York Yankees.
The Willits pick kicked off a record total of 11 shortstops selected among the first 18 picks. According to Baseball America, the previous record total of shortstops taken among the top 30 picks was 10 in 2021 and 2023.
Willits, from Fort Cobb-Broxton High School, is a switch-hitter who is expected to develop a power swing.
“I feel like I have good hitability, and I’m going to take that to the next level,” Willits said when asked about his strengths. “And I feel like my power is up and coming, but I needed to get into an organization like the Nationals that can help develop that and take that to the next level.
The draft came one week after the Nationals fired longtime general manager Mike Rizzo and manager Dave Martinez. The timing of the moves added more uncertainty to a draft that might be one of the most unpredictable in recent years, including the choice of the No. 1 pick.
Nationals interim general manager Mike DeBartolo said Willits was the team’s No. 1 choice because he was viewed as “the best hitter in the draft and best fielder in the draft” while also boasting a rare “makeup and intangibles” for a 17-year-old player.
“It made this very easy for us,” DeBartolo said.
Added Nationals vice-president for amateur scouting Danny Haas: “He makes the routine plays about as easy as anybody you can see, much less a 17-year-old.”
Willits will likely get a signing bonus below the $11.08 million value assigned to the first overall pick, allowing Washington to redistribute those savings to later selections.
The Angels added another surprise with the No. 2 pick by selecting UC-Santa Barbara right-hander Tyler Bremner. Seattle followed by taking LSU lefty Kade Anderson.
Colorado picked shortstop Ethan Holliday at No. 4, landing the son of longtime Rockies star Matt Holliday. Ethan, from Stillwater, Oklahoma, was a candidate to go first overall, just like brother Jackson Holliday with did with Baltimore in 2022. They would have been the first brothers to be drafted with the first overall pick.
[MORE: Nationals Select First in 2025 MLB Draft; How Last 10 No. 1 Picks Have Fared]
“Organisasi Rockies, saya sangat berterima kasih,” kata Ethan Holliday. “Jelas, dengan keluarga dan latar belakang dan ayahku direkrut oleh mereka, itu hanya menambahkan hal yang begitu keren. Dan mengenal semua orang di organisasi sejak aku lahir, aku sangat berterima kasih.”
Pemain yang lebih berperingkat tinggi diikuti dengan St. Louis Cardinals memilih tangan kiri Tennessee Liam Doyle di No. 5, diikuti oleh pilihan Pittsburgh Pirates untuk tangan kanan Seth Hernandez dari Corona (California) High School.
Jojo Parker, sebuah shortstop dari sekolah menengah Purvis (Mississippi) adalah pilihan No. 8 oleh Toronto Blye Jays. Shortstop sekolah menengah lainnya, Steele Hall dari Hewitt Trussville (Alabama), adalah No. 9 oleh Cincinnati Reds.
Dengan pick No. 10, Chicago White Sox menjadikan Billy Carlson sebagai shortstop keenam dan pemain kedua dari Corona High School yang dipilih dalam 10 picks pertama. Dalam draft 2024 MLB, hanya 10 shortstops yang diambil dalam 30 picks teratas.
Texas, San Francisco, Tampa Bay dan Minnesota juga mengambil shortstops sebelum Texas High Schooler Kayson Cunningham, pilihan keseluruhan No. 18 oleh Arizona, menjadi shortstop ke -11 yang direkrut.
Komisaris Baseball Rob Manfred disambut dengan ejekan oleh penggemar di draft yang diadakan di Roxy Theatre di baterai, berdekatan dengan Taman Truist Braves, dua hari sebelum permainan All-Star MLB. Manfred mencatat Braves memilih Hall of Famer Chipper Jones akhirnya dengan pick keseluruhan No. 1 dan mengatakan draf ini adalah “kesempatan bagi tim untuk membuat pilihan yang mengubah waralaba seperti Braves yang dibuat pada tahun 1990.”
Tiga putaran pertama dijadwalkan untuk Minggu malam, dengan sisa draft yang akan diikuti pada hari Senin.
Pelaporan oleh Associated Press.
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