The Washington Nationals have the No. 1 pick in the 2025 MLB Draft.
With that comes a lot of power, and the Nats must use it wisely.
They have a great history in the top spot, of course, getting both Stephen Strasburg and Bryce Harper there.
This time around, there's some risk. ESPN's mock draft has the Nationals choosing Kade Anderson, the lefty pitcher from LSU.
"Anderson is considered the best combination of potential and proximity to the big leagues," ESPN's Kiley McDaniel writes. "His timeline to the big leagues fits the general timeline of the Nationals' wave of talent coming up (Travis Sykora, Luke Dickerson, Jarlin Susana, Seaver King, Cade Cavalli), the group that just showed up in the big leagues (James Wood, Dylan Crews, Brady House, Daylen Lile) and core (MacKenzie Gore and C.J. Abrams) already starring in the majors. With some smart moves, this could be a competitive team in the next year or two."
The risky word in there is proximity. If that's the reason for making a draft decision that can define your franchise for the next decade, it might not be the right move.
And in picking Anderson, the Nationals would be passing on Ethan Holliday.
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Holliday is a high school shortstop out of Stillwater, Oklahoma. He's the son of MLB great Matt Holliday and the brother of Orioles young star Jackson Holliday.
Ethan has a chance to be the best of the bunch.
Sure, he's 18 rather than in his 20s, but Jackson rose quickly through the minors, and Ethan could, too, if that's what the Nationals wanted to do.
Arm injuries make pitchers feel so much riskier, so that mitigates the difference between a college arm and a high school bat.
Of course there are no guarantees here either way. But passing on Holliday feels like it could backfire in a big way.
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