Looking Back at Sickles 2008 Nats Top 20

Each year, John Sickels releases his list of each MLB team Top 20 Prospects. On the eve of him releasing his 2009 list of the Nationals Top 20, I thought it would be a good idea to review his 2008 list to see how those players did.

They are in order by ranking and Sickels grade is listed after the players name. My comments follow Sickels pre-season grade.

Traded players are in Bold Italic

1. Chris Marrero (B+) Was injured most of the season and struggled when he did play batting .250 with 11 HR’s at Potomac.

2. Ross Detwiler, (B+) Struggled during 2008 going 8-8 with a 4.86 ERA at Potomac.

3. Michael Burgess,(B+) Split 08 between Hagerstown and Potomac where he combined to hit .246 with 24 HR’s, 79 RBI’s and 72 runs scored. He needs to cut down on strikeouts as he had 162 to only 55 walks.

4. Justin Maxwell, (B) was injured much of 08. He only appeared in 43 games, batting .233 with 7 homeruns.

5. Jordan Zimmerman, RHP, Grade B Split between Potomac and HBG, Nationals MiLB pitcher of the year.

6. Collin Balester (B-) Promoted to the Nationals in June.

7. Josh Smoker, (B-) Struggled at Hagerstown (0-4, 11.50 ERA) and then was demoted to GCL Nationals (rookie ball) where he did well going 2-1 1.37 ERA.

8. Adam Carr, (B-) struggled at Potomac and Harrisburg combined to go 6-8 with a 6.60 ERA.

9. John Lannan, (B-) Pitched for the Nationals going 9-15 with a 3.91 ERA in 31 games.

10. Glenn Gibson (C+) was traded to Tampa Bay for Dukes.

11. Colton Willems, (C+) appeared in 20 games for Hagerstown going 5-9 with a 3.70 ERA.

12. Ian Desmond, (C+) was injured for part of the 08 season. When he played he was streaky, showing good improvement at times but struggling at times too. He combined to hit .256 with 12 homeruns. He has continued the streaky performance in the AFL where he’s hitting .266 with 3 HR’s.

13. Jack McGeary, (C+) suited up for the GCL Nationals and Vermont (Class A Short Season). Overall his stats were not that bad (69 K’s/16 BB/.268 average against) but his record (2-2) and ERA (4.10) didn’t stand out.

14. Jake Smolinski, OF, Grade C+ Traded to the Marlins along with Emilio Bonifacio and P.J. Dean for Scott Olsen and Josh Willingham

15. Jon Albaladejo, RHP, Grade C+ traded to Yankees for Tyler Clippard in Dec 2007

16. Adrian Alaniz, (C+) was great at Potomac (9-0 with a 2.62 ERA) but didn’t manage to get a win after being promoted to Harrisburg, where he was 0-5 with a 3.93 ERA. Return to Harrisburg seems likely.

17. Shairon Martis, (C+) started 08 at Harrisburg and then was promoted to Colombus, he combined to 5-6 with a 3.64 ERA. Later was promoted to the Nationals where he was 1-3 with a 5.66 ERA. He will most likely return to Triple-A.

18. Jhonny Nunez, RHP, Grade C+ with the White Sox

19. Kory Casto, (C+), Let me start by saying I like Casto. He did well at Harrisburg and for the most part he played good in Triple-A but it doesn’t seem like he can make the transition to the MLB level. Seems to me like he is a 4-A player, good for Triple-A, but not good at the MLB level. He will be 27 going into the 2009 season. His days as a prospect are about done.

20. Josh Whitesell (C) picked up by the D-Backs and had a great season at Triple-A; made his MLB debut.