[January 24th] - There is no question that the Washington Nationals drafted a player in the MLB 2005 amateur draft who will become the key player in the team's long-term future.

You might be surprised to find out, however, that the "key" player very well might not be Ryan Zimmerman.

The Nationals signed outfielder Justin Maxwell last October, the team's second overall pick, taken in the 4th round of the draft. Maxwell, who graduated from the University of Maryland this spring, had rebuffed the team's efforts to sign him because of the contract's structure and not its financial considerations. Team officials described the negotiations as "amicable." My guess is the contract addressed his injury plagued seasons of 2004 and 2005. Injuries the past two years robbed Maxwell of what would have been a sure first round selection in the amateur draft.

An inside fastball during spring practice in 2004 broke a bone in his forearm, forcing him to miss the entire season. He tried to play in the Cape-Cod League that summer but broke a finger there effectively ended his year.

Seven games into Maryland's season this year, he broke a bone in his hand, ending his collegiate career. He is at full strength now and will likely begin the 2006 season at class 'A' Potomac.

Maxwell has been a star at every level. He played in the Cape-Cod League in 2004 and hit .307 with 47 hits and 2 home runs. In his abbreviated 2005 season at Maryland, the 6'5", 220 lb outfielder batted .455 with 3 home runs and 10 RBI's. His talent is well known to most soouts and general managers in the major leagues.
He was drafted in 2001 by the Orioles, and again in 2004 by the Rangers. Texas scout Grady Fuson called Maxwell "one of the top college players" in 2004, and said that Maxwell "could very well be one of our most important selections in some time." Maxwell didn't sign with the Rangers.

Maxwell is both powerful and fast, and is often compared to former Met great Daryl Strawberry. His swing has a high arc, allowing him to not only drive balls, but drive them very high and very deep.

Defensively, he is major league ready today, according to a scout from the Orioles' organization.
While his physical tools might be compared to Strawberry, his personality is more like Cal Ripken, which is good for him and great for the organization. Sean Welsh, GM of the Bourne Braves, a summer-league team Maxwell played for two seasons ago, said that he's as apt to be reading his Bible as he his sanding his bats in preparation for the next day's game.

It looks as if those injuries that kept Maxwell off of the diamond the past two years are more about being in the wrong place at the wrong time than problems with joints or muscles. Maxwell will need time to make up for all those lost at-bats the past few years, but it seems that when he does reach D.C. [likely in 2008], he'll be a fixture in the outfield for some time to come.
Kudos, Jim Bowden. You did well

# posted by Farid Rushdi @ 11:30 AM 0 comments

[January 24th] -- "Jim Bowden, the general manager of the Washington Nationals, picked up his cell phone earlier this week and punched in the speed dial for Dana Brown, his scouting director. Bowden wanted to discuss Ian Desmond, a shortstop the Nationals brought into big league camp after taking him in the third round of last year's draft. "Dana," Bowden said. "You made a mistake when you drafted Desmond." Brown was shocked. "Why?" he asked. "Because you took him in the third round instead of the first round," Bowden replied.

So went the beginning of Barry Svrluga's March 9th article regarding the Nationals' "out-of-nowhere" shortstop Ian Desmond.

Desmond, 20, was one of the pleasant surprises of the Nationals' first spring training, batting .306 (11-36) and made several spectacular plays defensively. Of course, there was no chance that Desmond was going to make the team, but he let team officials know that he was going to be a force in the Nationals' future. "It may be a problem" said a concerned Bowen last summer, "We have an all-star shortstop signed for four years, and Ian will be ready long before that." Well, at least Cristian Guzman's play is making his "blocking" Ian Desmond less of a problem.

The raves about Desmond's play aren't based upon his two-year professional career. Playing the equivalent of a full major league season for the Gulf Coast Nationals, Savannah and Potomac, Desmond's numbers look like this: runs [81] -- hits [144] -- doubles [28] -- triples [4] -- homers [7] -- rbi's [52] -- stolen bases [30] -- average [.244] -- on-base percentage [.296] -- slugging average [.339]. Some of those numbers are down-right Guzman-like. Bowden certainly isn't looking at these stats and saying that Desmond is a first-rounder.

Ian Desmond is one of those players whose talent and ability is way ahead of his production. Bowden and the rest of the Nationals' management team doesn't see what he's doing now but rather what he'll be able to do in the future. He's fast. He's sure of himself in the field. He has speed and will have 20-home run power. And he's only 21.

Desmond will start his 2006 season at 'AA' Harrisburg, and may end the season in New Orleans. Last season's numbers didn't warrant a mid-season callup to high-'A' Potomac, and his numbers probably won't warrant a callup to 'AAA' New Orleans this year, but it's probably going to happen anyway. I think Bowden believes that Ian Desmond is the type of player who can mature in the major leagues while helping his team win. Robin Yount was one of those type of players; Ian Desmond might be another. A word that many use to describe the young shortstop is "toolsy," a word that describes a type of player that we all know makes Bowden lose sight of reality (remember the Alfonso Soriano trade??).

How good will Desmond be? Well, Phillies' scout Eddie Thompson says that he has an upside similar to that of Derek Jeter.

Of course, I haven't seen him play yet, but from what I can glean from those who have, he's going to be a great one. The Nationals might have one of the best young infields in the major leagues in a few years, with Ryan Zimmerman and Ian Desmond leading the way.

All this, and he likes Washington too. "I'm very proud to be a National, and wouldn't want to be anywhere else" Desmond told CapitolDugout.com in December. How wonderful. Maybe he could teach Alfonso Soriano a thing or two about being a decent human being.

# posted by Farid Rushdi @ 10:41 AM 0 comments