Adam Kilgore of The Washington Post wrote today that the Nationals have left open the possibility of adding first overall draft pick Bryce Harper to the Arizona Fall League roster:

"For Harper to eventually attend the fall league, the Nationals would first need to obtain a special exemption from Major League Baseball. Each team can choose two players who have yet to reach Class AA, and the Nationals will send Sammy Solis and Derek Norris. The Nationals, though, have one roster spot available, and they can petition MLB for one more exemption. The Nationals would almost certainly be able to clear that obstacle, if they so choose."

Initially the likelihood of top prospect Bryce Harper participating in the prestigious Arizona Fall League was very slim. Turning just 18 this October, Harper showed a lack of developmental maturity in his first appearances in the Instructional League and many assumed Washington would go down the road of patience, not excitement, when it came to handling their promising youngster. However as the instructional league continued Harper began to look more and more like the talent that hit .443 with 31 homers for the College of Southern Nevada last season. no comments

Ben Goessling of MASNSPORTS.com reports that Bryce Harper has busted out of his early slump in the instructional league:

"Bryce Harper went 3-for-4 today for the Nationals' instructional league team, hitting a homer and driving in five runs against the Braves.

Harper has been inconsistent in his first taste of professional baseball, and his early inconsistencies, while to be expected, are probably an indicator the 17-year-old isn't ready for the Arizona Fall League yet. But his riveting talent has been on display several times this fall, and his showing on Thursday was another instance of that."

One of the foundations of development is confidence, so it's a good thing Harper got this out of the way. The 17-year-old had struggled early in his first stint against professional pitching but he bounced back in a big way today. Of course, these sample sizes are ridiculously small, but a good outing has to be promising to both Nats fans and Harper himself.

Goessling also reports that Nationals starting pitcher Chien-Ming Wang made his debut on the mound since his return from injury, pitching one shutout inning in the Instructional League Wednesday. According to Goessling, Wang sat between 84-87 on the gun.

1. Bryce Harper, C/OF - Despite a rough professional debut in which he struck out in his only two at bats, Harper remains at the top of the list. Like any player who spent two months or so away from organized baseball, significant rust was to be expected (particularly for one with such high expectations at just 17 years old). The fact is that Harper remains preternaturally gifted with prodigious power and, quite honestly, his ceiling is far greater than that of any prospect in the organization. There is a considerable learning curve associated with the transition from junior college baseball to the professional ranks and, let's remember, he was the number one overall pick for good reason. It will be a treat to watch Harper ply his trade in what will be his first full season of professional ball next year, regardless of the position he ultimately plays.

2. Danny Espinosa, SS - From two-time MLB Future's Game alumnus to major league regular, it appears that Espinosa has completed his journey to the big league and is there to stay. After hitting .295/.349/.463 in 24 games at AAA Syracuse, the Nationals rewarded him with a call-up to the major league club. Espinosa burst onto the scene with nine hits in his first 18 at bats, including three doubles and three home runs. Moved to second base to accommodate Ian Desmond, Espinosa came down to Earth by the end of the year, finishing with six homers and a .214/.277/.447 line. However, as his offense declined, his renowned defense remained solid. Espinosa committed just one error during his Nationals' tenure and his performance should give both the front office and managerial staffs pause as to whether or not he belongs as second or shortstop full-time.

3. Derek Norris, C - This has undoubtedly been a rough year for Norris. After his extensive successes in 2009, myriad injuries impeded his adjusted to High-A Potomac. Though his batting average and slugging percentage dropped 51 and 94 points from last year's totals, Norris still managed to get on base at an impressive .419 clip. He remains a work in progress behind the plate (though he did throw out 51% of attempted base stealers); however, his calling card is and will continue to be his bat. It's only fair to withhold judgment on Norris until he is healthy for another full year and has a chance to redeem himself in 2011.

The Nationals top pick in the 2010 draft, Bryce Harper, made his professional debut last week participating in the fall instructional league against other draftees. Harper has shown flashes of his talent but has by-in-large appeared to be out-matched by more experienced older players. As a result, Frankie Piliere of FanHouse.com believes that he is not ready for the Arizona Fall League this year:

"As it turns out, even Harper isn't above the challenges instructional league can present. Harper is no doubt rusty, as he's just a few games into the fall schedule, but there are clearly adjustments he's going to have to make. He was given a significant and early test on Saturday, getting to square off against Braves star pitching prospect Julio Teheran.

It was an interesting first look at Harper, and sometimes it can be easy to forget just how young he is. But the message here is to not get ahead ourselves when it comes to him. While he may be an impressive talent, he is not ready for competition like the Arizona Fall League later this year as some have speculated.

That is in no way a slight to his abilities. He is, quite simply, just as vulnerable as any other highly touted teenager taken in the first round. He is not super human. He has flaws and he will have to make adjustments as he advances. In that sense, he is no different than big-time draftees like Eric Hosmer and Mike Moustakas, who are elite hitting prospects now, but had their holes coming out of high school and were certainly not ready for a league like the AFL straight out of the draft."

While Piliere has a point that Harper certainly has a lot to learn about hitting professional pitching, this of course is a small sample size and could just be attributed to rust. For the past 13 years of his life Harper has played baseball year-round. This four-and-a-half month period between his last college game and his pro debut could very well have been the longest time he has spent away from baseball since he was a child. So while he may not be hitting the ball as well as he did in junior college last year, we have to keep in mind the learning curve he has demonstrated in the past. no comments

The Washington Nationals Single-A affiliate, the Potomac Nationals, won the Carolina League Title last night for the second time in three years. The club topped the Winston-Salem Dash 2-1 in the Championship Series last night, earning them the Mills Cup trophy as the top team in the league.

Ashley Marshall of MLB.com wrote:

"The victory completed a stunning second-half turnaround for the Washington Nationals' Class A Advanced affiliate. The P-Nats went 31-39 in the first half, finishing 10 games behind the Frederick Keys.

Potomac reeled off three four-game winning streaks in the second half en route to a league-best 39 victories. It carried the momentum into the postseason, eliminating Frederick in four games in the Northern Division Finals before doing the same to the Dash."

This is good news considering one of Mike Rizzo's first goals after taking over as the general manager for the Nationals was to improve organizational depth. Rizzo's belief being that a competitive minor league environment led to competitive development and a competitive attitude...so far it appears to be working. no comments

Mark Zuckerman of CSNWashington.com reports that Washington Nationals number one overall pick Bryce Harper will make his professional baseball debut this Friday when he reports to the instructional league:

"The Nationals' top draft pick will report to the club's spring training complex in Viera, Fla., this week and begin working out with Washington's instructional league squad on Friday, the first of several steps toward his eventual arrival in the big leagues...Harper, who turns 18 on October 16, has been working out on his own since the Nationals drafted him first in the country on June 7. He signed a five-year, $9.9 million contract seconds before baseball's August 17 deadline but did not play in any minor-league games before those seasons ended last week."

We know that Harper has been chomping at the bit to play baseball since even before the Nationals signed him this August. A known diamond-dog, the stretch between the end of the College of Southern Nevada's season and this Friday is probably the longest the teenager has gone without playing baseball since Tee-Ball.

While his presence at camp on Friday will really be ultimately meaningless in terms of his transformation from amatuer to superstar, it will mean worlds to Nationals fans struggling to find hope in the end of this 2010 season. Nats fans placed similar hope in starting pitcher Stephen Strasburg last year who followed a similar development plan to Harpers. The joy of following his progress throughout the winter kept fans warm with the hope of a brighter tomorrow. Hopefully, watching Harper tackle the Arizona Fall League this winter and then the lower ranks of the minors next season will fill Nats-town with just as much excitment as Strasburg did in 2010.

Harper likely wont crack the big league roster until 2012, and when he does his position is still yet to be known. It is likely the Nationals will work him in as an outfielder, and with the recent fallout of the organization with Nyjer Morgan, centerfield may very well be the destination for Harper and not the corner-outfield as we had previously guessed. Harper played mostly catcher in high-school and during his one season at College of Southern Nevada, but he has played other positions. He also has well regarded overall athleticism and a rocket arm that may just make him a natural fit for center-field.

Regardless of what position he ends up playing, many consider Harper the final piece of the puzzle to get the Nationals to the playoffs. Once Strasburg returns healthy, and the rookies of 2010 get their barrings, the team has legitimate potential to push for a division title.

According to Ben Goessling of MASNSports.com, Danny Espinosa will be one of the Washington Nationals september call ups:

"Danny Espinosa, a shortstop at Triple-A Syracuse and one of the Nationals' top middle infield prospects, will be among the team's September call-ups, according to a tweet from Espinosa's sister Christina....A scout I talked to last month in Philadelphia said Espinosa's athleticism is just a hair behind Desmond's, though both players have a penchant for making errors. Still, the two of them together could give the Nationals one of the rangiest middle infields in baseball next year, if Espinosa proves he can stick in the big leagues."

Espinosa has been one of the hottest Nationals minor leaguers this year, combining between Harrisburg and Syracuse to hit .268/.337/.464 with 22 homers and 69 RBI while snagging 25 stolen bases in 123 games. While most of Espinosa's power came during his time in Harrisburg (18 homers in 99 games, it seems Espinosa has been better with the bat in Syracuse - batting .295/.349/.463 in 24 games since his promotion.

The 23-year-old shortstop was drafted in the third round of the 2008 draft out of Long Beach State, a school well known for producing top infield talent. In the last decade the school nicknamed "Shortstop U," has produced Bobby Crosby, Troy Tulowitzki and now third baseman Evan no comments

According to Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post, Bryce Harper put on a show at Nationals batting practice this afternoon:

"Washington Nationals top pick Bryce Harper took batting practice today at Nationals Park before his introductory news conference, and in front of team executives, agent Scott Boras, players from both teams and a throng of media he promptly deposited a pitch into the third deck in right field...Harper's best power output came in his final round of batting practice, when he homered on three straight pitches. The first landed in the left field bullpen, the next in the right field bullpen and the third to straightaway center field."

Harper, 17, is at Nats park today to officially be introduced as a National. It seems he let his bat do the talking before his mouth got a chance. The recently signed first-overall draft pick is well known for his massive natural power and impressive bat speed, he gave the Nationals brass a first had show of it today.

Hearing this news I couldn't help but think about the exhibition game in R.F.K. before the Nationals moved here where Mark McGwire put on a show in batting practice. Many swore it was one of the most amazing feats they had ever seen. Who knows, in four or five years such a feat could be a weekly occurance if you get to Nats Park early enough for a home game.

Hopefully all the Nats fans who got tickets for today in order to see fellow phenom Stephen Strasburg pitch showed up early to watch Harper hit some bombs in Nats park...it might be the only chance to see such a feat for the next several years as many expect the outfielder to have a few years of development in the minors.

Are you excited yet?

The below graphic is from Baseball America and represents the amount spent by the teams in Major League Baseball on signing bonuses for draft picks in their respective year. Three things worth noting here:

1. The Nationals outspent everybody in 2010 and 2009, yet it seems that 2009 raised the bar as three other teams spend over $10 million in 2010 when the Nats were the only to do so in 2009.

2. There is a distinct change between 2008 when Bowden ran the team and 2009/2010 when Rizzo and Kasten have been in charge. While you have to remember that the Nats failed to sign their first pick in 2008, Aaron Crow, even with a $4 million bonus (which was more than they offered) they were still pretty far back.

3. It's really interesting to see a team like the Red Sox on this list considering they have been in contention all three of these years...perhaps it says something about the value Theo Epstein places in young talent.

Ben Goessling of MasnSports.com reports that Bryce Harper, the Nationals number one overall pick in 2010, will not play in the Gulf Coast League this season:

"Bryce Harper's professional career will begin sometime next week, when the Nationals introduce him to the media at Nationals Park and send him to the Nationals' Gulf Coast League affiliate in Viera, Fla., for the end of their season. But Harper won't play any games for the rookie league team, general manager Mike Rizzo said today...Rizzo said Harper will work out with the team in the final days of its season, getting ready to play in the Nationals' instructional league this fall."

Comments leading into last weeks signing indicated that the 17-year-old Harper was "dying to play," however, it looks like he will have to wait to get his chance. The Nationals want to get Harper into their camp and give him some coaching before they expose him to professional competition, which makes sense. While Harper dominated his junior college opponents last season, batting .443 with 31 home runs and 98 RBIs, there are some who claim there are holes in his left-handed power stroke and that there are parts of his game that are a bit immature.

The Nationals are also doing themselves a favor by making sure they get Harper his coaching, before any opportunity for failure. It is a lot easier to make adjustments in a player while he still has strong confidence, and the last thing they want to do is put him in a situation to fail...especially before he turns 18.

Harper will be introduced as a National during the next home stand.