Washington Nationals Prospect Opens Up About Struggles, Motivated to Get On Track
When the Washington Nationals made the blockbuster trade with the San Diego Padres, parting ways with Juan Soto, they received a boatload of prospects in return they hoped would make up the foundation of their future.
A few of them we have already seen make an impact at the Major League level.
James Wood was called up this past season and immediately took over the starting left field job. Shortstop CJ Abrams was an All-Star at shortstop. Starting pitcher MacKenzie Gore showed ace potential for two different stretches this season.
That is a really solid haul, but they weren’t even the crown jewel of the trade package.
That distinction would fall upon outfielder Robert Hassell III, who was the Padres No. 1 ranked prospect at the time of the trade.
Since being acquired by the Nationals, nothing has gone right for the 2020 first-round pick. Injuries really sidetracked him, as he suffered a broken hamate bone, wrist injury and carpal fracture.
After barrelling balls for hard contact and extra-base hits, he was no longer a threat at the plate. In an exclusive interview with SportsCasting, shared by Kyle Odegard, Hassell revealed that his confidence was shattered.
“I’ve been confident my whole life. And then for a year and a half – I can’t believe it lasted that long – it was a really bumpy road,” the talented outfielder said.
Because of how many injuries he was dealing with, the mechanics of his swing were off. Hassell was no longer focused on the task at hand, which was hitting the baseball.
Instead, he was worried about not hurting himself further.
“I was just trying not to hurt anything,” Hassell said. “I wasn’t even really worried at times about what I was doing on the field, how I was performing.”
It was a learning experience for the Independence High School product. While his star has dimmed a little bit, he is looking to get back on track at the Arizona Fall League.
He is putting the injuries behind him and he has refocused, locking in mentally. It is rare for a player to appear in the AFL a third time, but Hassell is making the most of his opportunity.
Through 77 plate appearances, he has a slash line of .282/.351/.514 with five doubles, one triple and three home runs. He has knocked in 15 runs, adding five stolen bases without being caught.
Albeit in a small sample size, that is a massive improvement over the last two seasons when he slugged a paltry .321 and .328.
“I feel great,” Hassell said. “I’ve felt great for awhile. I’m finally putting it together a little bit. I was talking about it (last week) with one of the coaches that came in with the Nationals. I’m getting the ball in the air a little more, and when I do that, the numbers show I’m getting my hits, instead of fighting for those ground balls to get through.”
If he can carry that production over into Spring Training, he is going to make it difficult to keep him down in the Minor Leagues for very long.
