Due to the unprecedented return of prospects in the Juan Soto trade, the Nationals’ minor league system has risen from a bottom ten before the trade to a top ten one. This has caused a major reshuffling of the Nats’ top 30 prospects.
There is an interesting discrepancy as MLB Pipeline, and Baseball America disagree substantially on Cole Henry, as he is ranked #5 on MLB Pipeline and #12 on Baseball America. What makes this stand out is Henry’s placement in the top 3 before the Juan Soto trade, though his dropping a few spots was inevitable following the edition of multiple top 100 prospects. Regardless, why is he ranked so low on Baseball America?
Only the first three players ranked on Baseball America’s top 30 prospects are unequivocally better prospects than Henry: C.J Abrams (1), Robert Hassel III (2), and James Wood (3).
The next tier of players down hosts arguments for Henry to be ranked above them: Elijah Green has only 3 MiLB plate appearances, Brady House has struggled of late and dealt with injury at just the low A level, and Cade Cavalli has only slightly better numbers in AAA Rochester, though these are all tough arguments to make.
