Nationals select high school outfielder Elijah Green with No. 5 overall pick in MLB draft

When the Washington Nationals last had a top 10 pick in the MLB draft, they selected future All-Star third baseman Anthony Rendon. When they last had a top five selection, they selected now-two-time MVP outfielder Bryce Harper. 

The Nationals are hoping for similar success out of high school outfielder Elijah Green, who they selected No. 5 overall in Sunday’s MLB draft. 

The 18-year-old is considered by many scouts to have the best all-around tools in the draft class with plus speed and power with a 6-foot-3, 225-pound frame. Due to the tools he has and the development he needs, some analysts see Green as the player with the highest ceiling in the draft.

Green, the son of two-time Pro Bowl tight end Eric Green, played his high school ball at IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida. He hit .462 with 11 doubles, nine home runs and 15 stolen bases as a senior at IMG this spring.

MLB Pipeline had him ranked as the No. 3 prospect in the draft class. Baseball America had him at No. 5, while Perfect Game had Green as the top high school prospect. 

A right-handed hitter, Green has elite power, but some scouts entered the draft concerned about his contact skills as a potential high-strikeout player in the future.

The pick wasn’t a surprise, considering how the first four picks went and Green’s pedigree, but the majority of mock drafts had the Nationals selecting Georgia Tech catcher Kevin Parada instead. Parada was later selected No. 11 by the Mets.

Parada, who turns 21 in August, is considered the best hitter in the draft. Parada, a power hitter whose future as a backstop is a question mark, slashed .361/.453/.709 with 26 home runs for the Yellow Jackets this spring. 

Before the Nationals were on the clock, multiple highly touted prospects with familiar last names also went off the board. The Baltimore Orioles picked Jackson Holliday, son of former star slugger Matt Holliday, at No. 1 overall. The Arizona Diamondbacks then selected Druw Jones, son of 10-time Gold Glove outfielder Andruw Jones, with the second pick. 

The first surprise of the draft then came at No. 3 when the Texas Rangers took Kumar Rocker, the former Vanderbilt starting pitcher who fell to No. 10 last season and didn’t sign with the Mets due to a shoulder injury. Rocker, a hard-throwing right-handed pitcher with sharp breaking pitches, underwent surgery in the offseason and remained sharp this spring in the independent Frontier League. 

The Pirates then picked second baseman Termarr Johnson, who is considered one of the best pure high school hitting prospects this century. With Johnson’s selection, four of the top five picks in the draft were Black players for the first time in history, according to USA Today’s Bob Nightengale.