Harper still No. 1 in position-by-position rankings

Baseball America has released their position-by-position rankings for the top prospects in the game. To see the list you will need a subscription, but I wanted to share with you how it looks from a Nationals perspective. The Nats' No. 1 prospect, Bryce Harper, is still at the top of the list, and the organization can take pride in seeing some other familiar names in the top-20 at each position. At catcher, Jesus Montero of the New York Yankees is listed No. 1. Nationals prospect and current Double-A Harrisburg Senators catcher Derek Norris is No. 7. The Nationals also get a mention at first base, where Eric Hosmer of the Kansas City Royals is No. 1. Chris Marrero, who has been elevated to Triple-A Syracuse Chiefs, is locked in at #14. At second base, Dustin Ackley of the Seattle Mariners is ranked as the top prospect at that position with the Nationals Danny Espinosa, who moved up to the majors in September, as the #5 selection. In the corner outfield, No. 1 prospect is the Nationals Bryce Harper, who went 2-for-4 in his professional debut this week for Single-A Hagerstown Suns. Jim Callis, executive editor of Baseball America, says, "ranking prospects ultimately comes down to one simple factor: would you trade one guy for the other? We wouldn't trade Bryce Harper for any other minor leaguer, even Mike Trout, hence his ranking as the No. 1 prospect in the game." Finally, the Nationals also get a mention in the left-handed starter category with their second selection from the June draft, Sammy Solis. The talented southpaw is expected to be assigned to the Single-A Potomac Nationals in the next couple of weeks.