House moved closer to debut with more experience

PROSPECT REVIEW: BRADY HOUSE

Age on opening day 2025: 21

How acquired: Drafted No. 11 overall in 2021 from Winder-Barrow High School in Winder, Ga.

Ranking: No. 3 (No. 84 overall) per MLB Pipeline, No. 4 (No. 79 overall) per Baseball America

MLB ETA: 2025
* Projected by MLB Pipeline

Signing bonus: $5 million

2024 levels: Double-A Harrisburg and Triple-A Rochester

2024 stats: 129 G, 542 PA, 498 AB, 68 R, 120 H, 21 2B, 1 3B, 19 HR, 66 RBIs, 6 SB, 3 CS, 31 BB, 143 SO, .241 AVG, .297 OBP, .402 SLG, .699 OPS

Quotable: “He's going to come to big league spring training and compete. And when we feel, like with any other of our prospects, that if we feel he's ready for the big leagues, there will be nothing holding him back.” – general manager Mike Rizzo

2024 analysis: After struggling with injuries over his first two seasons since the Nationals selected him out of high school with their first-round pick in 2021, House re-established himself as one of the top prospects in the system with a breakout year in 2023. That fast-tracked the expectations for the young third baseman, and some predicted he could make his major league debut in 2024.

House didn’t reach the big leagues this year, but by all accounts he had another successful season on the farm.

Starting at Harrisburg (where he finished the 2023 season), House was the power bat in the Senators lineup. Mostly hitting in the heart of the order, he hit .234 with a .734 OPS, 11 doubles, one triple, 13 home runs and 34 RBIs in 75 games.

After top prospect Dylan Crews earned his first promotion to Triple-A in June, House followed suit with his own promotion in July. In 54 games at Rochester, he hit .250 with a .655 OPS, 10 doubles, six homers and 32 RBIs.

Defensively, House built upon the strides he made last year at third base. In almost 30 more games and 250 more innings, he posted a higher fielding percentage (.953 from .946) while recording almost 20 more putouts, contributing almost 40 more assists and committing only one more error at the hot corner.

2025 outlook: While House’s 2023 season was about staying healthy, his 2024 season was about experience, of which he got plenty.

In another full, healthy season, House played in a career-high 129 games and made almost 160 more plate appearances than he did in 2023. Add the experience he got in 21 spring training games and House’s development is on a good pace for him to be the Nats’ third baseman of the future.

The Nats are still waiting for House to tap into his raw power. While he makes hard contact, balls haven’t left the yard at a rate most expected. And when he doesn’t make contact, there are still a lot of strikeouts. With 143 strikeouts this season, House punched out 26.4 percent of the time, including 28.9 percent at Triple-A. Both rates were higher than his overall 23.9 rate in 2023.

But House should improve in both areas by continuing to get more experience, just like he has with his defensive play at third.

Though House was drafted before James Wood and Crews, he is a year younger than both. That sets him up to follow their 2024 paths to the majors in 2025, and he could establish himself as the Nats’ first long-term solution at third base since Anthony Rendon.

As Rizzo said above, if House checks all the boxes, there won’t be anything holding him back next year.