Cornelio was selected by the Washington Nationals in the seventh round of the 2022 Major League Baseball draft.[6] After signing,Cornelio made his professional debut in 2023 with the Fredericksburg Nationals,making 22 starts and going 4-8 with a 4.68 ERA.[7] He pitched the 2024 season with the Wilmington Blue Rocks and went 9-11 with a 5.56 ERA over 26 starts. For the 2025 season,Cornelio played with Wilmington,the Harrisburg Senators,and the Rochester Red Wings,making 26 starts and going 6-7 with a 3.28 ERA and 135 strikeouts over 134+1⁄3 innings.[8] The Nationals named Cornelio their Minor League Pitcher of the Year.[8] On November 18, Cornelio was added to the 40-man roster.[9]
Armando Junior Cruz (born January 16,2004) is a Dominican professional baseball shortstop in the Washington Nationals organization.
Born and raised in Santo Domingo,in the Dominican Repuyblic,Cruz emerged as a high-level baseball prospect by the time he was 14. He played in the 2018 14U Select Festival and a Perfect Game showcase the following year in Florida.[10]
Cruz was linked to the Washington Nationals as early as 2019,before he was eligible to sign with a Major League Baseball team.[11] The Nationals officially signed Cruz for a $3.9 million bonus on January 15,2021,tying the franchise record for an international amateur free agent bonus (with Yasel Antuna),[12] one day before Cruz's 17th birthday.[13]
At the time Cruz turned pro,he was ranked as the fifth-best international amateur prospect by MLB Pipeline[14] and the second-best by Baseball America.[15] A contemporaneous Minor League Baseball news report described him as possibly the best defensive player available in the international signing period,as well as an above-average runner.[16]
De La Cruz was originally discovered by the scouting department of the Philadelphia Phillies in 2017 at the age of 17 playing for an amateur travel team in New York.[17] He would sign with the Phillies on August 23,2017 for a bonus of $50,000 as an undrafted free agent before participating in the Florida Instructional League later in the year.[17]
De La Cruz made his professional debut in 2018 with the Rookie-levelGulf Coast League Phillies East of the Gulf Coast League. He finished the season with a .284 average and six home runs in 43 games. De La Cruz was promoted to the Lakewood BlueClaws of the Single–ASouth Atlantic League for the 2019 season.[18] He finished the season with a .220 average and seven home runs in 117 games.[18] De La Cruz did not play in a game in 2020 due to the cancellation of the Minor League Baseball season because of the COVID-19 pandemic. De La Cruz shuttled between the FCL Phillies,Jersey Shore BlueClaws,and Clearwater Threshers,playing in 63 total games and hitting .181.[18] De La Cruz started the 2022 season at Jersey Shore. After slashing .266/.344/.463 over 64 games,he was promoted to the Reading Fightin Phils of the Double-AEastern League.[19] In 38 contests with Reading,De La Cruz hit .278 and finished the season with 17 home runs.[18] After the 2022 season,he played in the Arizona Fall League.[20] He was also named a MiLB.com Organization All-Star.[21] De La Cruz returned to Reading for the 2023 season,finishing with a .259 average and 24 home runs in 129 contests. He was also named an Eastern League Post-Season All-Star.[22] Following the season,De La Cruz played for the Gigantes del Cibao of the Dominican Winter League.[23] He would return to Reading for the start of the 2024 season;in 113 appearances split between Reading and the Triple-A Lehigh Valley IronPigs,he hit a cumulative .234/.302/.367 with 11 home runs,53 RBI,and six stolen bases. De La Cruz elected free agency following the season on November 4,2024.[24]
On December 18,2024,De La Cruz signed a minor league contract with the Washington Nationals organization.[25]
Franklin became the Razorbacks' starting left fielder as a freshman and was named to the Southeastern Conference (SEC) All-Freshman team after batting .274 with 41 runs scored,34 runs batted in and 12 stolen bases.[28] After the season,he played summer baseball for the Santa Barbara Foresters of the California Collegiate League.[29] As a sophomore,Franklin batted .381 with four doubles,a triple,three home runs and RBI in 16 games before the season was cut short due to the coronavirus pandemic.[30][31]
Franklin was named a preseason First Team All-American by Baseball America and by the National College Baseball Writers Association going into his junior year.[32][33][34] He was named the SEC Player of the Week on May 3,2021,after driving in 10 runs in three games against LSU and was a second team All-SEC selection at the end of the regular season.[35][36][37] In the opening game of the 2021 NCAA Division I baseball tournament,Franklin had a run-saving catch followed by a home run to spark a come from behind win over NJIT.[38][39]
On July 30,2025,the Cubs traded Franklin and Ronny Cruz to the Nationals in exchange for pitcher Michael Soroka.[43] He made 31 appearances for the Triple-A Rochester Red Wings,hitting .290/.382/.427 with four home runs,23 RBI,and eight stolen bases. On November 18,the Nationals added Franklin to their 40-man roster to protect him from the Rule 5 draft.[44]
Before the 2021 season,Powell ranked as the Nationals' 20th-best prospect,according to MLB Pipeline.[60] He was assigned to High-A Wilmington,along with several other top Nationals prospects,to begin the season that May.[61]
Powell employs a fastball and a slider as his main pitches. He uses a changeup and a curveball less frequently,relying on the slider as his primary "out pitch" while working up to 97 miles per hour (156km/h) with his fastball.[62]
Stuart did not appear in any games for Southern Mississippi in 2019 or 2020. He made his collegiate debut in 2021,pitching to a 7.16 ERA over 16+1⁄3 innings.[67] In 2021,he played collegiate summer baseball with the Bourne Braves of the Cape Cod Baseball League,throwing six scoreless innings.[68][69] For the 2022 season,Stuart appeared in 22 games (four starts) and went 4–0 with a 3.38 ERA over forty innings.[70] After the season,he was selected by the New York Mets in the sixth round of the 2022 Major League Baseball draft.[71][72]
Stuart signed with the Mets and made his professional debut in 2022 with the Florida Complex League Mets and St. Lucie Mets,pitching 3+2⁄3 innings between the two teams. He opened the 2023 season with the Brooklyn Cyclones and was promoted to the Binghamton Rumble Ponies in mid-July.[73][74][75] Over 21 starts between the two teams,Stuart went 7-2 with a 2.20 ERA and 112 strikeouts over 110+2⁄3 innings.[76] He was assigned to Binghamton to open the 2024 season.[77]
On July 28,2024,the Mets traded Stuart to the Washington Nationals in exchange for Jesse Winker.[78] He was assigned to the Harrisburg Senators and promoted to the Rochester Red Wings near the season's end. Over 25 starts between the three teams for the season,Stuart went 4-8 with a 4.12 ERA and 135 strikeouts over 122+1⁄3 innings.[79] Stuart opened the 2025 season on the injured list with an elbow injury before returning for a rehab assignment in June.[80] For the 2025 season,he made ten appearances between the Florida Complex League Nationals,the Wilmington Blue Rocks,and Harrisburg,going 2-2 with a 4.29 ERA over 35+2⁄3 innings. In July,he was placed back on the injured list,and shortly after underwent Tommy John surgery,ending his season.[81]
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