The Nationals have selected Crews with the second overall pick in the 2023 First-Year Player Draft.
The most accomplished college hitter to come through the draft in recent years, Crews has been a well-known name among dynasty-league managers for a while and slots in immediately as a top-five fantasy prospect. There were questions about Crews' hit tool in high school, and teams were unwilling to meet his high asking price in 2020, so he went to LSU instead. That decision paid off in a big way, and now scouts don't see any notable areas of weakness for the 21-year-old outfielder. The well-built right-handed hitter logged an OPS north of 1.100 as a freshman and as a sophomore, and Crews took his production to new heights this spring, slashing .433/.573/.732 with 17 home runs, a 12.9 percent strikeout rate and a 21 percent walk rate over 64 games. This was his first year with more walks than strikeouts, and he made that improvement while also logging the highest slugging percentage of his college career. He is an above-average runner who profiles best in a corner, but he could see time in center field early on. Premium college hitters can reach the majors quickly, and Crews has a chance to spend less than a calendar year in the minors.