With first pro multihomer game, 2025's No. 1 pick enjoying the High-A life
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At an age when many kids might be finishing up their first year of college, Eli Willits is taking baseball by storm.
The Nats' No. 1 prospect collected his first multihomer game as a pro and finished with three hits for High-A Wilmington, which fell to Greensboro, 4-3, on Wednesday night at First National Bank Field. Willits finished with three hits in only his second game with the Blue Rocks.
Willits became just the second 18-year-old with a two-homer game at High-A since 2019. Leo De Vries (ATH No. 1/MLB No. 2) did so twice last year, once with High-A Fort Wayne and then for Lansing after his midseason trade to the Athletics.
The game was a continuation of what is turning into a very special season for Willits. The No. 1 overall pick in last year's Draft got the Blue Rocks on the board with a no-doubter deep over the right-field fence in the third inning, his first at High-A.
Willits' second long ball was equally impressive, bouncing off the netting beyond the fence in right-center for his eighth long ball of the season. He capped his third three-hit game of 2026 and second in four days with a single to left in the ninth.
The performance was the latest in a long line of eye-opening efforts for MLB's No. 4 prospect who instantly became one of the best prospects in the sport after the Draft.
After opening the season 9-for-50 (.180) across his first 13 games, Willits caught fire ... and hasn't slowed down since. The switch-hitter is slashing .345/.447/.581 with 20 extra-base hits, 35 RBIs and 18 stolen bases since April 18, and there has been nothing fluky about his performances.
Willits has hit safely in 32 of those 36 games in that span, including a career-high 15 consecutive contests, which certainly played a part in the decision to promote him. The streak ended during his first game for the Blue Rocks on Tuesday, but Willits emphatically rebounded with his power-packed night in Greensboro.
Through 49 games with Single-A Fredericksburg and Wilmington, Willits has compiled a slash line of .303/.421/.525 with 50 runs, 39 RBIs, 25 extra-base hits and 30 stolen bases.
Although he wasn't a sure thing to go with the first overall pick, Willits backed Washington's faith in him with a lightning-quick pro start, even though he was only 17 years old.
Despite bypassing the Rookie-level Florida Complex League, he showed he was up to the challenge. Exhibiting little rust and seemingly having no difficulty adjusting to the pro game, Willits kicked off his pro career with a three-hit performance as part of a nine-game hitting streak.
He ended 2025 hitting .300 with a .757 OPS in 15 games, which was only a small taste of what was to come.