The Washington Nationals selected eight players on the second day of Major League Baseball’s 2019 Draft. Nationals President of Baseball Operations and General Manager Mike Rizzo, Assistant General Manager & Vice President of Scouting Operations Kris Kline and Director of Scouting Operations Eddie Longosz made the joint announcement.

The Nationals kicked off Tuesday’s action by selecting third baseman Drew Mendoza out of Florida State University in the third round. Mendoza hit .320 (66-for-206) with 12 doubles, two triples, 16 home runs, 55 RBI, 65 walks and 59 runs scored during his junior season at Florida State. He earned First-Team All-ACC honors after leading the conference in walks, on-base percentage (.482) and ranking tenth in slugging percentage (.631). His 65 walks ranked third in all of NCAA Division 1. Mendoza entered the 2019 First-Year Player Draft rated by MLBPipeline.com as the No. 55 draft prospect and by Baseball America as the No. 75 draft prospect.

In the fourth round, the Nationals selected left-handed pitcher Matt Cronin out of the University of Arkansas. Cronin went 1-0 with 12 saves and a 2.00 ERA (6 ER/27.0 IP) en route to being named a Third-Team All-American by Collegiate Baseball and Second-Team All-SEC. He recorded 40 strikeouts and a .163 opponents’ batting average (15-for-92) during his junior season in 2019. In his three collegiate seasons with the Razorbacks, Cronin recorded 26 saves, second most in school history. Cronin entered the 2019 First-Year Player Draft rated by Baseball America as the No. 71 draft prospect and by MLBPipeline.com as the No. 73 prospect.

The Nationals selected right-handed pitcher Tyler Dyson in the fifth round. He went 3-2 with a 4.95 ERA (24 ER/43.2 IP) and 34 strikeouts in 11 games (nine starts) for the University of Florida in 2019.

In the sixth round, Washington selected shortstop Jackson Cluff from Brigham Young University. Cluff hit .327 (65-for-199) with 20 doubles, three triples, four homers, 56 RBI, 37 walks, 12 stolen bases and 57 runs scored in 53 games during his sophomore season at BYU. He was named to the West Coast Conference First-Team and twice earned Collegiate Baseball’s National Player of the Week honors during the 2019 season.

The Nationals selected Louisiana State University right-handed pitcher Todd Peterson in the seventh round. Peterson went 5-2 with three saves, a 3.83 ERA (19 ER/44.2 IP) and 40 strikeouts in 28 games (one start) for the Tigers in 2019.

In the eighth round, the Nationals selected outfielder Jeremy Ydens out of the University of California-Los Angeles. Ydens hit .250 (19-for-76) with six doubles, three homers, 11 RBI, seven walks, five stolen bases and 15 runs scored in 20 games for the Bruins in 2019. As a sophomore in 2018, he was named an All-Pac 12 selection after finishing the season in the top ten in the conference in slugging percentage (.558), on-base percentage (.421), hits (76) and doubles (17).

Washington selected right-handed pitcher Hunter McMahon from Texas State University in the ninth round. McMahaon went 5-5 with one save, a 4.72 ERA (46 ER/87.2 IP) and 71 strikeouts in 17 games (14 starts). The 2019 season marked his first season at Texas State after transferring from Coffeyville (KS) Community College.

In the tenth and final round of the day, the Nationals selected catcher Andrew Pratt out of Lubbock (TX) Christian University. Pratt hit .358 (64-for-179) with 16 doubles, 13 homers, 54 RBI, 37 walks and 47 runs scored in 52 games during his senior season. He was named First-Team All-Heartland Conference after leading the league with a .483 on-base percentage and tying for the conference lead with 13 home runs.

Over the first two days of the three-day First-Year Player Draft, the Nationals have selected nine players: four right-handed pitchers, one left-handed pitcher, one outfielder, two infielders and one catcher. Of Washington’s nine selections, eight came from four-year universities with one coming from the junior college ranks. The 2019 First-Year Player Draft will conclude on Wednesday.

RD      PICK   PLAYER                     POS    B/T     HT           WT      DOB               SCHOOL

1        17       Jackson Rutledge        RHP    R/R     6-8         245     4/1/1999          San Jacinto (TX) College North

3         94       Drew Mendoza            3B       L/R      6-5         225     10/10/1997      Florida State University

4         123     Matt Cronin                  LHP    L/L      6-2         195     9/20/1997        University of Arkansas

5         153     Tyler Dyson                 RHP    R/R     6-3         210     12/24/1997      University of Florida

6         183     Jackson Cluff               SS       L/R      6-0         185     12/3/1996        Brigham Young University

7         213     Todd Peterson             RHP    R/R     6-5         230     1/2/1998          Louisiana State University

8         243     Jeremy Ydens              OF      R/R     6-2         200     7/3/1997          University of Calif.-Los Angeles

9         273     Hunter McMahon         RHP    R/R     6-3         185     4/9/1998          Texas State University

10       303     Andrew Pratt                C         R/R     6-3         225     7/24/1996        Lubbock (TX) Christian University