In the MLB draft, you usually have to wait multiple years to see players reach the big leagues. Even successful first rounders often take many years to reach the MLB and establish themselves. However, I think 2026 first rounder Chris Hacopian has the chance to be an exception to that rule.
Thanks to his unique skillset, I believe the 11th overall pick will be in the big leagues by early 2028. It is unlikely, but honestly there is an outside shot that Hacopian could be a September call-up in 2027.
That is how advanced I think his bat is. When you look at the history of advanced college bats, that is not a crazy ETA.
Hacopian’s ability to make contact, hit the ball hard and have a good approach is the foundation of his game. Usually, those traits translate well to professional baseball. There is a reason that Baseball America said that Hacopian was the best pure hitter and closest to the big leagues out of Nats draft picks.
Back in 2024, we saw a crop of polished college bats in the draft. Just over two years later, many of these players are already standout contributors. Jac Caglianone, Nick Kurtz, Cam Smith and Christian Moore all reached the big leagues in their first full pro seasons. Meanwhile, JJ Wetherholt, Travis Bazzana, Carson Benge and Braden Montgomery all made impacts this season. The Nats took Seaver King, who has been a slower burn, but nobody would have been that surprised if he debuted last season.
These college bats are reaching the majors quicker than ever. We also saw this play out in the 2023 class as well, with the likes of Dylan Crews, Jacob Wilson and Wyatt Langford. The 2025 college bats were not as strong, so they have not moved as quickly.
I think Hacopian will fall into that quick moving category. He has never struck out more than he walked at any level he has played. Even in his 13 games in pro ball, he had 8 walks to just 8 strikeouts. His natural feel for hitting will help him shoot through the minor leagues. Hacopian has tremendous batted ball and contact metrics across the board.
If there was one thing that would slow Hacopian’s progress, it would be his batted ball angles. Hacopian makes a ton of hard contact, but he hits the ball on the ground quite a bit and does not pull it much. In Wilmington, Hacopian had a 48.4% ground ball rate, which is on the higher side, but not alarmingly so. His pull percentage was only 12.5%, which is insanely low. For context, James Wood’s pull percentage for his career is 31.7%, and he is not exactly a dead pull hitter.
Of course, this is a small sample size, but he was more of an up the middle and the other way guy in college as well. I can guarantee you that the Nats are working to get Hacopian to pull the ball more. This regime has shown the ability to help hitters pull the ball more and elevate more.
I think their confidence in helping hitters do that is a big reason why they took Hacopian. If he can do those things, he will be an insanely complete hitter. We could be talking about a hitter that flirts with .300 and hits 25+ homers. Even though he is not much of an athlete and is an average defensive second baseman at best, that profile would still play.
On the occasions we did see Hacopian pull it in the air, good things happened. He only hit one pro homer, but it was an absolute bomb to the pullside. Assuming the Nats can get Hacopian to do that more consistently, the sky is the limit.
In those 13 games, Hacopian hit .275 with a .396 OBP and a .746 OPS in High-A. He might start the season back in Wilmington, but I would bet that he goes to Double-A Harrisburg. His bat is advanced enough to at least hold his own. If he gets off to a fast start, he could even reach Triple-A before too long.
With CJ Abrams future in question, there could be spots available on the Nats infield by the end of the 2027 season. However, I think a 2028 arrival is more likely. It is a small sample, but Paul Toboni has been pretty patient with promoting prospects. I think Hacopian and Eli Willits will be on a similar trajectory and both will be knocking on the door late in 2027 but make their full debuts to start the 2028 season.
Hacopian is a home town kid, who should move through the system quickly. That means we should be hearing a lot about him and I will be writing a lot about him. I can’t wait to see how Paul Toboni’s first draft pick performs in his first full season of professional baseball.
