Nats' prospect Hassell finding lost confidence in Fall League

SCOTTSDALE -- For Robert Hassell III, it’s all about confidence.

The Nationals’ No. 13 prospect is making the most of his third stint in the Arizona Fall League, launching his second homer in eight games for the Salt River Rafters in a 4-2 win over Scottsdale on Sunday night to hike his batting average to .406.

More importantly, he feels like himself again.

It’s unusual for a prospect to appear in the AFL for three consecutive years, but the last few seasons have been particularly unusual for the 23-year-old.

“I look at it as a blessing,” Hassell said. “I know not many guys get to come back three times, but I’ve faced a ton of talent. I know a lot of these guys have gone on to play in the big leagues, and I’m hoping to do the same soon.

“I feel really great this time around, healthy, and that’s the main thing.”

Hassell was selected eighth overall by the Padres in the 2020 MLB Draft and was the organization’s No. 1 prospect when they included him in the massive package for Juan Soto in 2022.

The Nationals sent him to the Fall Leagues several months later, but the left-handed hitter fractured the hamate bone in his right wrist when he was hit by a pitch two games in. That injury set the stage for the next two years.

Hassell opened the 2023 season as the Nationals’ No. 2 prospect, but he struggled to find his footing while playing mostly at Double-A. He hit .225 over 106 games for Harrisburg with 152 strikeouts in 414 at-bats, a 37 percent K rate.

His confidence sapped, the organization decided to send him on his second Fall League stint, and it proved to be the right decision for the toolsy outfielder.

Hassell hit .290 over 20 games with a homer and 12 RBIs while cutting his strikeout rate to 30 percent. More importantly, his confidence started to come back.

“Stuff was falling for me and the confidence was building,” Hassell said, “and with that confidence came the performance.”

That momentum carried over into 2024 with Harrisburg, where he hit .271 and cut his strikeout rate to 24 percent, but hand issues resurfaced in June and limited him to only 60 games.

Since he didn’t play a full season, the Nationals gave him a third go in the AFL, and all he’s done is hit since through the first two weeks. Hassell has multiple hits in six of his eight games with two homers, a triple, five doubles and 12 RBIs.

“I think it always comes back to confidence, a hundred-thousand percent,” Hassell said. “I’ve never doubted my ability, I always feel great when I go out on the field. It’s just -- I have to be real with myself -- when I’m not the most confident, stuff doesn’t happen for me. But right now, I couldn’t be more confident.”

It’s an important offseason for Hassell, who will need to be added to the Nationals’ 40-man roster if they want to protect him from December’s Rule 5 Draft. But rather than pressing, Hassell said he’s trying to keep things simple and let the results come to him.

“During my at-bats I’ll do everything I can just to slow it down, make the game feel like it’s in slow-motion because that’s when I’m at my best,” he said.

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Hassell said he recently took inspiration from a player he’ll be at least a little tied to for his entire career.

“I saw this thing last night with Juan Soto saying he was on the pitcher, after the home run he hit, he was on him. And I related to that,” he said. “It’s more of a mental thing. If you know you’re on this guy, every pitch, good stuff’s gonna happen.”

He’ll look to stay on Fall League pitchers for another month, and then he’ll finally have a little downtime before spring ... though Hassell said that really isn't his style.

“I always find myself in the offseason sitting around for like a week and then I’m like, ‘I gotta get back to something,’” he said. “It never drives me crazy. I love the game, and I don’t want to ever stay away from the game.”