Drafted in the 2nd round (70th overall) by the Washington Nationals in 2006 (signed for $515,000).
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A third-team preseason All-American and key recruit for Washington State, Englund has all the tools scouts could want in a high school hitter. Like many of his peers, he just didn't show the most important tool--hitting--often enough as a high school senior. Englund is an excellent athlete and passes the "eye test"--he looks like a player in uniform. The same is true in batting practice, when Englund can put on a show with long home runs thanks to his excellent bat speed and a swing with plenty of leverage. Englund also impresses during infield practice, showing off a plus arm that should help him make the transition to third base from his prep position of shortstop. But in games, the tools just haven't played consistently. As one scout put it, his high school career just has involved too much drama, including being kicked off the team once and reinstated. Englund's inability to close up holes in his swing points to his inability to make adjustments, and even his advocates warn that Englund's bat could take five years to reach its potential. Scouting directors and organizations that covet high-end tools are likley to be too tempted to let Englund slide out of the first five rounds, however.
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Athleticism is Englund's calling card, and it's the reason the Nationals gave him a $515,000 bonus to buy the high school shortstop out of his commitment to Washington State. They knew he'd would be a longterm project with high upside, so they're not overly concerned about his early-career struggles at the plate. Englund was one of the most improved players in Nationals camp during the spring, but he fractured the thumb on his non-throwing hand while making a catch against a chain-link fence in his first game of the season in the Gulf Coast League, causing him to miss a month. When he returned, he showed impressive plate discipline but little pop. Englund has average raw power at this point, but he hasn't begun to carry it into game action. His bat has been questioned since his pedestrian senior year of high school, but he has plenty of hand speed. He also has plenty of work to do, as he gets caught in between with his stride and doesn't make consistent contact. He's a slightly above-average runner underway who has a chance to be a decent center fielder but is more likely to outgrow the position and move to right, where his strong arm will be an asset. Some coaches in the system think Englund has more upside than anyone Washington farmhand, but he's a long ways off and likely to return to Vermont after ending last season there.
Englund looks the part of a big-time prospect, so scouts expected big things from the third-team BA Preseason All-American in his senior year at Bellevue (Wash.) High. His bat was inconsistent, but the Nationals saw enough five-tool potential to draft him in the second round and give him a $515,000 bonus, buying him out of a commitment to Washington State. A shortstop in high school, Englund moved to the outfield after signing. A slightly above-average runner, he has a chance to stay in center field, but some scouts compare him to Jay Buhner and project him in right. Like Buhner, Englund has a plus arm and plus raw power, and he is capable of hitting long home runs in batting practice thanks to his excellent bat speed and a swing with good leverage. But as his rough debut in the Gulf Coast League suggests, he is raw in all facets of the game. He's adjusting to playing every day and using a wood bat, and he's working on shortening his swing and improving his two-strike approach. He also needs to mature, as his drama-filled high school career included being kicked off the team once and reinstated. Englund's exciting package of tools gives him a chance to be a star, but it's going to take a while. He should open at Vermont in 2007.
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