There are no guarantees when it comes to prospects. Some of the best never make it to the major leagues. Some of the lesser-known names wind up enjoying long and productive careers.

The five young players who sat in the press conference room at Nationals Park this afternoon as the organization’s annual minor league award winners, though, need only look back at their predecessors from a year ago to see how significant a stepping stone it can be.

Last September, Dylan Crews, Brad Lord and Daylen Lile were among the 2024 honorees. All three now hold prominent roles on the Nats’ major league roster, with Lord and Lile in particular bursting onto the scene as full-fledged rookies this season.

“When you look at who was in that (press conference) room last year and who is now in that clubhouse, it’s something for them to build off of,” said Eddie Longosz, the Nationals’ assistant general manager for player development. “Everyone wants to get into that clubhouse. They feed off each other, and they know what it takes to get in there.”

This year’s award winners included three prospects who finished the season at Triple-A Rochester (outfielder/infielder Phillip Glasser, outfielder Andrew Pinckney, right-hander Riley Cornelio), which makes each a potential candidate for promotion in 2026.

Earlier this week, the Nationals announced their 2025 Minor League Players of the Year. The five winners will be recognized tonight as part of a pregame ceremony, and they’ll also take part in a season plan holder autograph session during batting practice. This year’s award winners are:

Hitter of the Year – INF/OF Phillip Glasser
Pitcher of the Year – RHP Riley Cornelio
Defensive Player of the Year – OF Cristhian Vaquero
Baserunner of the Year – INF Seaver King
Nationals Way Award – OF Andrew Pinckney

Glasser, 25, led the Nats system with a .302 average, .389 on-base percentage and 143 total hits. He also ranked second in OPS (.793) and walks (60), and finished in the top 10 in stolen bases (tied for third, 32), runs (fourth, 71) total bases (fifth, 191), slugging percentage (fifth, .404), triples (tied for sixth, four) and doubles (tied for seventh, 19).

His 143 hits were the most by a Nats minor leaguer since Andrew Stevenson’s 152 in 2022. Glasser finished the season with 124 games between Double-A Harrisburg and Triple-A Rochester.

The former 10th-round pick out of Indiana University in the 2023 MLB Draft played mostly in left field (91 games) but also appeared as the designated hitter (20 games), second baseman (11 games) and right fielded (three games) in his third professional season.