Potomac foursome reaches Top 10 in Carolina League hitting

The Single-A Potomac Nationals have battled all season long to get their offense going. Throughout the ebb and flow of the season, four prospects have been able to maintain their consistency in the pitching-rich Carolina League. Destin Hood (.279), Jeff Kobernus (.275), Justin Bloxom (.272) and Eury Perez (.271) rank eight through 11 at the top of the league in hitting. Nationals director of player development, Doug Harris, has taken notice of their offensive consistency, and believes it is no small feat in a league dominated by some of the best pitching prospects in baseball. "What we have going on in Potomac, and not just in the outfield, is we have four guys who are near or in the Top 10 in hitting in the Carolina League," Harris said. "When you see our guys at .270 and .280 and you say, 'OK, that's nice.' But when you look at the league as a whole and realize that the P-Nats have four players in the Top 10 that is pretty significant and it speaks to what we have going on there and the talent we have at that level." Hood continues to impress in the P-Nats' outfield, making great strides from season to season. Harris believes when Hood adds to his power at the plate, he will be an extremely lethal presence at the plate. "Hood has had a really good year," Harris said. "He has really evolved as a hitter. I think the sky is the limit for him offensively. Once he adds length and leverage to his swing his power numbers will go way up. Hood is perfectly capable of doing that. I think we are going to begin to see more power numbers as he matures as a hitter." Hood has hit 26 doubles, five triples, nine homers, stolen 14 bases and pounded out 67 RBIs in 100 games. He hit five homers all last season for Hagerstown and is four doubles away from a new career-high this season. Hood is starting to add some power to his stroke, which would be the perfect complement to his already top defense in the outfield and plus speed.