Notes and quotes on the latest Nationals news…
On Wednesday morning, Washington’s Nationals announced three additions to the scouting department in the nation’s capital:
· Danny Haas — Vice President, Amateur Scouting
· Brad Ciolek — Senior Director, Amateur Scouting
· Reed Dunn — Assistant Director & National Crosschecker, Amateur Scouting
Haas, 47, as noted in the club’s press release on the additions, “… joins the Nationals after spending the previous five seasons (2019–23) as a special assignment scout for the Arizona Diamondbacks,” and before that, the new VP of Amateur Scouting in D.C. also, “… worked for the Baltimore Orioles (from 2012–18), first as a national crosschecker (2012–14) before being promoted to special assistant to the executive vice president of baseball operations (2015–18).”
The Nationals are hiring Danny Haas, formerly of the Diamondbacks, to be their new scouting director, according to multiple sources in the industry.
— R.J. Anderson (@r_j_anderson) October 6, 2023
Ciolek, “37, spent last 12 years as a member of the Baltimore Orioles scouting department, most recently as their director of draft operations (2022–23),” the Nationals noted, and he previously, “… served as [the] supervisor of domestic scouting operations (2019–22),” with the O’s, and the, “assistant director of scouting (2017–19) and scouting administrator (2013–16),” after, “he joined the Orioles in 2011 as a player development intern at their complex in Sarasota, Florida.”
hearing the Nationals are hiring Brad Ciolek, Baltimore’s director of draft operations, for a significant scouting role
— keithlaw (@keithlaw) October 14, 2023
Dunn, 39, “… began his career in baseball with the Washington Nationals in 2007 as a scouting assistant, a role he held until 2009 … [before] he was promoted to scouting coordinator,” and, he became an, “area scout in 2010 and spent the next four years covering amateur players in Arkansas, Kentucky, Ohio and Tennessee.”
More recently, Dunn worked, “… in the Atlanta Braves’ amateur scouting department from 2014–2023 …. as their East Coast crosschecker,” where, “Dunn’s regional scouting coverage included the drafting of players such as Michael Harris II, Austin Riley, Ian Anderson, and Kyle Wright, among others.”
Earlier this offseason, the Nationals announced significant changes to both their coaching staff, (with Davey Martinez’s Bench Coach Tim Bogar, Assistant Hitting Coach Pat Roessler, and Third Base Coach Gary DiSarcina’s contracts not renewed), and their front office, (with Johnny DiPuglia resigning as International Scouting Director; Kris Kline moving from Director of Amateur Scouting to a new role as a Special Assistant to GM Mike Rizzo; and De Jon Watson out as the Nationals’ Director of Player Development; while a dozen members of the scouting department’s contracts were not renewed), shaking things up deep into the club’s organizational reboot.
There will obviously be more additions to come, especially to Martinez’s coaching staff, with The Athletic’s Britt Ghiroli talking recently about sources telling her that the recent moves in D.C. were about the manager wanting some new voices on his bench.
“[T]his was Dave Martinez wanting some fresh eyes, this was him wanting some different voices,” on his coaching staff,” Ghiroli explained on MLB’s Foul Territory.
There are now some fresh eyes in the scouting department now as well.