Eli Willits Is 18 and Tearing Up the Minors — What to expect?

Eli Willits is 18 years old. He's posting a 1.212 OPS at High-A. And he's not going to sniff the major leagues this year. Let's just get that out of the way and talk about what actually matters — what 2027 looks like and why you need to be owning this kid in every format that lets you.

What He's Doing in 2026

At High-A, Willits is hitting .289 with a 1.212 OPS. Before the promotion he was at .300 with a .918 OPS and six home runs at Single-A. He's 18. Most kids his age are picking a college. Willits is making High-A pitching look routine.

The thing that stands out isn't any one stat — it's that he's kept hitting as the competition has gotten better. A lot of hyped prospects light up a level, get moved up, and then stall. Willits has just kept going. That kind of consistency at this age is genuinely rare.

Why 2026 Isn't Happening

Washington is not calling him up this year. That's not pessimism — it's just how teams operate. The Nationals are in rebuild mode, there's no urgency to rush him, and service time manipulation is a very real thing. They're going to want to control him as long as possible, and rushing an 18-year-old to the majors in June or July accomplishes nothing for a team that isn't competing.

He'll almost certainly finish the season at High-A or maybe get a late push to Double-A. Either way, you're not rostering him in a redraft league this year expecting production. He's a dynasty asset right now, full stop.

The 2027 Case

Here's where it gets interesting. If Willits tears through Double-A next spring — and there's no reason to think he won't — the conversation about a 2027 call-up becomes very real. He'd be 19 by then. Young, sure, but we've seen it before with players who moved this fast.

The comp conversation always comes back to two guys. First, Trout — not as a projection, just as a profile. True center field type, speed, discipline, power that should grow as he physically fills out. Trout was doing similar things at comparable levels before the Angels gave him a real job. Nobody's saying Willits is Trout. The profile just rhymes.

The more useful comp is Bobby Witt Jr. Athletic shortstop, real speed, contact ability that gives him a floor even if the power develops slowly. Witt is hitting .294 this year with 28 steals in 76 games. His xBA is .312 and his xwOBA is .392 — the underlying numbers back up everything on the surface. That's the kind of player Willits projects to become. Witt was also a highly touted prospect at 18 and 19. The trajectory looks familiar.

Is He Better Than Konnor Griffin?

Griffin is actually in the majors right now hitting .270 as a 20-year-old with 14 steals, and his Triple-A line before the call-up was .438 with a 1.196 OPS. That's a legitimate promotion.

But his Statcast numbers tell a more complicated story. His xBA is .237 against that .270 average, and his xwOBA is just .303. The production is real but it's running ahead of the underlying contact quality. As pitchers adjust, that gap tends to close.

Willits edges him for me. Griffin is 20 and in the majors, which is impressive. Willits is 18 and making High-A look easy, which might actually be more impressive given the age gap. Griffin has more raw power upside. Willits has a safer floor and two more years of physical development ahead of him. In dynasty, that combination wins.

What to Do Right Now

In dynasty and keeper leagues, if you don't own Willits, the buy-low window has closed. You're paying full price at this point and should still pay it. A potential 2027 debut from a shortstop with this profile and this age is exactly what you build a dynasty team around.

In redraft leagues, he's not your guy this year. Check back in March. If he runs through Double-A in the first half of 2027 and forces Washington's hand, his ADP is going to spike fast. You want to be ahead of that curve, not chasing it.