WASHINGTON – Dylan Crews’ journey to the Major Leagues took him back to where it all began.

As Crews made the six-hour drive to Washington, D.C., from Rochester, N.Y., for his big league debut, the route took him through Williamsport, Pa., – the site of the Little League World Series, where his childhood club, Lake Mary, had won the 2024 global tournament.

“That’s where it all started, right there,” Crews, ranked as the Nationals’ No. 1 prospect and the No. 3 overall prospect per MLB Pipeline, said Monday in a pregame press conference hours before his debut. “It’s like a little circle coming around. We drove through Williamsport on our way here. It was kind of weird – it’s where I started [in] Little League and Lake Mary ended up winning it [this year]. It was a cool moment.”

Crews, 22, was promoted from Triple-A Rochester to make his Major League debut with the Nationals on Monday against the Yankees. Since Aug. 3, he batted .309 with a .385 on-base percentage and a .529 slugging percentage with the Red Wings.

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“There’s always going to be four bases and two foul poles,” said Crews. “So I’m going out there and playing my game – swinging at strikes, taking balls and competing out there, controlling what I can control.”

Crews is batting No. 2 between CJ Abrams and James Wood against Yankees southpaw Nestor Cortes. He is making his debut in right field with Wood in left and Jacob Young in center. The plan is for Crews to also see time in center field when Young, a Gold Glove candidate, gets a day off for rest.

“It’s exciting to see those three together,” manager Dave Martinez said. “We’ve been waiting a little while, but I really believe that this is another piece to the puzzle and to our future.”

Crews is the eighth prospect to make his Major League debut with the Nationals this season. He is a centerpiece of their next chapter that the club has been establishing since the 2021 Trade Deadline.

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Wood lauded Crews’ five-tool skillset that brings the “ability to do everything.” Abrams noted the Nats’ potential for run scoring with Crews in the mix.

“He does it all,” Abrams said. “It’s fun to watch. In Spring Training we saw it, we got a little preview. He’s been doing his thing in the Minors, and now it’s time to show it in the Big Show.”

Crews has been preparing for this moment since his baseball dreams began. When they came true on Monday, he processed what he had achieved just 13 months after being drafted second overall out of LSU by the Nationals last July.

“Walking in here and I’m going to a Major League stadium and this is going to be my job – it’s hard to wrap your head around,” Crews said. “It’s going to be awesome.”