Moments after receiving the most consequential phone call of his life, Gavin Dugas placed two of his own.
No sooner had he gotten off the line with the Washington Nationals, who selected him in the sixth round of the MLB Draft this past July, Dugas called his father Gabe.
Then he dialed his best friend former LSU teammate Dylan Crews, with whom he’d celebrated a Division I national championship less than two weeks earlier.
“Just hearing his voice was pretty cool,” Dugas recalled. “Just to know that our playing career together wasn’t over.”
A day earlier on July 9, Crews, an outfielder, had joined Washington’s organization as the draft’s second overall pick. After the briefest of hiatuses, the Bayou band was getting back together.
Dugas and Crews took a truncated vacation to Key West, Fla., to celebrate their whirlwind fortnight, then reported to the Nationals’ team complex in West Palm Beach to focus on the task at hand.
“I unfortunately didn’t have enough time personally to soak up all the championship stuff,” said Dugas, “but it was so worth it to be able to play with the Nats.”
Dugas, a second baseman who hit .290 with 17 home runs and 46 RBIs as a fifth-year senior, made his FredNats debut on Aug. 1, batting .160 in 16 games (50 at-bats) before suffering an unspecified injury.
Crews, meanwhile, hardly sipped a Lungo with the FredNats last summer, earning a promotion after just 14 games at the Class A level. Crews, who batted .355 and smacked five home runs with Fredericksburg, will start the 2024 season at Double A Harrisburg.
Dugas said that while the two talk frequently, their respective standings within the farm system is rarely a topic of conversation.
“It’s understood. It’s a ladder. You’ve got to climb it,” he said. “Obviously, he’s going to move a little faster than I am, because of how the system works.”
FredNats manager Jake Lowery cited Dugas’ status as an accomplished, older college player as being a positive presence in the clubhouse and said he’ll take “a majority of the time” at second base this season.
“You need those guys for them to watch how a pro goes about his business,” said Lowery of the 23-year-old Dugas, who went 1 for 3 and scored a run in Fredericksburg’s 4-2 win over the Delmarva Shorebirds on opening night. “He’s an older guy for this level, but this is where his innings are. I think he’s going to be a stalwart in the middle of the lineup somewhere.”
During spring training, Dugas roomed with Crews and a third former Tiger, outfielder Brayden Jobert, who plays in the St. Louis Cardinals’ farm system. Over fungoes, Dugas bonded with Nationals infielders Stone Garrett and Ildemaro Vargas, as well as recent call up Trey Lipscomb, a former FredNat. He also played in a handful of MLB intersquad games.
“I loved it. Spring training is 100% meant for me and my energy level,” Dugas said. “Being around the game every day in the early mornings, I loved it. I loved the experience, loved the full taste of it.”
Last summer, by comparison, was a tasting course for what professional baseball had to offer. Dugas is hungry for an extended chance to prove himself.
“It’s a long season for us, and we showed up late,” he said. “I can only imagine how a full season is going to be and I’m really excited for it.”
