Baseball is definitely a game of adjustments.
The perfect example of that is Washington Nationals outfield prospect James Wood.
Wood oozes potential and has tantalizing tools, but strikeouts used to get in his way in the past.
Last year, he struck out at a 33.7 percent rate in Double-A.
But he worked hard to improve and, with the help of his organization and his own merits, is striking out at a much more respectable 19.2 percent pace in Triple-A this year.
Wood is having an amazing season – we will get to that in a minute – but he has been white-hot in recent games.
“James Wood is currently on a 10-game hitting streak in which he’s slashing .474/.544/.921 with 5 HR and 7/6 BB/K,” fantasy baseball analyst Eric Cross tweeted.
James Wood is currently on a 10-game hitting streak in which he’s slashing .474/.544/.921 with 5 HR and 7/6 BB/K.#NATITUDEpic.twitter.com/qxThNqKbFM
Wood was one of the pieces the Nationals insisted on getting from the San Diego Padres in the 2022 Juan Soto trade.
It’s easy to see why.
In his most recent 10-game sample, Wood has almost as many home runs (five) as strikeouts (six), which is absolutely crazy.
He has figured out the level and might be positioning himself to get the call to join the Nationals very soon.
A batter with a .357/.455/.586 line, seven home runs, and nine stolen bases in the young Triple-A season is surely in consideration to join the majors sooner rather than later, especially one with the prospect pedigree Wood proudly boasts.
He is an athletic freak and a future 30-30 threat, and could be helping Washington compete earlier than expected.
The evidence suggests that Wood is putting it all together and will become an impact major leaguer before the 2024 season expires.