The Washington Nationals have been surprisingly competitive this year.
They are actually close to being a .500 team, with a 38-42 record.
The organization has had a rough time since winning the 2019 World Series, entering a rebuilding process and trading away some of their best chips.
Now, however, they are actually on the brink of contention.
With the move they just made, they made a statement: they said they are willing to promote their top prospects and start their clock to compete this year.
Yes, that’s right: the Nationals are promoting outfielder James Wood to the majors.
“The Nationals are calling up MLB’s No. 3 prospect James Wood,” Talkin’ Baseball tweeted.
The Nationals are calling up MLB’s No. 3 prospect James Wood pic.twitter.com/j1lyd9ZecS
Not only Wood is the Nats’ best prospect: he is a top-three prospect in MLB.
He has it all: size, athleticism, contact, power, and most importantly, the ability to learn, improve, and make adjustments.
Last year, he posted a .248/.334/.492 line in 87 games in Double-A (124 wRC+).
Thanks in large part to a sudden decrease in his strikeout rate (it went from 33.7 percent last year in Double-A to 18.2 percent in Triple-A in 2024), Wood has improved to a .346/.458/.578 (168 wRC+) line in 51 games, with 10 home runs and 10 stolen bases.
He should be deployed as the Nationals’ starting left fielder from now on, and has what it takes to dominate at the highest level.
He will provide some thump to an otherwise underwhelming unit, and has the upside to enter the top-five in the NL Rookie of the Year race even while playing half of the season.
It remains to be seen how he behaves against top-notch velocity and elite command, but Wood has all the raw tools to become a star.