The Nationals promoted Wood from High-A Wilmington to Double-A Harrisburg on Sunday, Jesse Dougherty of The Washington Post reports.
The 20-year-old was advanced to the next rung on the minor-league ladder on the heels of slugging a home run for the third time in four starts in Wilmington's 7-5 win over Hudson Valley on Saturday. For the season, Wood -- one of the key pieces the Nationals acquired in the blockbuster deal last summer that sent Juan Soto to San Diego -- has slashed .293/392/.580 with 22 extra-base hits, eight stolen bases and a 14.8 percent walk rate. Wood's production is made all the more impressive by the fact that he did much of his damage while playing in Wilmington's pitcher-friendly park.
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Nationals' James Wood: Red hot at High-A
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Wood has hit safely in seven straight games for High-A Wilmington, batting .462 (12-for-26) over that stretch with a double, a triple, a home run, two steals and eight RBI.
The 20-year-old outfielder does have a 1:6 BB:K in that time, but he's doing plenty of damage when he makes contact and a 21.4 percent strikeout rate is no real cause for alarm. Wood is the top prospect in the Nationals' system after coming over in the Juan Soto trade last year, and if he can stay healthy this season he could slug his way into a promotion to Double-A over the summer.
Nationals' James Wood: Spectacular when healthy in 2022
Rotowire
Wood put together a .324/.429/.560 batting line with 12 homers, 19 steals and a 47:68 BB:K in 71 Single-A games this season.
While he wasn't quite as spectacular for Fredericksburg after being traded as he had been with Lake Elsinore in the hitter-friendly California League earlier in the year, Wood still had a major breakout in 2022, flashing his high-end power and plus speed. However, wrist and knee injuries combined to limit the 19-year-old's time on the field -- he played just a little over half a season's worth of games. If Wood can put in a fully healthy and similarly productive 2023, he could very well put himself in consideration for the title of No. 1 prospect in baseball.
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Nationals' James Wood: Back in business
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Wood (knee) went 1-for-4 with an RBI, two runs and two walks in a game with Single-A Fredericksburg on Sunday.
A sore knee kept Wood off the field for just shy of two weeks, but he returned to action Friday and showed Sunday that he is past his knee issue. Since being acquired from the Padres as part of the Juan Soto trade, Wood has gone 24-for-82 (.293) with two homers, 17 RBI and four steals over 21 games with Fredericksburg.
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Nationals' James Wood: Nursing knee issue
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Wood isn't in the lineup Tuesday for Single-A Fredericksburg due to knee soreness, Jesse Dougherty of The Washington Post reports.
The 19-year-old was removed from Sunday's contest due to the injury and will be sidelined for at least one game. Wood has appeared in 19 games since being acquired by the Nationals in the Juan Soto trade and has a .307/.369/.493 slash line with two home runs, 16 RBI and four stolen bases for Fredericksburg.
Nationals' James Wood: Snagged by Nats in Soto deal
Rotowire
Wood was traded from the Padres to the Nationals on Tuesday along with Luke Voit, CJ Abrams, Robert Hassell, MacKenzie Gore and Jarlin Susana in exchange for Juan Soto and Josh Bell, Jeff Passan of ESPN.com reports.
Wood has done more to improve his stock this year than any other player from the 2021 Draft class. An athletic 6-foot-7 outfielder with massive raw power and plus speed, Wood hit .337/.453/.601 with 10 home runs, 15 steals and a 42:37 K:BB in 236 plate appearances at Single-A. He is a couple years away from the majors, but Wood has superstar upside.
Wood has hit .333/.422/.563 with three homers, seven steals and a 12:17 BB:K across 21 games for Single-A Lake Elsinore since returning from a wrist injury.
The 19-year-old owns an unimpeachable stat line over 35 Single-A games so far this season, featuring a .999 OPS and 26:28 BB:K. It's exceedingly rare for a guy who's built like an NFL linebacker (or, well, Aaron Judge) at 6-foot-7, 240 pounds to control the strike zone so well while also showing above-average base-stealing ability. While he'll obviously have to carry this level of performance over to higher levels of the minors, Wood is flashing star potential.
Padres' James Wood: Activated from minor-league IL
Rotowire
Wood (wrist) has completed his Arizona Complex League rehab assignment and has been activated onto High-A Lake Elsinore's roster, Sam Dykstra of MLB.com reports.
Wood played in five games during his ACL rehab assignment, going 2-for-16 with seven strikeouts and a stolen base. Despite the unimpressive results, he's been deemed ready to return to Lake Elsinore, with whom he's slashed .273/.429/.509 with three homers, 12 RBI and four thefts across 15 contests on the campaign. Wood has been sidelined by the wrist injury twice this season, so the organization will likely be cautious if the issue flares up again.
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Padres' James Wood: Goes back on IL
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Wood was placed on the minor-league 7-day injured list Friday due to a right wrist injury, Jeff Sanders of The San Diego Union-Tribune reports.
Wood was on the injured list with soreness in the same wrist in mid-April, and this appears to be a flareup of the issue. The 19-year-old has hit well when able to play this season, slashing .300/.462/.560 with three homers, 12 RBI, a 14:11 BB:K and four stolen bases over 65 plate appearances. It's not yet clear how long this iteration of the injury will keep him out of action.
