Nationals Say James Wood's Recovery Has Been Slower Than Expected

The Washington Nationals are missing a big piece of the puzzle with James Wood on the injured list.

He's been on the shelf since Aug. 4 due to a left oblique strain, but there was some optimism that he might be inching closer to a return when the team stated that he had begun to play catch, swing the bat and hit balls off a tee.

However, the latest update from manager Blake Butera has poured some cold water on the notion that Wood could be back soon, as Spencer Nusbaum of The Athletic reported that the skipper stated things have been going slower than expected in the slugger's recover.

Nationals Being Cautious With James Wood

Washington Nationals outfielder James Wood | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

"Yeah, it's been it's been pretty slow recently. Just hasn't subsided the way we'd like it to. So not a whole lot going on at the moment," Butera said.

Wood is reportedly still experiencing tightness in his oblique, so the team is opting to be cautious. Perhaps that shouldn't come as a surprise. While the 10-day IL designation was always optimistic when it came to his actual return timeline, there was hope that he might be activated before the end of August. However, oblique injuries are always tricky to deal with, and it seems like that is holding true for Wood as he tries to make his way back to the field.

The good news is that there doesn't seem to have been a setback. Washington didn't say they are shutting him down from rehab activities, just that he hasn't recovered as quickly as they would have liked or envisioned when he received a positive initial diagnosis.

Wood is now projected to return at some point in September. But because they are waiting until he no longer experiences any discomfort before bringing him back, that is an estimated timetable that is dependent on how he feels.

Nationals Feeling Absence of James Wood in Major Way

Unsurprisingly, the Nationals' offense has felt the absence of their superstar slugger.

Since he was placed on the injured list, the lineup has produced a league average wRC+ figure of 100. While that ranks 13th across the majors, it's a significant difference from what they had done before that point, when they ranked tied for No. 2 with a wRC+ of 111.

It goes without saying that this offense is completely different without one of the game's best hitters in the lineup. So even though Washington is an extreme longshot to make the playoffs this year after they hovered around an NL wild card spot for the majority of the season, they would love to get him back before the end of the campaign so they can finish this year on a strong note.

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