Strong Spring Performance Shows Washington Nationals Star Ready To Break Out

This top Washington Nationals prospect missed the start of spring with an injury, but his performance with the bat so far proves why he is a consensus breakout pick.

Mar 7, 2025; West Palm Beach, Florida, USA; Washington Nationals left fielder James Wood (29) hits a two-run home run against the New York Mets during the third inning at CACTI Park of the Palm Beaches. | Sam Navarro-Imagn Images

The Washington Nationals have a lot riding on the performance of their highly-touted young hitters this season, and perhaps no player in their lineup has the chance to be more of a ceiling-raiser than James Wood.

Wood, a lanky, smooth-swinging outfield with immense pop in his bat, was the youngest piece that the team acquired when it sent Juan Soto to the San Diego Padres at the 2022 trade deadline.

Every single member of the return Washington received for Soto has proven highly valuable to the team's rebuild, but as the No. 14 prospect according to MLB Pipeline prior to 2024, Wood's arrival as a full-time fixture in the clubhouse gives Washington the sort of unique impact player any team would covet.

Wood was sidelined for much of the start of spring training with quad tendinitis, but in his return to game action, he has picked up right where he left off in the 2024 regular season.

On Friday in a 5-4 win over the New York Mets, Wood smoked his second home run of spring training, a two-run blast that brought home his fellow young cornerstone in the Washington outfield, Dylan Crews.

loooool our oppo king pic.twitter.com/0Og8RxQxIM

— Washington Nationals (@Nationals) March 8, 2025

The bomb was notable for the fact that it was hit to the opposite field, as Wood became notorious for almost never pulling the ball in the air throughout his rookie campaign.

Wood's unique combination of speed and power places him in the company of the sport's other unicorns like Elly de la Cruz of the Cincinnati Reds, Bobby Witt Jr. of the Kansas City Royals and Gunnar Henderson of the Balitmore Orioles.

Wood may not quite be at the overall level of effectiveness that those guys have attained just yet, but his underlying numbers are eye-popping.

In 2024, Wood produced a hard-hit rate of 52% and an average exit velocity of 92.8. That exit velocity mark is exactly tied with Henderson, a tick ahead of Witt Jr. and a whole mile per hour clear of de la Cruz.

The hard-hit number puts him ahead of fearsome sluggers like Yordan Alvarez, Corey Seager, Bryce Harper, Adolis Garcia and two of the aforementioned trio of young stars (Henderson excluded).

At his six-foot-seven height, Wood also proved to be a remarkable baserunner, posting an 85th percentile sprint speed throughout the season.

Players of this ilk with these sort of natural tools do not come around often, and the Nationals absolutely made the best of a bad situation by landing one and successfully developing him when they were practically forced to move Soto.

Wood has a chance to take the league by storm in 2025, and if he does, he could bring the Nationals right up the standings with him.