Washington Nationals Have Young Outfielder on Strict Schedule This Week

The Washington Nationals know how they’re going to get their star left fielder back on the field this week in spring training.

Mar 2, 2025; West Palm Beach, Florida, USA; Washington Nationals designated hitter James Wood (29) hits a single against the Houston Astros during the first inning at CACTI Park of the Palm Beaches. | Sam Navarro-Imagn Images

For the second straight time in three days on Sunday, Washington Nationals outfielder James Wood batted in the designated hitter spot.

Wood didn’t bat in the leadoff spot, as he did on Friday. He batted in the clean-up spot. He spent most of the game in the lineup, as he went 1-for-4 with a run scored. Through two games he’s batting .333 with a .762 OPS.

The Nationals beat the Houston Astros, 4-3, as Paul DeJong hit a home run while Trevor Williams took the victory, his first of spring training.

On Monday, the Nationals are off before playing their next spring training game on Tuesday. From there, the Nationals have a map for Wood’s progress, per the Washington Post.

On Tuesday, Wood won’t play in the spring training game and will retire to the backfields at the team’s complex in West Palm Beach, Fla. The goal is for him to do an outfielder’s version of a pitching “up-and-down.”

For pitchers, they use the process to simulate game innings during the injury rehab process. The pitcher will throw an inning, sit down and then repeat.

Wood will do the same thing. He’ll play an inning in the outfield and then sit an inning and see how his right quad tendinitis reacts. If all goes well, he’ll do that three times.

If he passes that benchmark, then his next spring training game will feature him in the outfield for three or four innings.

It’s a slow ramp-up, considering Wood is about a week behind the rest of the Nationals in spring training. But the goal is to have him ready to play in the field when Washington hosts the Philadelphia Phillies on March 27.

Wood said he’s been dealing with the tendinitis since the offseason, and because of that the Nationals took a cautious approach to him in the early stages of camp. He spent a week in baseball activities before he joined the lineup as a designated hitter.

Wood was one of several players the National received for Juan Soto in the 2022 trade deadline deal that also included Josh Bell, who signed with Washington this offseason.

Wood, who is 22 years old, was at one time last season the Nats’ No. 1 overall prospect before he was called up to make his MLB debut on July 1. He spent the remainder of the season with Washington, as he slashed .264/.354/.427.781 with nine home runs and 41 RBI. He is expected to be the opening-day left fielder.