Watch: Young Nationals Sluggers Go Back-To-Back for First Homers of Season

Washington Nationals stars CJ Abrams and James Wood launched their first homers of the season in style.

Mar 29, 2025; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Washington Nationals outfielder James Wood (29) hits a double during the fifth inning against the Philadelphia Phillies at Nationals Park. | Reggie Hildred-Imagn Images

The Washington Nationals kicked off their road series with the Toronto Blue Jays in disappointing fashion, falling 5-2 at the Rogers Centre on Monday night.

The Nationals' bats were mostly quiet, managing just two runs on five hits as they fell to 1-3 on the season. However, both runs came during a brief flurry of excitement in the top of the sixth inning.

With Washington trailing 4-0 and Blue Jays starter Bowden Francis still in the game, the Nationals socked back-to-back solo home runs to cut the deficit in half.

With one out and nobody on, CJ Abrams finally got Washington on the board, ripping a 1-1 splitter over the right field wall for his first homer of the season.

The next batter, James Wood, also went yard two pitches later, swatting his first long ball of the year on a four-seam fastball right down the middle. It was the first time the team had slammed back-to-back homers since last Aug. 27 against the New York Yankees.

YEEEAHH THEY WANT IT back to back pic.twitter.com/ULctl6fasG

— Washington Nationals (@Nationals) April 1, 2025

The Nationals' rally was quickly extinguished, however, as Francis finished the inning without further damage before handing the game over to Toronto's bullpen.

Washington had one more rally in the top of the eighth, putting two men on with one out to bring the go-ahead run to the plate against Brendon Little. Both batters failed, however, with Nathaniel Lowe striking out and Josh Bell flying out to end the frame.

While the Nationals didn't get the result they wanted, it was encouraging for them to see two of their best players come alive at the dish. Abrams entered the game without an extra-base hit this season, while Wood raised his batting average 100 points with his second two-hit game of the year.

Washington's offense needs both to start clicking soon if it wants to turn its season around. Abrams is coming off his first All-Star appearance and a career-high .747 OPS last year, while the Nationals are counting on Wood to follow up his strong rookie campaign with an even better sophomore season.

Both players have star potential, and Monday's quick eruption was a step in the right direction for both of them.