This has been the "Year of the Prospect" in many ways as MLB teams have been summoning their young talent to the big leagues earlier and more often than they had been historically.
But one of the biggest hitting prospects in all of baseball has yet to make his big-league debut, despite putting up some great statistics at Triple-A this season.
His name is James Wood and he put on an impressive display of hitting in Spring Training, exciting fans about his potential to be a rookie of the year candidate. Yet the season is approaching the halfway mark and Wood is still not up with the Nationals. How soon will it be until we see Wood in a Nats uniform?
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James Wood Prospect Update for Fantasy Baseball
Wood, a former second-round pick of Washington, has been smashing Triple-A pitching this season. He has nine home runs, 31 RBI, and has swiped 10 bases while compiling a .355 average and 1.061 OPS.
Top #Nats prospect James Wood returned to practice at Triple-A after being sidelined with hamstring tightness.
An on-the-scene update on MLB's No. 4 prospect: https://t.co/iRi2fe0CN7 pic.twitter.com/wCq5bmeG89
— MLB Pipeline (@MLBPipeline) June 6, 2024
Wood hasn't played in several weeks due to a hamstring injury but is nearing a return to the lineup. If he looks healthy and resumes his torrid production upon his return, then a promotion to majors seems imminent.
James Wood Outlook for Fantasy Baseball
Unlike other prospects like Jasson Dominguez or Heston Kjerstad, Wood will be coming up to a team that has no postseason aspirations and very few players who would stand in Wood's way in terms of playing time. Once Wood joins the Nats, he would likely be penciled into the cleanup spot in the order and given a chance to play in the outfield every day.
Wood is rostered in just 24% of Yahoo leagues and that feels like far too few given his immense talent. He should be stashed in all formats, as he has the potential to contribute across all offensive stat categories.
Washington would be foolish to let him toil away in the minors much longer. Once he gets back into his pre-injury form, I think we see him get the call soon enough. If the calendar turns over to July and we haven't seen Wood yet, I would be very surprised.
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