Washington Nationals All-Star outfielder James Wood is currently dealing with an oblique strain. Nationals manager Blake Butera provided an update on Wood’s recovery before their series finale against the New York Mets.
“Yeah, it’s been it’s been pretty slow recently,” Butera told The Athletic‘s Spencer Nusbaum. “Just hasn’t subsided the way we’d like it to. So not a whole lot going on at the moment.”
Wood was placed on the 10-day injured list with a left oblique strain on August 4.
In a previous injury update, the Nationals were hopeful the two-time All-Star wouldn’t need a rehab assignment. However, he’s failed to progress well enough to avoid it altogether.
What the Latest James Wood Injury Update Means
GettyNationals outfielder James Wood has emerged as one of the most prolific sluggers and on-base threats in baseball. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
With James Wood still progressing slowly from his oblique strain, the Nationals will remain without their best hitter. Wood owns a .265/.393/.535 slash, showing that he’s both a premier on-base threat as well as a slugger. His 151 wRC+ ranks third among MLB hitters, behind Yordan Alvarez (188) and Willson Contreras (152).
A fixture at the top of the Nationals lineup, Wood leads all MLB hitters in runs scored by a healthy margin. His 100 runs are 13 higher than the next highest total.
In his absence, the Nationals have gone 5-6.
The Nationals have fallen out of the National League Wild Card race. At 60-65, they are 6.5 games back of the San Diego Padres, Philadelphia Phillies, and Arizona Diamondbacks for a postseason spot.
While the Nationals will not likely be in the 2026 postseason, there is an incentive for Wood to return. There will likely be a rehab assignment for the two-time All-Star now. How long this injury persists will likely determine where he goes to play those games.
There is still value in having a healthy roster, if merely for evaluation purposes. Once the front office sees what they have, then president of baseball operations Paul Toboni can try to fill the holes on the roster in the offseason.
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