James Wood DVOA, Advanced Stats, & Fantasy Rankings

Washington Nationals outfielder James Wood (quad) is returning to left field on Wednesday afternoon. Wood has only been able to serve as a designated hitter during the early part of spring training due to tendinitis in his quad. However, seeing him cleared to return to the defensive side of the game suggests he should be a full-go by Opening Day. During his first two games of spring training, Wood has held a .33/.429/.333 line with a 1:1 BB:K ratio. The 22-year-old made his MLB debut and held a .264/.354/.427 slash line with nine home runs and 14 stolen bases. He drew walks at a strong 11.6 percent rate with a stellar 52.0 percent hard-hit rate. Earlier in the season at Triple-A, Wood held a .353/.463/.595 line with 16 doubles and 10 home runs. Fantasy managers should expect Wood to have an everyday role in left field and bat near the top of the Washington lineup.

Washington Nationals outfielder James Wood (quadriceps) will serve as the designated hitter in his Grapefruit League debut on Friday versus the division-rival New York Mets, according to manager Dave Martinez. Depending on how Friday's game goes, the Nationals will decide if Wood is ready to play left field after that. Washington is easing the 22-year-old left-handed slugger into action in spring training while he deals with left-quadriceps tendonitis. With Opening Day not until late March, Wood should be fine for the start of the 2025 regular season, barring a setback when he begins playing in games. Going into his first full season in the big leagues, Wood is ranked as RotoBaller's No. 17 fantasy outfielder after he hit .264/.354/.427 with nine home runs, 41 RBI and 14 steals in his first 79 games in 2024. Lack of consistent contact could be an issue, but Wood's power upside makes him a top-25 fantasy outfielder.

Washington Nationals manager Dave Martinez said that if everything goes according to plan, outfielder James Wood (quadriceps) could serve as the designated hitter in a Grapefruit League game on Thursday. The Nationals have held Wood out of Grapefruit League games early in spring training as a precaution due to left-quad tendonitis, but it looks like he'll be making his debut later this week, barring a setback. As of right now, there's no reason to believe the young left-handed slugger won't be ready in plenty of time for Opening Day in late March. The 22-year-old former second-rounder of the San Diego Padres in 2021 made his major-league debut last year and slashed .264/.354/.427 with a .781 OPS, nine home runs, 41 RBI, 14 stolen bases and 43 runs scored in 79 games. Wood's issues making consistent contact could be a problem, but his raw-power upside makes him the No. 17 fantasy outfielder at RotoBaller.