Drift Wood

 

Beyond the Mets and Phillies, the NL East is in a weird place. The Braves are in third, but still haven't decided whether or not they're gonna go for it this year, and have sort of bobbed back and forth this whole time. The Marlins are in last, but because they have Kyle Stowers, they've managed a ton of clutch victories and may keep piling them up. And the Nats are just barely in fourth, and may deserve to pull even higher.

And that's the odd part. This is what the Nats look like when they have the Crews-Wood-Young outfield fully installed, when they have a competent rotation and a good closer, when they have definite stars like C.J. Abrams, and when they actually look like they know what they're doing for the first time since, ironically, the red caps were taken away in 2020. And even with all that, they're still a game behind a Braves team that doesn't even know whether they're competing or not. 

James Wood, as we all figured last year, is exactly what the Nats needed. Even at 22 he feels confident, self-assured and comfortable in the majors. So far he's hit 9 home runs and 21 RBIs, seconded only to Nate Lowe's 27, and his .926 OPS leads the team. I know people are really worried about Dylan Crews not clicking immediately, but this team has enough guys that have. Wood, Abrams, Young, Gore, Parker. And plus, enough teams have proved that if the golden child prospect takes his time, the rest of the team can step up and ensure it's not solely on him. That's how the Tigers worked before Torkelson got it, that's how the O's worked before Holliday's current hot streak. Crews is hitting for power, even if he's not fully five-tool yet. A good season from James Wood is definitely enough to distract from the fact that Dylan Crews is still figuring out the majors. 

People should be paying attention to how the Nationals do against good, competitive teams. Earlier this year they took two from the Diamondbacks and two from the Dodgers. They had some big wins against the Orioles and just took down the Reds for a bit. Yesterday they legged it out in extras against a very ferocious Guardians team who, in all seriousness, should have won that game. That scrappiness, that big game attitude, is gonna be very valuable going forward, even if they're not competitive yet. They are a good team that many perceive to be a bad one, and that's gonna be a help to them as they continue to play really good teams. A lot of even the best teams don't have starting combos as strong as MacKenzie Gore, Mitchell Parker and Cole Irvin. The O's don't even have one guy that can do who those three can right now.

So, Wood getting off to a great start might be just the beginning of a fun improvement of a season for the Nats. I don't know if they're fully a playoff team yet, but they'll be better than they have in a while. 

Coming Tomorrow- Everyone knew he'd be elite, and now that he is you commonly forget just how good he can be.