Wood, acquired in Soto trade, called up by Nats

WASHINGTON — Washington Nationals top prospect James Wood is expected to make his major league debut Monday night against the New York Mets.

The Nationals selected the contract of the 21-year-old outfielder to call him up from Triple-A Rochester. Wood was acquired in the August 2022 trade that sent Juan Soto to San Diego.

He is the third-ranked prospect in the Major League Baseball pipeline. The 6-foot-7, 234-pound native of nearby Olney, Maryland, is hitting .353 with 10 home runs, 37 RBIs and an OPS of 1.058 in the minors.

“I’m very excited when he does get here,” manager Dave Martinez said Friday. “He’s an outstanding kid. I’m looking forward to working with him.

“He’s a student on the game. He wants to learn. He wants to get better. You got to remember he’s still 21 years old. He’s still learning a lot about himself, but he’s got unbelievable talent.”

The Nationals acquired him in August 2022 in the deal for Soto that also brought shortstop CJ Abrams and left-handed starter MacKenzie Gore to Washington.

Abrams and Gore have been mainstays on a rebuilding club that has remained competitive a year after finishing last in the NL East at 71-91. Washington (39-44) entered Monday four games out of an NL wild-card spot.

In a corresponding roster move, the team designated outfielder Eddie Rosario for assignment.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.