James Wood, Nats’ top prospect, singles in debut
WASHINGTON — Washington Nationals top prospect James Wood made his major league debut Monday night in a 9-7 loss to the New York Mets.
“It’s unreal,” said Wood, a native of nearby Olney, Maryland, before the game. “Just being able to play for the team I grew up around and watching, it’s a blessing.”
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 played left field and batted sixth in his first major league contest.
“Unique,” Wood said when asked for one word to describe his debut. “It’s just like the first time doing something, something you’ve never done before, playing in front of a crowd like that and obviously in the major leagues.”
After receiving a standing ovation from the crowd of 26,719 in the bottom of the second, Wood fell behind 1-2, worked the count full and then lined an opposite-field single into left-center against Mets starter David Peterson. It was his only hit of the night in four at-bats.
“I was just kind of looking for a fastball,” Wood said. “His fastball runs, it’s got a run and sink on it. I was trying to push it up and away, especially after I swung through the one down. And then I was just able to get one.”
He is the third-ranked prospect in the Major League Baseball pipeline. The 6-foot-7, 234-pounder was hitting .353 with 10 home runs, 37 RBIs and an OPS of 1.058 in the minors.
“He’s done really well at Triple-A,” Nationals manager Dave Martinez said. “I talked to him a little bit today about his routine, stick with his routine and really just be where your feet are and have fun.”
Wood estimated he’d have “more than 50” friends and family members in attendance for his debut.
“It’s cool just being back home and having my family here and trying to soak it all in,” he said. “At the end of the day it’s still baseball, so just trying to look at it that way.”
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.
-
Adam Rittenberg, ESPN Senior Writer
Boston College quarterback Thomas Castellanos, who lost his starting job earlier this week, will not be returning to the team, he announced Thursday night.
Castellanos, who started 12 games last season and retained the top job under new coach Bill O’Brien, wrote on X that “unfortunately, all good things come to an end, even though it’s sooner than I would like.” He did not mention the transfer portal in his departing message and has not officially entered it. The junior from Waycross, Georgia, started his career at UCF and appeared in five games in 2022.
O’Brien said Tuesday that Grayson James, who replaced Castellanos in last week’s win against Syracuse, will start Saturday when Boston College visits No. 14 SMU. Castellanos “wasn’t real thrilled” with the decision, O’Brien said, adding that the quarterback decided to step away from the team for several days.
Castellanos had 2,248 passing yards and 1,113 rushing yards last season under coach Jeff Hafley, passing for 15 touchdowns and adding 13 on the ground. He had 18 touchdown passes and only five interceptions this season, but his accuracy dipped in recent weeks, and he completed only 2 of 7 passes against Syracuse before being replaced.
In his statement, Castellanos thanked both coaching staffs he played for at Boston College and wrote that he had “some of the best experiences of my life in the Eagles Nest and I will truly cherish these memories forever.”
GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Florida quarterback DJ Lagway is “ready to play,” coach Billy Napier said Thursday on his weekly radio show.
Napier removed Lagway from the team’s injury report and penciled him in to start against No. 21 LSU in the Swamp on Saturday.
Lagway practiced every day this week while progressing from a strained left hamstring. The highly touted freshman was carted off the field against Georgia on Nov. 2. Tests revealed a “less significant” injury than initially feared, and now he’s back in time to face the Tigers.
The Gators (4-5, 2-4 Southeastern Conference) need him. They have to win two of their final three regular-season games to become bowl eligible.
LSU (6-3, 3-2) has struggled mightily against dual-threat QBs, including Alabama’s Jalen Milroe, who ran for 185 yards and four touchdowns last week.
Lagway returns after walk-on and Yale transfer Aidan Warner started in his place against Texas. Warner threw two interceptions and was 12-of-25 passing for 132 yards in a 49-17 loss.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
No. 12 Georgia will be without leading rusher Trevor Etienne for Saturday’s showdown against No. 7 Tennessee.
Etienne was downgraded from questionable to out on Thursday night’s SEC availability report.
Etienne left Georgia’s win over Florida with an upper-body injury on Nov. 2 and did not return. He played limited snaps in last week’s 28-10 loss at Ole Miss, carrying the ball six times for 24 yards.
Etienne leads the Bulldogs with 477 rushing yards and seven touchdowns this season.
The loss is another blow to Georgia’s banged-up backfield. Cash Jones is also listed as questionable while Branson Robinson remains out after missing the past three games with a knee injury.
That leaves true freshman Nate Frazier as the only healthy Bulldogs running back who has played meaningful snaps this year. Frazier is second on the team with 333 rushing yards and three touchdowns.
-
Sports2 years ago‘Storybook stuff’: Inside the night Bryce Harper sent the Phillies to the World Series
-
Sports7 months agoStory injured on diving stop, exits Red Sox game
-
Sports2 years agoMLB Rank 2023: Ranking baseball’s top 100 players
-
Sports1 year agoGame 1 of WS least-watched in recorded history
-
Environment1 year agoJapan and South Korea have a lot at stake in a free and open South China Sea
-
Sports3 years ago
Team Europe easily wins 4th straight Laver Cup
-
Environment2 years agoGame-changing Lectric XPedition launched as affordable electric cargo bike
-
Business2 years agoBank of England’s extraordinary response to government policy is almost unthinkable | Ed Conway