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The Washington Nationals have done well to stay relevant in the National League East, as the Atlanta Braves have a commanding lead in the division. The Braves are 15 games over .500 and are 8.5 games ahead of the Miami Marlins and 9.5 games ahead of the Nationals.
Despite the uphill battle, the Nationals aren't looking to compete for the division this season; rather, they're looking for some of their young core, like outfielder James Wood, to develop. Wood has done well to generate offense for the Nationals, as he's batting .231 with 10 home runs and a .890 OPS.
Wood’s production, along with others, helped the National receive a solid letter grade.
The Washington Nationals showed promise in April, leading to a modest letter grade
According to ESPN’s David Schoenfield, the Nationals landed with a letter grade of a B+. Wood and infielder CJ Abrams helped give the Nationals their grade, as they're the only two everyday players with “above-average OPS+.”
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“I had the Nationals as a pretty solid No. 29 in my preseason predictions, ahead of only the Rockies,” wrote Schoenfield. “The pitching has been as problematic as expected, but the offense scored more runs in April than every team except the Braves -- even though James Wood and CJ Abrams are the only regulars with an above-average OPS+. That suggests the lineup probably won't keep this up, even if Wood is a force of nature. Similar to Murakami, Wood is also on pace for 250-plus strikeouts -- and is still hitting .238/.393/.523. What an era of baseball.”
The Nationals have had two arms perform well this season, right-hander Cade Cavalli and left-hander Foster Griffin. Cavalli is 1-1 with a 3.82 ERA in seven starts after missing all of 2024 with Tommy John surgery, while Griffin is 3-1 with a 2.27 ERA in seven starts after he was signed from the NPB in Japan.
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