Wood, acquired in Soto trade, called up by Nats

WASHINGTON — Washington Nationals top prospect James Wood will 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.

Wood will play left field and bat sixth in his debut. He will wear No. 50.

“It’s unreal,” said Wood, a native of nearby Olney, Maryland. “Just being able to play for the team I grew up around and watching, it’s a blessing.”

He is the third-ranked prospect in the Major League Baseball pipeline. The 6-foot-7, 234-pounder is 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’ll 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.