“I was comfortable going in there because I watched him yesterday,” Wood said of Reds left-hander Justin Wilson. “Sometimes [the first pitch] “It’s going to be the most amazing thing you’ll see today. You have to be prepared for it.”
His mind went blank as Wood rounded the bases, but the closeness of the two teams’ standings in the wild-card standings was on his mind in the clubhouse. The Nationals have won five of their past six games and have the same record as the Reds, 47-53.
“We’re right there with them,” Wood said. “We’re trying to do our best and every game is important.”
“Right now, things can go two ways,” manager Dave Martinez said. “You can either go in and stay level-headed and try to do something special, or you can get off to a good start. I’m happy the guys got off to a good start.”
To call that moment Baseball America’s Top Prospects But that statement underestimates the leap he’ll make from Class AAA. In just his first three weeks in the big leagues, Wood has seen plenty of events that could have ruined his season.
The excuse for Wood batting seventh on Sunday was to let the normally relaxed 21-year-old at the plate relax. Or that he entered his ninth at-bat in the eighth inning, ending his 44-at-bat streak (.205) since his first big-league home run. Or that between AAA Rochester and Washington, Wood displayed the patient approach that worked for him in the minor leagues but led to him batting in two-strike counts in the big leagues.
Coach Martinez spoke with Wood before the game and told him to play aggressively.
“Teams go into games and they have a game plan. They find players’ weaknesses,” the coach said. “But when you talk to him? He’s really smart. He knows what he wants to do. That was evident today.”
It didn’t matter that Wood had been out hard twice earlier Sunday. He’d been out hard enough in his young career that he had an automatic reaction: “That’s baseball.” In the second inning, the first ball he hit flew off his bat at 107.2 mph and bounced off Reds starter Andrew Abbott, who couldn’t reach it for an infield hit. In the fourth, he hit an even faster ball, a 109 mph laser to left field that, given Wood’s speed, would have made third base but for a diving catch by Will Benson. And in the sixth, he fell victim to another highlight, center fielder Stuart Fairchild again diving against the wall to get Wood out.
He walked slowly back to the dugout, his expression unchanged. At least he was getting the ball in the air, and swinging at the right pitch, a fastball. The first pitch Wilson threw was a high heater at 94.2 mph. Wood threw it at 105.9 mph, sending it 404 feet into the stands. As he walked into the dugout, he high-fived shortstop C.J. Abrams, causing his “Uncle Slam” home run hat to fall off his head in the process.
The Nationals were able to pull off this feat thanks to a stellar performance from Irvin, who allowed just two earned runs in seven innings with seven strikeouts and no walks. He’d allowed six earned runs in each of his previous two starts before the All-Star break, but now he’s back to his old self.
“I think the break was a bit of a refresher,” Irvin said. “It reminded me to keep my feet on the ground, keep my eyes on my feet and stay in attack mode.”
Irvin is used to struggling early, so he wasn’t stressed when Noelvi Marte hit a solo home run in the second inning. He wasn’t stressed by the pressure of trying to hang on with a weak bullpen, the usual lack of scoring support, or even a brief visit from athletic trainer Paul Lessard in the third inning after he appeared to hurt his right foot while catching a ground ball. He worked the count well and Using the four-seam This results in weaker contact than normal.
The Nationals fought back in the third inning, when Juan Yepes (1.007 OPS since joining the team on July 5) hit a two-out double off the left field fence, sending Jacob Young to third base. A few pitches later, Reds catcher Austin Wins tried to catch Young between third and home plate, but got Marte out at third base, allowing Young to score. Marte was called for an error. Mid-season addition Harold Ramirez also singled to send Yepes home, giving the Nationals a 2–1 lead, but in the fifth inning, Ervin allowed a solo home run to Fairchild. Wood scored the final three runs.
“It was mind-blowing. He’s a special player,” Irvin said of Wood’s home run.
