Left fielder James Wood checked in inside the top 50 with two Washington Nationals ranked in ESPN's top 100 players ahead of the 2026 season
The Washington Nationals enjoyed a rare day off on Tuesday as they are set to take on Venezuela in an exhibition on Wednesday with the World Baseball Classic officially up and running. But with one week of games in the books and Opening Day inching closer, a pair of Nationals were honored among the best in baseball after ESPN included two stars in their ranking of the top 100 players ahead of the 2026 season.
James Wood was the first National to be honored after checking in as the 44th best player, ranked the second best left fielder in baseball behind Wyatt Langford of the Texas Rangers. ESPN pointed out Wood's elite bat speed with opposite-field power with hopes of taking the jump in 2026, but for Wood, it's about putting together a complete season after shining through the first half of the 2025 season then fading after he was named an All Star for the first time in his career.
"Wood is one of those Ryan Howard- or Freddie Freeman-type hitters, in which the all-fields power is an indelible part of their game, but Wood will hit more homers this year -- 41, to be exact," Kiley McDaniel of ESPN added.
Unsurprisingly, Wood was the first of two Nationals to be honored after shortstop CJ Abrams checked in at 98th overall in ESPN's updated rankings, ranked the 14th best player at his position across baseball. ESPN noted Abrams' struggles "coming in and going up the middle" with a question whether he would be best served at either center field or second base as the best long-term fit.
"A solid season in the 2.5-to-3.0 WAR range, but a change of scenery might be the thing to unlock his remaining potential," Kiley McDaniel of ESPN said of Abrams.
Of course, Abrams has found himself in the headlines through the second half of the offseason, but specifically, one day after the front office pulled the trigger on a deal to send MacKenzie Gore to the Texas Ranger. A report quickly surfaced that the San Francisco Giants made an aggressive run to acquire Abrams this offseason before negotiations fizzled due to Washington's asking price, but that only marked the start of the trade speculation with others like the New York Yankees being linked to the Nationals' shortstop.
The speculation eventually led president of baseball operations Paul Toboni to throw water on the growing speculation.
"An article came out that we were shopping CJ Abrams and Jacob Young. I called both of them and said this is a load of you know what. And they were laughing, but I wanted to be truthful with them. I'm like hey, we're not shopping you both," Toboni said back in January.
Abrams, meanwhile, explained how he has worked to avoid the noise and speculation ahead of his fourth season with the organization.
"Just stay where your feet are. Whatever happens, happens," Abrams told MLB Network of the reported trade interest this offseason. "Just got to take care of, like you said, the task at hand and just stay where your feet are in the present."