Washington Nationals Superstar Receives Glowing Praise From Miami Marlins Coach

The Washington Nationals star slugger got some nice words thrown at him by the manager of the rival Miami Marlins.

Sep 15, 2024; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Washington Nationals left fielder James Wood (center) celebrates his second home run of the game by posing with second baseman Ildemaro Vargas (left) and first baseman Juan Yepez (right) by posing for a photo against the Miami Marlins during the eighth inning at Nationals Park. / Rafael Suanes-Imagn Images

One of the Washington Nationals budding offensive stars had an impressive game on Sunday that solidified his arrival to the next level.

James Wood clobbered two home runs against the Miami Marlins, the first multi-homer game of his career.

The outing was so good that rival manager Skip Schumaker couldn't help but praise the youngster for his day at the plate.

“The kid’s gonna be a superstar for a long time in this game,” said Schumaker per MLB's Jessica Camerato. “He had two home runs. One was a really well located pitch, the other one unfortunately broke Cronin’s streak.”

Nationals manager joined Schumaker in heaping praise onto Wood after the impressive game.

“I love the swings,” said Dave Martinez. “He was behind the balls really well. He stayed in the middle of the field, which was awesome. Let’s see if we can keep him there until the end of the year, and he hits a few more for us.”

With his two home run game, Wood also joined an impressive list of players in the franchise history as just the fifth person to do it before the age of 22. He did it just in time as his birthday is coming up on Sept. 17.

The other Washington sluggers to do so were Juan Soto, Bryce Harper, Gary Carter and Luis Garcia Jr. per MLB's Sarah Langs.

Soto, Harper and Carter are all players that are already in or on pace to reach the Hall of Fame. Garcia is young, and not quite on that pace, but still looks like he will be an above average player for the Nationals.

Expectations for Wood to become someone in the same conversation at the level of Carter may seem like a tall task, but it looks as though the tools may be there.

Over his first 66 career games, he's hit seven home runs with 36 RBI and a .273/.364/.429 slashing line.

The 21-year-old has delivered on expectations as a balanced player who will excel best with a powerful bat and above average speed.

He's been able to swipe 22 bases over all 117 games he's played. He's got the speed to excel at that as well if he continues to refine his techniques.

The 6-foot-7 slugger has shown that he still has the promise of a top prospect while earning the praise being given to him by a rival team's manager.