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<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/mlb/washington-nationals/nationals-news-james-wood-history-not-seen-since-barry-bonds');   ga('set', 'title', 'James Wood makes unthinkable history not seen since Barry Bonds');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Nationals-outfielder-james-wood.jpg"><figcaption>Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>James Wood makes unthinkable history not seen since Barry Bonds</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-06-30T09:44:33-07:00">June 30th, 9:44am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-06-30T09:44:33-07:00">June 30th, 9:44am</time><address><a>Russell Steinberg</a>Russell Steinberg covers Major League Baseball and the New York Liberty for ClutchPoints. A baseball and basketball lifer, he has written for Boardroom, SLAM, SB Nation, The Next, and more. He graduated from NYU in 2012 and still returns to serve as PA announcer and occasional broadcaster for the school’s basketball and volleyball teams.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">MLB</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>22-year-old <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/mlb/washington-nationals/nationals-news-james-wood-sets-mlb-benchmark-blistering-bomb-vs-dodgers">slugger James Wood</a> has played in 163 career games and the Washington Nationals’ left fielder has already found himself on the same list as Barry Bonds.</p><p>In the Nationals’ game on Sunday, the Los Angeles Angels intentionally walked Wood four times — a sign of respect no hitter has seen since Bonds in 2004. The <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/mlb/los-angeles-dodgers/mlb-news-alex-rodriguez-shohei-ohtani-goat-talk-barry-bonds">all-time home run king</a> accomplished the feat four time that season alone.</p><p>Manny Ramirez, Andre Dawson, Garry Templeton and Roger Maris are the only other players to be intentionally walked four times in a game. Wood is the only one to do it as a member of the Nationals or the organization’s predecessor, the Montreal Expos.</p><p>“That’s pretty cool,” Wood said after the game, via Brian Murphy of MLB.com. “If you’re being put in the same sentence as [Bonds], then that’s pretty cool.”</p><p>The Nationals <a href="https://www.mlb.com/nationals/news/james-wood-intentionally-walked-four-times-in-one-game" rel="noopener">won the game</a>, 7-4 in 11 innings, and Wood went 1-2 to go with his four free passes. The second-year outfielder is leading Washington in home runs (22), RBI (64), runs scored (52), batting average (.283) and OPS (.938).</p><h2><b>James Wood’s feat shows Nationals’ offensive weakness</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Nationals-outfielder-nathaniel-lowe.jpg"><figcaption>Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>Outfielder Jacob Young probably wasn’t the only person disappointed that he didn’t get to see Wood hit more. He explained why it happened after the game.</p><p>“It stinks because I like to watch him hit, but it’s pretty crazy that they’re already taking those measures against him,” he said. “He’s carried our offense for a lot of the year and it’s special when he’s up there.”</p><p>Without any lineup protection to speak of, Wood will probably continue to get such treatment — maybe not four intentional walks in a game, but he won’t see a ton of great pitches to hit. Even with Wood, the Nationals have a .704 team OPS, which ranks 20th in the Majors.</p><p>No one else on the team has more than 13 homers, with <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/mlb/washington-nationals/nationals-news-nathaniel-lowe-hits-career-milestone-dodgers">veteran Nathaniel Lowe</a> pairing the number with a .696 OPS and .232 average. Other than Wood, CJ Abrams is the only regular boasting an OPS above .720.</p><p>Fittingly, Wood has drawn eight of the team’s 10 intentional walks this season.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

James Wood makes unthinkable history not seen since Barry Bonds

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/mlb/washington-nationals/nationals-news-angels-9-rbi-win-2025');   ga('set', 'title', 'Nationals hit impressive mark in 15-9 win over Angels');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Josh-Bell.jpg"><figcaption>Denis Poroy-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>Nationals hit impressive mark in 15-9 win over Angels</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-06-28T05:45:08-07:00">June 28th, 5:45am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-06-28T05:45:08-07:00">June 28th, 5:45am</time><address><a>Josh Davis</a>Josh Davis is an Associate Editor at ClutchPoints with a focus on MLB. As the founder and creator of OutOfSightSports, Josh spearheads the development and expansion of an engaging social media platform, with a core focus on Twitter/X. A passionate sports writer, Josh is dedicated to delivering compelling content that connects fans and fuels vibrant sports conversations. His vision is to craft stories so vivid that fans feel like they’re standing at the plate or on the field.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">MLB</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/mlb/washington-nationals/nationals-news-james-wood-sets-mlb-benchmark-blistering-bomb-vs-dodgers">Washington Nationals exploded for a season-high</a> 15 runs in a chaotic victory over the Los Angeles Angels on Friday night, but it wasn’t just the scoreline that stood out. In one of the most remarkable statistical feats of the 2025 MLB season, every single batter in the Nationals lineup recorded at least one RBI.</p><p>MLB’s official X account (formerly known as Twitter) kept it simple, posting just the final score—<a href="https://x.com/MLB/status/1938823758321443249?t=jruKOfGUSTRgP4-BkIaSbQ&amp;s=19" rel="noopener">a quiet nod</a> to the kind of all-around dominance that doesn’t need commentary.</p><p>“The @Nationals get an RBI from all 9 starting position players in a high-scoring win.”</p><p>Despite the six-run margin, the game was anything but a blowout—marked by momentum swings, five lead changes, and late-inning drama in the club’s wild win at Angel Stadium. What looked like a rout on paper was, in real time, a rollercoaster of tension and timely hitting, capped by a four-run ninth that made the final score misleading.</p><p>Josh Bell and Jacob Young led the charge with three RBIs each, but the offensive outburst didn’t end there. Seven Nationals recorded multiple hits, and all nine starters drove in at least one run—a textbook example of the kind of across-the-board production that’s made the all-nine-RBI feat a rarity in modern MLB history.</p><p>Brady House, just 11 games into his MLB career, delivered the go-ahead RBI in the seventh inning after a walk by James Wood. The bottom of the lineup shined brightest, with Daylen Lile, Riley Adams, and House combining for three clutch RBIs.</p><p>Despite the offensive fireworks, it wasn’t a perfect night. Starter Jake Irvin was shelled for nine earned runs over 4.1 innings, while defensive errors by CJ Abrams and Luis García Jr. allowed several Angels runs to cross.</p><p>This Nationals vs Angels matchup marked the most combined runs scored between these two teams in over 20 years. The Angels tallied 19 hits, with home runs from Taylor Ward, Jo Adell, and Nolan Schanuel, but fell short after Sam Bachman allowed the go-ahead run in relief.</p><p>The victory improves <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/mlb/washington-nationals/nationals-news-james-woods-home-run-snaps-losing-streak">Washington’s record to 34-48, still last in the NL East</a>, but showing flashes of a future worth building around. With emerging stars like House and Wood stepping up, and veterans like Bell anchoring the order, this level of offensive balance could be the blueprint going forward.</p><p>Though the Nats have trended downward since their 2019 championship, rebuilding through the fallout of aging stars and the blockbuster Juan Soto trade in 2022, they suddenly don’t seem too far from breaking out. Games like this suggest their rebuild is turning a corner, with a young core starting to come together and flash real potential.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Nationals hit impressive mark in 15-9 win over Angels

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/mlb/washington-nationals/nationals-news-keibert-ruiz-scary-injury-update-davey-martinez');   ga('set', 'title', 'Nationals’ Keibert Ruiz gets scary injury update from Davey Martinez');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Keibert-Ruiz.jpg"></figure><h1>Nationals’ Keibert Ruiz gets scary injury update from Davey Martinez</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-06-23T23:31:49-07:00">June 23rd, 11:31pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-06-23T23:50:19-07:00">June 23rd, 11:50pm</time><address><a>Mike Gianakos</a>Mike Gianakos is the former editor-in-chief of High Times magazine, where he also spearheaded the video department and event production. He is a longtime podcaster and even longer suffering NY Jets fan.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">MLB</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>After losing for the 13th time in their last 15 games when <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/mlb/los-angeles-dodgers/dodgers-news-shohei-ohtani-second-start-pitching-return">Shohei Ohtani got his second start of the season</a> for the Dodgers Sunday, the Washington Nationals bounced back against the San Diego Padres. Unfortunately, even when the Nationals win, they lose, as a <a href="https://x.com/MarkZuckerman/status/1937375749817925773" rel="noopener">freak accident</a> caused a serious injury.</p><p>Washington catcher Keibert Ruiz was struck on the head by a foul ball while he was in the dugout during Monday’s game. Nationals manager Davey Martinez said Ruiz was taken to the hospital and given a CAT scan, per MASN Sports’ Mark Zuckerman on X. Martinez reports that Ruiz has a lump on the right side of his head.</p><h2><b>Keibert Ruiz leaves Nationals game after being hit by foul ball</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Keibert-Ruiz-2.jpg"><figcaption>Brett Davis-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>The frightening incident occurred with Josh Bell at the plate in the top of the fourth inning. Bell fought off a 91 mph cutter from Padres starter Stephen Kolek and the ball rocketed into the Nationals’ dugout. Players and coaches scrambled and Martinez could even be <a href="https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/45572356/nationals-ruiz-exits-apparently-hit-teammate-foul-ball" rel="noopener">seen smiling</a> with relief that he escaped unharmed during the replay, per ESPN.</p><p>Then the team realized the ball apparently ricocheted off the back of the dugout wall and caught Ruiz, as the sixth-year veteran clutched the right side of his head in pain and immediately left for the clubhouse.</p><p>While obviously an unfortunate situation, it’s a lucky break that Ruiz was struck off the carom. The damage would likely have been far more severe if he was hit directly, as Bell’s foul ball had some serious velocity.</p><p>The <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/mlb/washington-nationals/nationals-news-keibert-ruiz-extension-washington-history-bryce-harper-juan-soto">Nationals signed Ruiz to an eight-year, $50 million contract</a> prior to the 2023 season. After getting off to a strong start in Washington, he’s struggled at the plate in 2025. Ruiz is batting .248 with a .600 OPS and 0.1 bWAR in 65 games this season. Riley Adams replaced him in Monday’s contest.</p><p>Although the Nationals’ thoughts were with the 26-year-old backstop, the team put up four runs in the inning, staking an early lead against a Padres team that entered the matchup having won three of the last four games.</p><p>After the fourth inning the Nationals continued taking it to San Diego. Bell would homer and drive in three runs and left fielder <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/mlb/washington-nationals/nationals-news-james-wood-sets-mlb-benchmark-blistering-bomb-vs-dodgers">James Wood continued his All-Star caliber campaign</a> hitting his 22nd home run of the season and knocking in four runs as Washington won 10-6.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Nationals’ Keibert Ruiz gets scary injury update from Davey Martinez

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/mlb/los-angeles-dodgers/dodgers-news-shohei-ohtani-second-start-pitching-return');   ga('set', 'title', 'Shohei Ohtani’s honest assessment of second Dodgers start since pitching return');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Dodgers-two-way-player-Shohei-Ohtani-17-reacts-after-a-hit.jpg"><figcaption>Jason Parkhurst-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>Shohei Ohtani’s honest assessment of second Dodgers start since pitching return</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-06-23T01:11:18-07:00">June 23rd, 1:11am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-06-23T01:11:18-07:00">June 23rd, 1:11am</time><address><a>Brayden Haena</a>Brayden Haena is an Associate Editor at ClutchPoints. He's a die-hard San Francisco Giants fan and a football fanatic. In addition to sports writing, he works for Arizona Football in the Player Personnel and Recruiting department and formerly served as the Defensive Coordinator for Heritage High School.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Los Angeles Dodgers</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>Shohei Ohtani’s second start on the mound as a Dodger <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/mlb/dodgers-news-shohei-ohtanis-pitching-return-padres-shatters-mlb-tv-ratings-record">showcased exactly why he remains one of the most captivating athletes</a> in sports. In Sunday’s 13-7 win over the Nationals, <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/mlb/dodgers-news-watch-shohei-ohtani-secure-first-two-strikeouts-for-dodgers-since-return-from-injury">Ohtani tossed a scoreless first inning with two strikeouts</a>, then turned around and launched a go-ahead triple and a late home run, fueling a Dodgers comeback in <a href="https://www.mlb.com/news/shohei-ohtani-makes-second-start-gets-first-strikeout-as-a-dodger" rel="noopener">dramatic two-way fashion.</a></p><p>“Overall, I was able to relax much better compared to my last outing,” Ohtani said postgame through interpreter Will Ireton. “It’s going to be a gradual process. I want to see improvements with the quality of the pitches that I’m throwing, and then also increasing the amount of pitches.”</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">"Overall, I was able to relax much better compared to my last outing."</p><p>Shohei Ohtani (1.0 IP, 0 ER, 0 H, 2 K) speaks to the media after his second pitching start in the 13-7 victory over Washington. <a href="https://t.co/dLNXX7L1SV">pic.twitter.com/dLNXX7L1SV</a></p><p>— SportsNet LA (@SportsNetLA) <a href="https://twitter.com/SportsNetLA/status/1936936959861248433?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 22, 2025</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>Ohtani’s second outing was limited to 18 pitches, but he was far more efficient and comfortable than during his debut, where command and velocity wavered. This time, he averaged 97.9 mph on his fastball, topping out at 98.8, and worked around a dropped popup by Mookie Betts and a wild pitch without damage.</p><h2><b>Shohei Ohtani makes second start in the Dodgers win over the Nationals</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Shohei-Ohtani-pitching-1.jpg"><figcaption>Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>Luis García Jr. and Nathaniel Lowe were both victims of Ohtani’s offspeed pitches, as the two-way star recorded his first strikeouts in a Dodgers uniform. Despite not hitting triple digits this time, his command, movement, and rhythm looked much improved.</p><p>“He’s just unflappable,” manager Dave Roberts said. “From the mound to the on-deck circle to the batter’s box — it’s incredible to witness.”</p><p>Ohtani then contributed at the plate in a major way. After striking out in his first at-bat — a result of barely having two minutes between pitching and hitting — he came through with a bases-clearing triple in the seventh and added a two-run homer in the eighth, reclaiming the National League lead with his 26th bomb.</p><p>The quick turnaround from pitching to hitting remains a challenge, especially while leading off. The Dodgers have considered dropping him lower in the order on pitching days, but for now, Ohtani is embracing the grind.</p><p>“I’ve been able to come back earlier than expected,” he added. “So I know there are things to work on, but I believe I can perform even better.”</p><p>While Ohtani builds up slowly on the mound, he continues to deliver MVP-caliber moments at the plate — a combination the Dodgers are managing carefully. Each outing brings them one step closer to seeing the full version of baseball’s ultimate unicorn.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Shohei Ohtani’s honest assessment of second Dodgers start since pitching return

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/mlb/washington-nationals/nationals-news-daylen-lile-incredible-catch-cameraman-couldnt-track');   ga('set', 'title', 'Nationals’ Daylen Lile makes incredible catch even MLB’s cameraman couldn’t track');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Daylen-Lile.jpg"></figure><h1>Nationals’ Daylen Lile makes incredible catch even MLB’s cameraman couldn’t track</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-06-21T23:05:19-07:00">June 21st, 11:05pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-06-21T23:16:07-07:00">June 21st, 11:16pm</time><address><a>Mike Gianakos</a>Mike Gianakos is the former editor-in-chief of High Times magazine, where he also spearheaded the video department and event production. He is a longtime podcaster and even longer suffering NY Jets fan.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">MLB</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The Washington Nationals are headed for their sixth straight losing season, as the team hasn’t reached the playoffs since its title run in 2019. If there’s an upside to another lost season in Washington, it’s that the Nationals’ talented, young prospects are getting playing time. One of those players is making the most of his opportunity. <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/mlb/washington-nationals/nationals-daylen-lile-hits-1st-mlb-home-run-vs-rockies">Daylen Lile hit his first MLB home run</a> last week against the Rockies. And the young outfielder flashed some leather against the Los Angeles Dodgers Saturday.</p><p>The rookie right fielder demonstrated the importance of <a href="https://x.com/MLB/status/1936623391412490544" rel="noopener">backing up</a> every play when he made an outstanding running catch on a ball that center fielder Jacob Young never saw, per MLB.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">MUST SEE: Wherever you thought this baseball was going to end up … you were wrong 👀 <a href="https://t.co/yMD5R0TvpX">pic.twitter.com/yMD5R0TvpX</a></p><p>— MLB (@MLB) <a href="https://twitter.com/MLB/status/1936623391412490544?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 22, 2025</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><h2><b>Daylen Lile flashes potential in Nationals win</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Daylen-Lile-2.jpg"><figcaption>Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>With the Nationals up 2-0 in the bottom of the fourth inning, Dodgers third baseman Max Muncy got under a 2-2 Jake Irvin curveball, lifting a towering fly to center. However, no one, including the camera operator, could track the ball. Young hesitantly drifted in before putting his hands up to signal that he couldn’t find the ball. Second baseman Luis Garcia trotted toward him and began pointing at the sky as the camera remained fixed on the two players converging in shallow center.</p><p>Just when it appeared the ball would drop in, allowing Teoscar Hernandez to score from first base and cut the Nationals’ lead to 2-1, Lile suddenly sprinted into the frame. He chased down the errant fly, making a spectacular backhand stab at the warning track to retire the side.</p><p>The play seemed particularly important at the time, as the Nationals were clinging to a two-run lead. But Washington’s offense came alive Saturday as the team would plate five more runs to beat the Dodgers 7-3.</p><p>Lile, the Nationals’ <a href="https://www.mlb.com/milb/prospects/nationals/" rel="noopener">ninth-ranked</a> prospect in 2025, demonstrated his defensive abilities against LA. And James Wood, Washington’s No. 2 prospect last season, continued to contribute at the plate.</p><p><a href="https://clutchpoints.com/mlb/washington-nationals/nationals-news-james-woods-home-run-snaps-losing-streak">Wood snapped the Nationals’ 11-game losing streak</a> with a walk-off home run against the Rockies Thursday. And he would go deep again against the Dodgers Saturday. Wood is putting together a superb second season with Washington. The 22-year-old left fielder is slashing .278/.375/.560 with 21 home runs, 57 RBI, 46 runs scored and 3.4 bWAR in 77 games.</p><p>Lile, meanwhile, has struggled offensively in the majors after a strong showing in Triple-A earlier this season. He did double and draw a walk against the Dodgers but he’s slashing just .163/.222/.347 with one homer, three RBI and five runs scored in 16 games with the Nationals.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Nationals’ Daylen Lile makes incredible catch even MLB’s cameraman couldn’t track

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/mlb/washington-nationals/nationals-news-nathaniel-lowe-hits-career-milestone-dodgers');   ga('set', 'title', 'Nationals’ Nathaniel Lowe hits career milestone vs. Dodgers');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Nationals-news-Nathaniel-Lowe-hits-career-milestone-vs.jpg"><figcaption>Brad Penner-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>Nationals’ Nathaniel Lowe hits career milestone vs. Dodgers</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-06-21T22:01:28-07:00">June 21st, 10:01pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-06-21T22:01:28-07:00">June 21st, 10:01pm</time><address><a>Richard Pereira</a>Richard Pereira joined ClutchPoints in January 2025 as an Associate Editor. He earned his degree from Florida Atlantic University in 2023 and has been covering the school's athletic programs since 2020, having served as a Sports Editor at the FAU University Press. He was granted the unique opportunity to report on the men's basketball team's journey to the Final Four in Houston for FAU Owls Nest during March Madness, consistently striving to grow as a sports journalist.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">MLB</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>Nathaniel Lowe achieved a huge career milestone during Saturday’s matchup between the Washington <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/mlb/nationals-news-james-wood-sets-mlb-benchmark-blistering-bomb-vs-dodgers">Nationals and Los Angeles Dodgers</a>.</p><p>Lowe has impressed throughout his growth after seven seasons of playing in the major leagues. His time with the Tampa Bay Rays and Texas Rangers saw him secure Silver Slugger and the Gold Glove, then reaching the mountaintop with the World Series in 2023.</p><p>Lowe added another achievement to his career resume in the sixth inning against the Dodgers. He <a href="https://x.com/MLB/status/1936629245918191789" rel="noopener">blasted a ball down left field</a> for a home run, one that turned to be the 100th of his career.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Nathaniel Lowe’s 100th career homer extends the <a href="https://twitter.com/Nationals?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Nationals</a> lead 👏 <a href="https://t.co/ISJGvQNum7">pic.twitter.com/ISJGvQNum7</a></p><p>— MLB (@MLB) <a href="https://twitter.com/MLB/status/1936629245918191789?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 22, 2025</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://instagram.com/embed.js"></script></p></figure><h2><b>How Nathaniel Lowe, Nationals played against Dodgers</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Nationals-news-Nathaniel-Lowe-hits-career-milestone-vs.-Dodgers-2.jpg"><figcaption>Kirby Lee-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>Nathaniel Lowe and the Nationals made great plays down the stretch to beat the Dodgers 7-3 on Saturday night.</p><p>Both teams couldn’t get control as they remained scoreless after three innings. The Nationals were the ones to finally get on the board with a pair of home runs from James Wood and Luis Garcia Jr. Even though Los Angeles responded to keep the game close after six innings, Washington outscored them 4-1 in the last three frames to secure the win.</p><p>Lowe performed well in his five at-bats. The two hits he landed turned out to be home runs, playing a solid role in helping Washington get the win on the road.</p><p>The pitcher who got win for the Nationals was Jake Irwin. He was active on the mound for 5.1 innings, striking out seven batters while conceding six hits and two runs. He also finished with a 4.18 ERA, having a solid display throughout the night.</p><p>Washington improved to a 32-45 record on the season, holding the fourth spot of the NL East Division standings. They are four games behind the Atlanta Braves and 14 games behind the Philadelphia Phillies and New York Mets.</p><p>The Nationals will prepare for their series finale against the Dodgers. The contest will take place on June 22 at 4:10 p.m. ET.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Nationals’ Nathaniel Lowe hits career milestone vs. Dodgers

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/mlb/washington-nationals/nationals-news-james-wood-sets-mlb-benchmark-blistering-bomb-vs-dodgers');   ga('set', 'title', 'Nationals’ James Wood sets new MLB benchmark with blistering bomb vs. Dodgers');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Nationals-star-James-Wood-celebrates-home-run.jpg"><figcaption>Kirby Lee-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>Nationals’ James Wood sets new MLB benchmark with blistering bomb vs. Dodgers</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-06-21T21:13:25-07:00">June 21st, 9:13pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-06-21T21:13:45-07:00">June 21st, 9:13pm</time><address><a>Alex House</a>Alex House is a sports journalist who covers the NFL, NBA, and MLB for ClutchPoints. He grew up in a New York sports-heavy region in Connecticut and earned his journalism degree at the University of Rhode Island. His in-depth knowledge of two of the most passionate and raucous fan bases in the country gives him a truly unique writing voice.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">MLB</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The Washington Nationals could see a .500 record in sight at the end of May, a welcome sign that the young ballclub’s profusion of talent was finally trending toward competitive results. A nightmarish June has crushed that optimism, however, as the Nats dropped 11 consecutive games before <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/mlb/washington-nationals/nationals-news-james-woods-home-run-snaps-losing-streak">toughing out a 4-3 extra-innings victory</a> versus the last-place Colorado Rockies on Thursday. Once again, fans’ focus is shifting to player development rather than team success.</p><p>Well, at least James Wood is making it worth their while. The 22-year-old left fielder is rising rapidly into stardom, earning serious consideration for the Midsummer Classic after a fantastic first half to the 2025 campaign. He is making locals feel better about the 2022 Juan Soto trade with each passing day. His latest feat is truly something to behold.</p><p>Wood smashed a 451-foot home run in the fourth inning to give the Nationals a 1-0 lead over the Los Angeles Dodgers on Saturday night, marking the 12th time this year he has <a href="https://x.com/MLB/status/1936622586273681883" rel="noopener">hit a 110-plus-MPH dinger</a>. That leads the big leagues, per the MLB X account. Through 156 total games with Washington, the 2021 second-round draft pick already looks like a genuine game-changer. He is batting .279 with 21 homers, 57 RBIs and a .562 slugging percentage, establishing himself as an incredibly worthy All-Star Game candidate.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">22-year-old James Wood now has 12 110+ MPH home runs this season … the most in Major League Baseball 🤯</p><p>h/t <a href="https://twitter.com/SlangsOnSports?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@SlangsOnSports</a> <a href="https://t.co/8zY8wyT4KT">https://t.co/8zY8wyT4KT</a> <a href="https://t.co/Y3v2BjJwHC">pic.twitter.com/Y3v2BjJwHC</a></p><p>— MLB (@MLB) <a href="https://twitter.com/MLB/status/1936622586273681883?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 22, 2025</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>It is just unfortunate the team as a whole is not inching much closer to relevance. An arduous National League East division is understandably causing problems, but the Nats (31-45) were recently swept by the Miami Marlins and dropped three of four to the Rockies. Those seven games were played in Nationals Park. James Wood mercifully ended the demoralizing losing skid with a walk-off two-run blast. He is doing his best to help his squad secure another victory.</p><p>The phenom is one of four Washington players to go yard in LA (Nathaniel Lowe has two HRs), as the Nationals lead the Dodgers 7-2 at time of print. Considering the overall sense of hopelessness currently surrounding this season, a series win over the reigning World Series champions would be cause for thunderous exaltation in South Capitol Street.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Nationals’ James Wood sets new MLB benchmark with blistering bomb vs. Dodgers

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/mlb/washington-nationals/nationals-news-james-woods-home-run-snaps-losing-streak');   ga('set', 'title', 'James Wood’s walk-off home run snaps Nationals’ 11-game losing streak');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Washington-Nationals-outfielder-James-Wood.jpg"><figcaption>Geoff Burke-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>James Wood’s walk-off home run snaps Nationals’ 11-game losing streak</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-06-19T13:42:13-07:00">June 19th, 1:42pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-06-19T13:42:13-07:00">June 19th, 1:42pm</time><address><a>Zachary Howell</a>Zachary Howell is an Associate Editor at ClutchPoints focusing on creating premier MLB content. He is a big fan of the Yankees, Oklahoma City Thunder and the Syracuse Orange. In his free time, he likes to be outside or read.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">MLB</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>Entering Thursday’s game against the Colorado Rockies, the Washington Nationals had won two games in June. The <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/mlb/washington-nationals/nationals-news-washingtons-rebuild-draws-concerned-take-from-insider">Nationals’ rebuild has experts concerned</a> that their young players could not produce. Dave Martinez’s team snapped an 11-game losing streak thanks entirely to outfielder James Wood, one of the young faces of the rebuild.</p><p>The 22-year-old hit two home runs during the game, including a two-run shot in the bottom of the 11th inning that sealed the victory for Washington. The team’s social media team <a href="https://x.com/Nationals/status/1935789398878028109" rel="noopener">captured the moment</a> and posted it online.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">WOOD YOU BELIEVE IT <a href="https://t.co/mJmYlHpSta">pic.twitter.com/mJmYlHpSta</a></p><p>— Washington Nationals (@Nationals) <a href="https://twitter.com/Nationals/status/1935789398878028109?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 19, 2025</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>The home runs were Wood’s 19th and 20th of the 2025 season. He has the highest total on the team. One first baseman Nathaniel Lowe has more than nine home runs so far this year.</p><p>Both of Wood’s home runs traveled more than 400 feet and scored two runs each. CJ Abrams was brought home in the fourth inning while Riley Adams helped Woods win the game in extra innings.</p><p>The dramatic win gives Washington a 31-44 record heading into their next series against the Los Angeles Dodgers. In a season full of disappointment, Martinez’s team will have some positive momentum against the defending World Series champions. Unfortunately for them, their 11-game losing streak is tied with the Athletics for the longest in the 2025 season so far.</p><p>The Nationals have transitioned away from a team focused on development and contention at the same time. Wood and Abrams are the future of the team. If <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/mlb/washington-nationals/nationals-news-james-wood-breaks-50-rbis-with-2-run-blast-vs-rockies">Woods continues to swing a hot bat</a>, he could propel himself into All-Star consideration.</p><p>Wood’s power at the plate is a major reason why Martinez and the Nationals believe that he is the team’s future. Abrams has shown flashes as well, giving Washington a duo to build around moving forward. Unfortunately, 2025 is not the year that the Nationals re-enter the conversation in the National League East.</p><p>Washington fans who attended Thursday’s game watched Woods put on a show. Despite a daunting schedule, they hope that the walk-off win will start a streak that helps the Nationals get back into the NL playoff picture. If nothing else, it is good to see Woods step in a big spot.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

James Wood’s walk-off home run snaps Nationals’ 11-game losing streak

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/mlb/washington-nationals/nationals-news-washingtons-rebuild-draws-concerned-take-from-insider');   ga('set', 'title', 'Nationals’ rebuild draws ‘concerned’ take from insider');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Washington-Nationals_1ed877.jpg"></figure><h1>Nationals’ rebuild draws ‘concerned’ take from insider</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-06-19T11:26:36-07:00">June 19th, 11:26am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-06-19T11:26:36-07:00">June 19th, 11:26am</time><address><a>Dylan Fine</a>Dylan Fine focuses on the NFL and NCAA Football for ClutchPoints, in addition to working on the meme team. Dylan is a graduate of Georgetown University and has covered various topics ranging from local politics in the DMV region with DC Voter For Animals to live sporting events in the Long Island and Rochester areas with The Southampton Press and Pickin’Splinters. When he isn't working, he's usually running in preparation for the next annual Turkey Trot.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">MLB</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>An MLB insider gave an eye-opening take on the Washington Nationals’ rebuild. The 2019 World Series champs have had <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/mlb/washington-nationals/nationals-news-davey-martinez-passionately-defends-coaches-amid-washington-brutal-slump">a trying 2025 season so far</a>. This team is currently riding an eleven-game losing streak, sitting at 30-44 overall and second-last place in the NL East. Since it won it all, Washington has not made the postseason, but has been gradually acquiring young talent over the years.</p><p>Of course, the headline transaction was the Juan Soto blockbuster deal in 2022. The Nationals are starting to see the fruits of that trade on their roster, but the results are not showing yet with regard to winning. According to national MLB insider Russell Dorsey, there is a disconnect between the actual talent on this roster and the team’s success. Dorsey gave an <a href="https://x.com/MLBNow/status/1935745204465582130" rel="noopener">in-depth breakdown</a> of the situation in the nation’s capital in a recent MLB Network segment.</p><p>“When you move to trade a Juan Soto, you need to get a big-time haul in return with players who will help your big-league roster. They got that, they got a superstar in James Wood, an All-Star caliber shortstop in C.J. Abrams, MacKenzie Gore has led baseball in strikeouts almost all year long, Robert Hassell III, I know they just sat him down, but he’s playing in the big leagues for you, and Jarlin Susana is pitching in Double-A.</p><p>So, you got a lot in return for what we consider a generational talent in Juan Soto. My problem is that I look at their situation and say they are not improving. 2023, a .438-win percentage. 2024, a .438-win percentage. This year, a .408-win percentage and they have better players. So, they have better talent, and they’re not improving, and that’s where I start to get concerned.”</p><p>The Nationals are in a stacked division. The New York Mets and Philadelphia Phillies are legit World Series contenders, while the Atlanta Braves, despite their slow start, have the talent to return to the postseason once again. It will be a long climb back to the top of the NL East, but the recent signs are a concern.</p><p>In particular, the Nationals ranked toward the bottom of the league in runs allowed per game. While Gore has more than held his weight, the rest of this rotation and the bullpen need some upgrades. Overall, Dorsey is right. James Wood alone makes the Juan Soto trade look like a win for Washington. The star left fielder has face of the league potential and is just 22 years old. But something is off right now, and it’s up to general manager Mike Rizzo to fix these issues before the trade deadline on July 31.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Nationals’ rebuild draws ‘concerned’ take from insider

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/mlb/washington-nationals/2-nationals-trade-block-ahead-2025-deadline');   ga('set', 'title', '2 Nationals who must be on trade block ahead of 2025 deadline');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Michael-Soroka-throwing-a-pitch.jpg"><figcaption>Geoff Burke-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>2 Nationals who must be on trade block ahead of 2025 deadline</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-06-19T09:14:13-07:00">June 19th, 9:14am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-06-19T09:14:13-07:00">June 19th, 9:14am</time><address><a>Cameron Zunkel</a>Cameron Zunkel is a former college athlete for the University of Illinois, Springfield. During that time, he earned his masters degree in Communication. After graduating in 2022, Cameron signed to play independent professional baseball with the Joliet Slammers, but his time was cut short due to injury. Nonetheless, his love for baseball and all sports never faded.Cameron loves the sports media and sports journalism side of things and does some light writing for a Chicago Cubs blog, as well. To go along with that, he loves sports betting and fantasy sports. He also loves digging on the research and creating content for both sports betting and fantasy sports!</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Mini-Editorials</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The Washington Nationals are 14 games under .500 heading into Thursday. After looking like they could make some noise this year, Washington has taken a hard left turn. They should not be considered sellers at the MLB tradeline, but not in the way many think.</p><p>The Nationals are content trading some players for big-time prospects or others that can <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/mlb/washington-nationals/nationals-rumors-washington-targeting-bombshell-ace-trade">help sooner rather than later in the big leagues</a>. With that in mind, the team is not going to ship off some of their better players, even if they have just two or three years left on the contract. Still, there are a couple trade candidates that would give Washington a decent return for the future.</p><p>The Nationals have plenty of young talent that can be considered untouchable. Those stars include James Wood, Dylan Crews, MacKenzie Gore, and C.J. Abrams. However, there are a few older players with one or two years left that could make good trade pieces at the MLB trade deadline.</p><h2><b>CP Kyle Finnegan is one of the better closers in the MLB</b></h2><p>Kyle Finnegan signed very late into the offseason, which was surprising. He finished 2024 with a 3.68 ERA and 38 saves. Heading into the offseason, it was thought that Finnegan could be one of the first relief pitchers to be signed. Nonetheless, he re-signed with Washington, and <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/mlb/washington-nationals/1-player-washington-nationals-must-trade-before-2025-deadline">he has become the center of trade conversations</a>.</p><p>This season, the 33-year-old has made 26 appearances, thrown 26.0 innings, allowed 26 hits, struck out 21, walked eight, and he has recorded 18 saves in 23 opportunities. With all of that, Finnegan has a 3.12 ERA. He is proving that last year was not a fluke, and teams should take notice.</p><p>Closers are always a hot commodity at the trade deadline. The Nationals need to take advantage of that. There are going to be more than few contending teams looking for help in the ninth inning during the second half of the year. Washington should be able to leverage Finnegan into some high-end prospects.</p><h2><b>SP Michael Soroka could be worth the risk</b></h2><p>On the surface level, Michael Soroka is not having the best season. His ERA just over 5.00 through his nine starts. The right-hander has thrown 48.0 innings, struck out 49 batters, walked 12, and opponents are batting just .230 off him. The ERA has taken hit because of his 10 home runs allowed.</p><p>Per Baseball Savant, Soroka has been a lot better than his ERA suggests. His <a href="https://baseballsavant.mlb.com/savant-player/michael-soroka-647336?stats=statcast-r-pitching-mlb" rel="noopener">xERA</a> is 3.38, and his xBA is .228. In addition, Soroka is better than the Major League average in strikeout percentage, walk percentage, barrel percentage, and ground ball percentage. He is having a pretty good season, despite what his actual ERA says.</p><p>The right-hander is also just 27-years-old. He is still young, and can be considered a veteran. With how he is pitching this year, there are a few contending teams that could use a pitcher like him. He may not slot into the ace role, or even the second spot in the rotation. However, having a pitcher like Soroka as a No. 3 or No. 4 in a rotation could be very beneficial.</p><p>The Nationals have some decisions to make at the deadline. They are very close to being contenders again, but it will take a little bit more work. With that in mind, Kyle Finnegan and Michael Soroka could generate the return they need to get over the edge and become a playoff team in the near future.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

2 Nationals who must be on trade block ahead of 2025 deadline

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/mlb/washington-nationals/nationals-news-brady-house-first-mlb-hit-front-family-rockies');   ga('set', 'title', 'Nationals’ Brady House secures first MLB hit in front of family vs. Rockies');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Nationals-third-baseman-Brady-House-55-stands-on-the-field.jpg"><figcaption>Geoff Burke-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>Nationals’ Brady House secures first MLB hit in front of family vs. Rockies</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-06-17T18:43:02-07:00">June 17th, 6:43pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-06-17T18:43:02-07:00">June 17th, 6:43pm</time><address><a>Rexwell Villas</a>Rexwell Villas is an experienced sports writer covering a variety of sports, including the NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL, and college football. He's a Communications Arts graduate from the University of Santo Tomas in the Philippines, and he claims to have JR Smith's conscience with his shot selection. He has won a basketball, a baseball, and a football championship in fantasy all within a year.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">MLB</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>After going hitless in his MLB debut in Monday’s series opener against the Colorado Rockies at Nationals Park, <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/mlb/mlb-news-jackson-hollidays-brother-favored-to-be-first-pick-in-2025-mlb-draft">Washington Nationals third baseman Brady House</a> finally got his first hit in the big leagues Tuesday night.</p><p>With one out in the bottom of the sixth inning and Jake Bird on the mound for the Rockies, House took a strike on the first pitch he saw from the Colorado reliever, which was an 84 mph slider. Bird decided to go with the same pitch on his second throw that went straight into the middle and got met by House’s bat for a single.</p><p>What made that hit even sweeter for House was the fact that he did it with his family in attendance.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Nationals prospect Brady House picks up his 1st MLB hit and his family is there to witness it 🙌<a href="https://t.co/0Ro3QKlNLs">pic.twitter.com/0Ro3QKlNLs</a></p><p>— ClutchPoints MLB (@ClutchpointsMLB) <a href="https://twitter.com/ClutchpointsMLB/status/1935132589301301361?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 18, 2025</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>Fans appear to love House’s first-ever hit in the big leagues and the reaction from his family.</p><p>“That’s a special moment when your family is cheering you on,” <a href="https://x.com/Spademeta/status/1935132425564332043" rel="noopener">said</a> a fan on social media.</p><p>“First of many! The House era has begun,” another social media user on X (formerly Twitter) <a href="https://x.com/kush_147/status/1935134107295695141" rel="noopener">shared</a>.</p><p>“Brady House picks up the first hit of his career, a bloop single into left field. A loud applause for House. He’s looked pretty poised at the plate so far,” a <a href="https://x.com/andrewcgolden/status/1935131361771500017" rel="noopener">post</a> read.</p><p>“Welcome to the Show Brady House!” read a <a href="https://x.com/recruittheboot/status/1935131334462279693" rel="noopener">different post</a>.</p><p>“Big league knock No. 1 for Brady House! With his family — and his dog, Juno — in the stands, the @Nationals’ No. 3 prospect pokes a single into left field,” <a href="https://x.com/MLBPipeline/status/1935136089758695855" rel="noopener">shared</a> the MLB Pipeline X account.</p><p>House could have had his first MLB hit in the opening game of the Colorado series, but he had a hard-hit ball fall into a double play in the ninth frame.</p><p>Before getting called up by the Nationals, House was having a solid campaign in the minors, having smashed 13 home runs to go along with 41 RBIs, .519 slugging percentage and an OPS of .872 through 65 Triple-A games in 2025.</p><p>As for the team itself, <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/mlb/washington-nationals/nationals-news-davey-martinez-passionately-defends-coaches-amid-washington-brutal-slump">things are simply not well for Washington</a> of late. The Nats’ 10-6 loss to Colorado on Tuesday was their 10th in a row and dropped them to 30-43. They will look to stop the bleeding this Wednesday evening in the series finale before an intimidating three-game showdown on the road versus the Los Angeles Dodgers.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Nationals’ Brady House secures first MLB hit in front of family vs. Rockies

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/mlb/mlb-news-jackson-hollidays-brother-favored-to-be-first-pick-in-2025-mlb-draft');   ga('set', 'title', 'Jackson Holliday’s brother favored to be first pick in 2025 MLB Draft');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Ethan-Holliday.jpg"><figcaption>Credit: Steve Sisney</figcaption></figure><h1>Jackson Holliday’s brother favored to be first pick in 2025 MLB Draft</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-06-17T12:58:36-07:00">June 17th, 12:58pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-06-17T12:58:36-07:00">June 17th, 12:58pm</time><address><a href="https://www.facebook.com/chris.spiering.3" rel="facebook">Chris Spiering</a>Chris Spiering graduated from the University of San Diego with a Communication Studies Degree. He spent his final year as the Sports Editor for the USDVista newspaper. Chris manages the betting team at ClutchPoints and contributes about the NFL, MLB, and NBA, but he follows most sports, including NCAA Basketball. Chris also covers San Diego State men's basketball for East Village Times.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">MLB</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The 2025 MLB Draft is a few weeks away, and the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/mlb/washington-nationals/nationals-rumors-washington-targeting-bombshell-ace-trade">Washington Nationals</a> control the start of the draft with the No. 1 overall pick.</p><p>In 2022, the Baltimore Orioles had the No. 1 pick and took <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/mlb/baltimore-orioles/orioles-news-jackson-holliday-sets-new-career-first-with-huge-blast-vs-royals">Jackson Holliday</a>, son of former MLB star Matt Holliday. Fast forward three years, and Holliday has another son who is taking over the baseball scene. Ethan Holliday is <a href="https://x.com/TalkinBaseball_/status/1928569917386760391" rel="noopener">projected to go No. 1 in this upcoming draft</a>, and there is no reason why he shouldn’t be. Jackson quickly established himself in the minors, and even though his start in the majors was slow, it seems he has found his groove. Baseball runs in the Holliday family’s bloodline, and Ethan will soon be a part of it.</p><p>According to FanDuel, the sportsbook has already listed the <a href="https://sportsbook.fanduel.com/navigation/mlb?tab=mlb-draft" rel="noopener">odds to be selected first overall</a> in the 2025 MLB Draft. Holliday’s odds put him at the top.</p><p>Ethan Holliday: -160</p><p>Kade Anderson: +430</p><p>Seth Hernandez: +700</p><p>Liam Doyle: +1000</p><p>Aiva Arquette: +1200</p><p>Jamie Arnold: +1300</p><p>Ethan Holliday, just as his brother and father did, was recently named to 2025 Gatorade Oklahoma Player of the Year. He batted .611 with 19 home runs and 64 RBIs and had a 2.034 OPS. Those numbers don’t even seem real in a video game. He tore up the high school scene during his senior year and will likely be taken first overall by the Washington Nationals. Washington could be a very good fit for Holliday. They are a young team with many young stars, who were mostly acquired from the San Diego Padres in the mega Juan Soto deal.</p><p>If you are wondering why the historical Chicago White Sox don’t own the first pick, it’s because they had the fifth pick last year, and <a href="https://sports.yahoo.com/white-sox-slip-mlb-draft-000841638.html" rel="noopener">large-market teams are ineligible</a> to have lottery picks in consecutive years. So, the Nationals control the start of the draft and hope to add Holliday to a list of young stars that include MacKenzie Gore, James Wood, CJ Abrams, Robert Hassell II, Brady House, and Travis Sykora.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Jackson Holliday’s brother favored to be first pick in 2025 MLB Draft

2025 SEASON STATS
IP	ERA	K	WHIP	HOLDS	SAVES
40	6.075	8	1.425	3	0

2025 SEASON STATS
IP	ERA	K	WHIP	HOLDS	SAVES
40	6.075	8	1.425	3	0

Brad
Lord

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Brad Lord

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Brad
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