Washington Nationals outfielder James Wood has broken out as a true star in MLB, and the Los Angeles Angels weren't willing to risk anything when he came to the plate during Sunday's game.
Despite having six plate appearances in the contest, Wood ended the game 1-for-2 with a single, a ground out, and four intentional walks. According to the Nationals, Wood becomes just the sixth player to be intentionally walked four times in a game since intentional walks became an officially tracked statistic by MLB back in 1955. In doing so, he joins some elite company: Andre Dawson, Barry Bonds, Roger Maris, Manny Ramirez and Gary Templeton.
James Wood had an interesting day at the plate 😅 pic.twitter.com/5G6vcerseH
— MLB (@MLB) June 29, 2025
Not only is Wood the sixth player in the modern era to be intentionally walked four times in a game, his outing on Sunday marked just the fourth time in MLB history a player was intentionally walked by four different pitchers in a single game.
Wood had a great reaction to being told after the game that he was mentioned in the same sentence as Bonds.
“I mean, if you're getting put in the same sentence as him—then it's pretty cool,” Wood said, via Washington Post's Spencer Nusbaum.
It's not too hard to see why the Angels wanted no part of the 22-year-old. He's slashing .283/.386/.552 with 22 home runs, 64 RBI and 11 stolen bases. Wood has been dominating this season, and in a tight ballgame, the Halos weren't going to let him be the difference-maker.
In the end, it didn't matter much. Washington pulled off a 7–4 win after scoring three runs in the 11th inning, courtesy of a one-run double from Drew Millas and a two-run triple from CJ Abrams.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as James Wood Joins Elite Company in MLB History After Angels Wouldn't Pitch to Him.
