Arizona Diamondbacks at Washington Nationals

When the Nationals didn’t sign veteran position players this offseason, they believed they already had leaders in their young clubhouse. Shortstop CJ Abrams, 25, and outfielder James Wood, 23, were among those highlighted. And the two have rewarded the Nationals for believing in their abilities both on and off the field. “The leadership that they have in the clubhouse with how well they're connected with all the guys, and then going out there and performing, it just takes it to another level,” said manager Blake Butera. This season, Abrams and Wood each earned their second All-Star selections. Individually, they rank atop statistical leaderboards at their positions. Together, they have reached feats that few have done in baseball. In Saturday’s 5-3 win over the fellow NL Wild Card-contending D-backs, Abrams connected on his 25th home run of the season. With Wood reaching 25 homers prior to the All-Star break, they are the only two players in baseball this season with at least 25 dingers and 15 stolen bases. Abrams (25 home runs, 17 stolen bases) and Wood (28 home runs, 15 stolen bases) also became the second duo in Major League history to record 25-plus home runs and 15-plus stolen bases in their club’s first 105 games of the season. They joined Francisco Lindor and José Ramírez, who did so in 2018 with Cleveland. “It’s fun,” said Abrams. “Me and Woody always joke around every day. It’s a friendly competition with homers and stuff like that. We’re just having a good, friendly competition to better each other.” Taking baseball history one step further, Abrams and Wood became the first pair of teammates aged 25 or younger to hit at least 25 homers in their team’s first 105 games.