This was always going to be James Wood Night at Nationals Park, no matter how the 21-year-old performed in his major league debut, no matter the outcome of the Nats’ series opener against the Mets.
But as early evening turned to dusk turned to night on South Capitol Street, it became clear this game was going to come down to Wood at the plate – or the bases – with a chance to be the hero.
The only problem: Wood needed at least some help from his teammates, and alas they provided none at the critical moment of the game. Which then set the stage for the proceedings to flip entirely in the other direction.
A six-run top of the 10th by the Mets, five of those runs scoring off Hunter Harvey, ultimately was the difference in what devolved into a bizarre, 9-7 Mets victory, spoiling Wood’s highly anticipated debut before a crowd of 26,719 that desperately wanted to go home happy but instead left disappointed.
"Obviously, that's the end goal," the sport's No. 3-ranked prospect said at the end of a long, emotional day. "I wish we'd come out with a win. But we've got another one tomorrow, and that's all I'm focused on."