As much as CJ Abrams’ leadoff homer on the first pitch of Sunday’s game in Baltimore set the tone for the Nationals, his dazzling defensive gem to set in motion a 6-4-3 double play that ended the 10-4 victory might actually have been more spectacular.
Abrams ranged far to his left to snag Ryan Mountcastle’s grounder up the middle, then flipped the ball directly from his glove to Luis Garcia Jr., who in one motion stepped on second base and threw across his body to first to complete the web gem.
“That double play is how me and Luis do it in practice. It’s a lot of fun,” Abrams said afterward, perhaps beaming even more than he was when discussing the two home runs he hit during the game. “We were glad to end it that way.”
Maybe there’s some symbolism to take away from it all. As fantastic as he was at the start of Sunday’s game, Abrams was more proud of what he did to end it. It’s a feeling he’d like to experience again this fall.
One year ago, Abrams was putting together a brilliant first half performance that earned him the first All-Star selection of his career. He was on top of the world, the young face of the rebuilding Nationals and one of the best shortstops in baseball.
We all know what happened after that. Abrams slumped badly during the second half. And just as he was showing signs of finishing the season on a high note, he was shown the door by general manager Mike Rizzo, demoted to the minors in late September for disciplinary reasons after he was seen at a Chicago casino early in the morning before a matinee game at Wrigley Field.
It was one of the biggest questions facing the Nats entering this season: How would Abrams respond to everything, both on and off the field? Nearly one-third of the way through the 2025 campaign, his response has been remarkable.
Abrams has been a force at the plate, owner of a dynamite .312/.368/.574 slash line and a .942 OPS that ranks 10th among all qualifying major league hitters. He’s got nine doubles, eight homers and nine stolen bases, putting him on pace to finish the year with at least 25 in all three categories. And though his defense isn’t always spectacular, he’s only been charged with three errors in 35 games played.
Off the field? Abrams by all accounts has done exactly what the Nationals asked him to do, avoiding any controversy.
“That’s my guy,” manager Davey Martinez said. “I said it before: I moved him to leadoff because I thought he’d be the catalyst for this team. He is. He had a great first half last year. It didn’t go so well for him the second half. He started playing better, then we had the oopsie – that’s what I call it – and now he’s back this year playing really well. When he goes, he makes this team go. I love him. He’s playing with a lot of energy and a lot of fire.”
When Abrams missed 10 days in April with a minor hip injury, James Wood took over leadoff responsibilities and performed quite well himself. It briefly raised a question: Should Abrams bat somewhere else after he returned from the IL?
Martinez wanted none of it. He plugged Abrams right back into the No. 1 spot in his batting order and watched as the 24-year-old picked up right where he left off.
And when he blasted Zach Eflin’s first pitch of the game Sunday over the right field wall, Abrams trotted around the bases with his fourth game-opening homer of the season. He’s now got 11 for his career, three shy of the club record set by Alfonso Soriano (who hit all 14 of his during his one season in D.C. in 2006).
“It keeps the momentum going,” said outfielder Dylan Crews, who has considerable experience leading off himself in college and in the minors. “It just kind of lets everybody know we’re here, and even on the first pitch we’re ready to go. There’s no waiting around. He’s done a great job of attacking those pitches.”
Abrams at times has been criticized for being too aggressive, swinging at the first pitch with reckless abandon. But he seems to have struck the right balance between pouncing on good first pitches to hit while laying off the ones he can’t do damage with.
Abrams has now put the first pitch of an at-bat in play 44 times this season, and he’s got 16 hits, including two doubles, a triple and four homers. He’s batting a robust .364 with an OPS of 1.118. Nothing to complain about there.
“It’s the same every day: I want a pitch in the middle, put a good swing on it if it’s there,” he said. “I got one today, and I put a good swing on it.”
Ironically enough, Abrams’ second homer Sunday came on an 0-1 breaking ball out of the zone. Even so, he managed to reach out and tag it to left-center for his first opposite-field home run of the season.
There’s a long way to go still, but Abrams has positioned himself well at this point to earn his second straight All-Star selection. He leads all qualified major league shortstops in slugging and OPS, trailing only Athletics rookie Jacob Wilson in batting average.
A trip home to Atlanta in July would be sweet for Abrams, who could take particular pride in his ability to brush off everything that went wrong late last season and return to his All-Star form.
But he also knows that’s not enough this time around. Abrams spoke this spring of his desire to maintain that high level of play not for three months, but the full six months. He’s got plenty of work still to do to prove he can keep it going through the finish line.
“Day by day,” he said of his mindset. “You want to be present in this game. You can’t get too up or down. I keep it levelheaded and positive.”
As he did within the confines of Sunday’s game, Abrams has gotten his season off to an excellent start. His remaining challenge: Provide the same kind of dazzling finish he did to Sunday’s game to the end of his season.