The Opener: Wood, Guerrero, Brewers

As the calendar flips to July, here are three things we’ll be keeping an eye on around the baseball world throughout the day today:

1. Wood to debut:

One of the game’s very best prospects will make his big league debut today. Twenty-one-year-old outfielder James Wood had his contract selected this morning and will be in the lineup at Nationals Park tonight against the visiting Mets. Acquired from the Padres in the Juan Soto trade back in 2022 as part of a package that also included breakout star CJ Abrams and lefty MacKenzie Gore (the latter of whom will, coincidentally, take the ball for the club tonight opposite New York’s David Peterson), Wood is a consensus top-five prospect in all of baseball now.

Wood has shot through the minor leagues since joining the Nationals and took Triple-A by storm this year with an eye-popping .353/.463/.595 across 52 games in his first taste of action at the level. The budding star figures to slot directly into the regular outfield mix in Washington, where the club is currently relying on Jesse Winker and Lane Thomas in the corners alongside Jacob Young in center field.

2. Guerrero dealing with soreness after HBP:

Blue Jays star Vladimir Guerrero Jr. suffered a scary incident yesterday when he was struck in the hand by a pitch from Yankees right-hander Gerrit Cole. X-rays after the game were negative, according to Sportsnet’s Shi Davidi, who added that the slugger noted two of the fingers on his hand were still “quite sore” following the game. Guerrero doesn’t intend to let soreness stop him from returning to the lineup for today’s game against the Astros. He told Davidi that there’s a “90 percent” chance that he’ll be back in the lineup today, although he did acknowledge the possibility that overnight swelling could change those plans.

The Blue Jays are desperately trying to climb back into playoff contention after falling 7.5 games out of the final AL Wild Card spot with a 38-45 record. Guerrero figures to be a huge part of any winning streak the club manages to pull off, as his .297/.375/.471 slash line not only leads the team but stands out as his best season since finishing second to Shohei Ohtani in AL MVP voting back in 2021. He’s been particularly hot since putting a tepid month of April behind him, and Guerrero has now slashed .341/.407/.539 in his last 240 trips to the plate.

3. Brewers 40-man move incoming:

The Brewers are expected to activate outfielder Garrett Mitchell from the 60-day injured list today and have reportedly already cleared an active roster spot for the 25-year-old by optioning top prospect Tyler Black to the minor leagues. Before Mitchell can officially be added back to the roster, however, the club will need to clear space for him on the 40-man. Milwaukee has no obvious candidates to be transferred to the 60-day IL currently on the shelf, so it seems fair to expect the club to designate a player for assignment this afternoon before tonight’s game in Colorado. The club’s first-round pick from the 2020 draft, Mitchell will be joining a crowded outfield mix that features Christian Yelich and Jackson Chourio in the corners on a regular basis, flanking a center field platoon of Sal Frelick and Blake Perkins.