MacKenzie Gore and James Wood represent the Washington Nationals in the All-Star Game

The Nationals star pitcher and hitter will both play in the midsummer classic for the first time in Atlanta

The Washington Nationals are getting two All-Stars this year! James Wood and MacKenzie Gore are both headed to Atlanta as first time All-Stars. Wood was an obvious pick to make the team, but it is good to see Gore get the credit he deserves.

After CJ Abrams was an All-Star last year, three pieces of the famous Juan Soto trade have now become All-Stars. That trade is the lone source of hope for Nats fans these days.

You can argue that CJ Abrams was also deserving of an appearance this year, with an .838 OPS. However, the 37-52 Nats are probably too bad to have three All-Star representatives even if Abrams was deserving.

However, it is exciting to see James Wood get in, even if he should have been a starter. He will put on a show in the Home Run Derby and hopefully he gets a lot of action in the game as well. His light tower power is some of the most jaw dropping in all of baseball and he has a great approach to go with it. This will be the first of many All-Star games for Wood.

For MacKenzie Gore, this All-Star game is a sign of how far he has come as a pitcher. In previous years, Gore was a bit tease. He had good starts to the season before fading. This has not been the case this year as he has been consistently excellent. He has a 3.11 ERA in 104.1 innings with 131 K’s.

It is nice to see the Nats get multiple All-Stars. You could also argue that Abrams and Kyle Finnegan are deserving candidates as well. The Nationals have a lot of high end talent on this roster.

That makes the teams 37-52 record even more frustrating. We have the stars, but the team is not built well enough around them.

Congratulations to MacKenzie and James on much deserved All-Star appearances. With Gore’s start being moved back a day, we should be able to see both on the mound in Atlanta. With Wood in the Home Run Derby as well, it should be an exciting showcase for the Nats young stars.