Before being placed on the IL for the first time on Tuesday, Wood took part in 350 of the Nationals' 355 games since he made his MLB debut on July 1 , 2024, including all 114 of the teams' 2026 regular season.
Andrew Pinckney from the Nats' affiliate Triple-A team in Rochester was called up to replace Wood in what will be the former's maiden major league game.
The injury stirred from discomfort Wood felt during the seventh inning of his at-bat versus the Philadelphia Phillies on Monday. While he did stay in the game at the time, he was ultimately replaced by Dylan Crews in the eighth as the Nationals lost 6-3.
"It didn't feel right," Wood claimed after the game. "Then I went out and played defense and throwing felt fine, running felt fine. But I just took a couple swings after to just see where I was at, if I felt good to keep playing, and I just wasn't really comfortable doing that."
An MRI exam on Tuedsay revealed that the outfielder suffered the oblique injury.
"It showed a subtle, mild oblique strain on the left side," said Washington's manager Blake Butera. "We think it won't be very extreme. But we do think it will take at least the 10 days, which is why we're IL-ing him."
Despite the injury, Butera described being "actually pretty happy" with the diagnosis as it could have been a more dire outcome. Wood, himself was also relieved.
"Obviously, it's not what you want to hear," he said. "But I feel like I'm in good hands here. Hopefully, once we get off (the IL), we'll be in better shape."
So far this season, Wood is batting a .265, with 30 home runs, 73 RBIs, as well as a .393 on-base percentage and a .535 slugging percentage. The latter two stats are career highs for the 23-year-old. His 100 runs scored and 90 walks in 2026 are also league bests as he was selected to his second straight All-Star Game.
Throughout his career in the majors, Wood is .261 with 70 home runs, 208 RBIs, and 46 stolen bases.
Pinckney was selected in the fourth round of the 2023 MLB Draft from the University of Alabama, with the 25-year-old batting .271 with 13 homers, 51 RBIs, 11 doubles, a .345 on-base percentage, and .425 slugging percentage throughout his 94 games with Rochester.