For the first time in over a month, GoldLink’s “Crew” blared over the public-address speakers before the Nationals’ first at-bat.

That walk-up song signaled the return of All-Star right fielder James Wood, who went on the injured list on Aug. 4 with an oblique strain. He played in two rehab games with Double-A Harrisburg to face live pitching and felt good enough physically after Tuesday’s game to return to Washington’s lineup.

“It’s been fun cheering them on, seeing some guys make some strides, and just happy to be back,” he said before Wednesday’s 9-0 loss. Wood was 1-for-4 and broke up the Braves’ no hitter in the sixth inning.

Wood emphasized how hard he worked to return to the lineup. It’s important to him to finish 2026 strong after a stellar first half, particularly after he slumped to end the 2025 season, posting a .690 OPS in the second half with a 39% strikeout rate.

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Oblique injuries are tricky — have to be treated with caution because the chance for re-injury is high. After Wood initially suffered the injury, manager Blake Butera said that he felt encouraged that the doctor’s had to search the MRI to locate the strain.

A minimum injured list stint seemed likely, but the lingering effects led to Wood missing almost a month of action.

“That’s how I go about my business,” Wood said of returning to play. “ I feel like it’s my job to try and be out here and play to the best of the best of my abilities. There’s still games on the schedule, [so] I’m gonna be fighting to play.”

Penciling Wood in at the top of the lineup is a luxury for Butera. Entering Wednesday, Wood led the Nationals in homers (30), total runs scored (100) and walks (90). Even with the Nationals out of the wild-card race, Wood’s return gives the lineup stability as the Nationals look to build for 2027. The team has already surpassed last year’s win total.

Sitting out the rest of the year wasn’t an option for Wood.

“They’ve been battling,” he said of his teammates. “I mean it’s obviously baseball, so it’s gonna be ups and downs. But I mean I feel like there’s been some good stretches and some not so good stretches, and I feel like they’ve been bouncing back from the rough stretches pretty well.