Abimelec Ortiz is quietly becoming the best thing happening in Washington baseball right now
The 24-year-old rookie first baseman has gone deep four times in his last seven games, turning a trade footnote into one of the Nationals' most reliable bats down the stretch.
In brief
Ortiz is making the Nationals' MacKenzie Gore trade look a whole lot smarter
Nobody put Abimelec Ortiz on the poster when the Washington Nationals shipped MacKenzie Gore to Texas last January. He was the fifth name in a five-player return package, a 24-year-old first baseman who'd never played an inning above Triple-A. Seven months later, he's the most interesting bat in the Nationals' lineup - and one of the more quietly productive rookies in the National League.
The rookie first baseman keeps delivering, taking Christian Scott deep in the third inning of the Nationals' most recent game for his fourth home run in the last seven games. Since rejoining the big-league roster in early August, Ortiz has hit .289 - 11-for-38 - with five home runs, six runs, and nine RBI across 13 contests. Those aren't numbers you expect from a guy who opened the season in Rochester.
Ortiz made his MLB debut on July 12 in a game against the New York Yankees. He'd spent the first half of 2026 proving himself at Triple-A before the Nationals finally called. In 71 appearances for Rochester, he batted .235/.332/.481 with 16 home runs and 59 RBI. Not flashy averages, but the power was real and the strikeout rate kept scouts paying attention.
The trade that made him a National
On January 22, 2026, the Rangers traded Ortiz, Alejandro Rosario, Devin Fitz-Gerald, Yeremy Cabrera, and Gavin Fien to Washington in exchange for Gore. At the time, the headline was Gore - a left-handed starter with legitimate mid-rotation upside. Ortiz was barely a footnote.
The Nationals' front office, though, appears to have seen something. When the Nats traded Luis Garcia Jr. to the Yankees later in the summer, they were losing the NL leader in slugging. Garcia's combination of contact skills and power had been thrilling to watch. But Washington's decision to move him may have actually made the team better. That sounds counterintuitive. The logic: the Nats picked up multiple bullpen arms for Garcia while having an in-house replacement at first base.
Rookie slugger Ortiz is the first baseman against right-handers, and he has been mashing. The Nats received him as part of the MacKenzie Gore trade, and the former Rangers farmhand hit an .845 OPS with 18 home runs at Triple-A this season. Importantly, Ortiz also struck out under 20 percent of the time - a profile that doesn't fit the typical big-swinging, high-whiff prospect. He makes actual contact.
One of the better things about Ortiz is how well he taps into his power. He hits the ball on the ground less than 35 percent of the time and pulls it in the air at an 18 percent clip. This is a hitter built to do damage.
Filling a hole that looked unfillable
Washington's offense took real hits this season. The Nats have felt the losses of Curtis Mead and Luis Garcia Jr., and an offense that was once an unstoppable force has fallen on its face. At one stretch during a recent road trip, the Nats went 3-for-46 with runners in scoring position. Cold. Ugly. Exactly the kind of stretch that makes a front office's trade decisions look terrible in real time.
Ortiz has been the exception. Right now, the Abimelec Ortiz and Andres Chaparro first-base duo is making sure the Nats aren't losing production at the position. Chaparro handles the left side of the platoon; Ortiz eats up right-handers. It's working. So far, that theory is looking smart. Yovanny Cruz and Jake Bird have both made impacts out of the bullpen while Ortiz had great at-bats all weekend.
The Nationals are playing out the string in the standings - a quick look at their August schedule shows a team that's bounced between wins and losses without finding a run. But player development is the real scoreboard in Ashburn right now, and Ortiz is one of the few legitimate reasons for optimism heading into 2027 and beyond.
For a guy who was a tertiary piece in the MacKenzie Gore trade, that would be an awesome outcome. That line was written a few weeks ago as a hypothetical. It's starting to look like a description of the present.
The Nationals wrap up their series in Miami on Sunday before heading home. Ortiz, wearing No. 81, will be worth watching whenever he steps into the left-hand batter's box against a righty. Which, given how August has gone, means he'll probably be worth watching a lot.
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CAN I KICK IT? screens New Jack City at the Sylvan Theater, Washington Monument, on Aug. 22. (Courtesy SHAOLIN JAZZ)
The live-cinema series CAN I KICK IT? returns to the National Mall this month with what its producers are calling the "Gangsters on the Mall" chapter of their free outdoor summer run. On Saturday, August 22, the SHAOLIN JAZZ production brings the 1991 crime classic New Jack City to the Sylvan Theater at the Washington Monument for a night of film, music, and community under the DC summer sky.
What sets the event apart is the sound. As the film plays, DJ 2-Tone Jones builds an original score in real time, reimagining one of the most iconic crime movies of the ’90s through hip-hop, soul, funk, and more. It is less a movie screening than a live performance built around the film.
The details:
Film: New Jack City (1991), with a live soundtrack by DJ 2-Tone Jones
When: Saturday, August 22 — seating opens at 7:30 p.m. (bring lawn chairs and blankets); film begins at 8:30 p.m.
Where: Sylvan Theater at the Washington Monument, Independence Ave SW & 15th St NW
A parking note from the organizers: expect road closures and restricted parking east of 14th Street NW due to a separate race event in the District. Roads west of 14th Street NW will be accessible and available for parking.
New Jack City is the second of three screenings in this year’s free CAN I KICK IT? outdoor series, which opened with Black Panther at Skyland Town Center and concludes with Scarface at the Lincoln Memorial on September 5. Produced by the Washington, DC-based multimedia arts company SHAOLIN JAZZ, the series has presented more than 150 live cinematic experiences at venues across the country, from Lincoln Center to SXSW.
"I wanted to be able to tell good stories with substance and remove the ‘ego’ out of the art," said Andrew Huang during a recent interview. Now, he’s building his career at the intersection of discipline, creativity and innovation.
Andrew Huang, founder of New Place Studios. (Courtesy photo)
As a Chinese American, Huang was reared with a deep respect for hard work, consistency and excellence. He describes his childhood as "not so affluent" and later attended college to hone his passion for videography. "In college I tried to do something I loved, which was video, but along the way I knew that I had to find a job. And so I thought, ‘what was the low hanging fruit to get to that stable 9 to 5 job?,’" he stated.
Later in life, Huang found himself working for corporations where his creativity was often limited, eventually leading to burnout. "I worked in a corporation for a long time and there were a lot of missing pieces. I wanted to fill in gaps missing in corporate video production," said Huang.
He later described how his upbringing and a mindset of "survival" led him toward a corporate career. However, his desire for balance and authentic storytelling ultimately pushed him to take the entrepreneurial leap.
"I founded a new place where you can create video and film with ‘substance and style,’" said Huang. His desire for work-life balance and passion for storytelling naturally evolved into a small business based in Virginia. With the launch of New Place Studios, the entrepreneur quickly found himself reconnecting with the values that would become the foundation of everything he creates behind the camera.
Huang said being a business owner has allowed him to first embrace himself. While others may see video as simply capturing moments, he sees it as a way to preserve stories that inspire, connect and leave a lasting imprint.
By combining cinematic visuals with cutting-edge production techniques and a keen understanding of branding, Huang helps organizations and individuals communicate their vision with purpose. He said understanding a client’s "why" serves as the compass for delivering the services they need.
One benefit of working with a small business, he said, is that clients get to see the production process unfold through a micro lens while working with the same faces throughout the entire project. "The work feels personal," said Huang.
Huang does not regret leaving behind the flash-over-substance mentality and corporate hustle culture. That does not mean the Asian American entrepreneur has been without challenges in the industry. "It’s relatively hard to find other Asian American creatives or people who would want to work with me in the DMV," said Huang.
He identifies the industry culture in which everyone is trying to blend in, creatives may fear displaying their Asian identity and some feel pressure to adopt an American corporate persona. He also points to what he describes as a level of gatekeeping within the industry. According to the U.S. Small Business Administration’s 2024 statistics, Asian American and Pacific Islander entrepreneurs own more than 3 million businesses and employ 5.2 million people in the United States.
After tapping into organizations such as SCORE, which offers free small business mentorship, New Place Studios has become a trusted creative partner throughout the DMV (Washington, D.C., Maryland and Virginia). The company produces a range of creative services, including commercials, corporate branding, documentaries, film, 2D animation, motion graphics and photography.
For Huang, entrepreneurship has become more than a departure from corporate life. It has given him the freedom to create with intention, build meaningful connections and tell stories that go beyond the surface.
The 2026 CAN I KICK IT? outdoor series. Poster courtesy of SHAOLIN JAZZ.
For three Saturdays this summer, some of Washington’s most familiar public spaces will do something they rarely do after dark: fill up with blankets, lawn chairs, and the sound of a movie being scored live, in real time. CAN I KICK IT?, the traveling “live cinema” series produced by the DC-based multimedia arts company SHAOLIN JAZZ, is bringing a free outdoor run to the city — pairing three era-defining films with an original soundtrack performed on the spot by DJ 2-Tone Jones.
The premise is what sets it apart from a normal screening in the park. Rather than simply pressing play, 2-Tone Jones builds a score as the film unfolds, pulling from hip-hop, soul, funk, jazz, rock, electronic music, and sounds from around the world. The result, the organizers say, is less a movie night than a one-time performance — the same film you know, wired to a soundtrack you have never heard and will not hear again. Guest DJs warm up the crowd starting at 7:30 PM before each 8:30 PM screening.
The 2026 outdoor schedule
All three events are free and open to the public.
Saturday, August 8 — Black Panther at Skyland Town Center. A pop-up marketplace and community activities kick off the evening; guest DJs at 7:30 PM, film at 8:30 PM. Marvel’s superhero epic gets a one-night-only live score in Southeast DC.
Saturday, August 22 — New Jack City at the Sylvan Theater, Washington Monument. Seating begins at 7:30 PM; the film starts at 8:30 PM. The 1991 crime drama plays out at the foot of one of the country’s most recognizable landmarks.
Saturday, September 5 — Scarface at the Lincoln Memorial. Seating at 7:30 PM; film at 8:30 PM. The series closes with Brian De Palma’s crime saga against the backdrop of the Memorial, scored live from start to finish.
First up: Black Panther at Skyland Town Center on August 8. Poster courtesy of SHAOLIN JAZZ.
A DC company with a national footprint
SHAOLIN JAZZ describes itself as a Washington-based arts company working at the intersection of music, film, art, and culture, and CAN I KICK IT? is its signature production. According to the organizers, the series has staged more than 150 live cinematic experiences around the country — at performing arts centers, museums, festivals, and cultural institutions including Lincoln Center in New York, SXSW, the Denver Center for the Performing Arts, Republic Square in Austin, the Tacoma Armory, and The Cary Theater.
“CAN I KICK IT? has always been about creating a shared experience,” said Gerald Watson, co-founder of SHAOLIN JAZZ. “When you combine iconic films with live music in public spaces, something special happens. People aren’t just watching a movie — they’re experiencing it together. That’s what makes these nights so memorable.”
Cinema as a community event
The DC run lands as cities across the country look for new ways to activate public space through arts and culture — and this series is a straightforward pitch for how to do it: take a landmark everyone already knows, add a film everyone has an opinion about, and let a live soundtrack turn the evening into something neighbors experience shoulder to shoulder. Families, film buffs, and music fans are all invited, and admission won’t cost a thing.
The CAN I KICK IT? outdoor series runs August 8, August 22, and September 5. All events are free; check SHAOLIN JAZZ (shaolinjazz.com) for the latest details and any weather updates before heading out.
