Washington Nationals: Could Next Year Be the Beginning of Success?
The Nationals are currently going through a little slump; not only their five-game losing streak, but a couple of bad years. They can finally see light at the end of the tunnel:
Eight-and-a-half months after reconstructive surgery to repair a torn ulnar collateral ligament, Stephen Strasburg threw his first pitch from a mound. This is a major milestone in his recovery. Of course, he is not yet throwing pitches in triple digits, but he is getting there.
Bryce Harper is the star on his minor league team. He has hit 10 HR in 153 AB thus far, leading his team, and also has a .346 AVG. He is proving to the world that he is worth a number one pick. Realistically, by spring training next year, he could be joining the big boys in DC.
The Nats currently stand 21-28, 8.5 games behind the division leaders (the Phillies). They have reached this far without both players mentioned above as well as their franchise player, Ryan Zimmerman. Under the leadership of Jayson Werth and Ivan Rodriguez, they have reached this point. Not saying this should be acceptable for the Nats, but with the team at hand, it isn't too bad.
Bryce Harper
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Bryce Harper is currently playing for the Hagerstown Suns, a minor league team. He is leading the team in four of the five batting statistics (10 HR, 34 RBI, .429 OBP, .627 SLG; trailing only one player for AVG, Harper has a .346 AVG)
He has shown real talent and has the possibility to really bringing something to the Nats roster. When he joins the major league squad, he will fit right in with the rest of the young team. Not only will Harper enjoy the youth of the team he will tremendously benefit from the veteran catcher on the team, Ivan Rodriguez.
Who better to teach a young catcher the ways in the MLB than Pudge, a soon to be Hall of Fame member. The 14-time All-Star and 1999 AL MVP will be able to share the knowledge from a catcher that has been behind the plate for 20 years with the young star.
Stephen Strasberg
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On June 9th of last year, the Nats played the Pirates; if it weren't for the picture of Strasburg on the side you would have read this and thought, "This guy is crazy, talking about an ordinary game in the middle of the season with the two worst teams." Well, it was anything but ordinary.
At 7:05 almost all the seats in Nationals Park were filled; everyone had come to see the phenom rookie pitcher, Stephen Strasburg's first game, and with his first triple-digit pitch, cheers could be heard from across the city. Every Pirates at bat with two strikes, the whole stadium got onto their feet and started cheering a name that many thought would revolutionize Nationals baseball, "Stephen Strasburg." Fans could not believe what they were witnessing, fourteen strikeouts by a debut pitcher. Instead of cheering, "Lets go Nationals," when the catchy rhythm came on, the fans cheered, "Stephen Strasburg." It was a game to be remembered for the ages.
I have been to many Nats games, where the highlights are the President's Race and a homerun if you are lucky. Each fan has a variety of empty seats — better yet, sections — to choose from. This game was nothing like an ordinary Nationals game. Things began to slow down after this game though, and on July 29th, Nats fans realized that it was too good to be true. Strasburg was put on the DL and missed the rest of that season and has yet to play this season.
Last Monday though, Strasburg threw his first pitch from the mound since reconstructive surgery. If he continues to progress we could see him in Nats Park by September. Hopefully we not only see him on the mound but also see some triple digit fast balls.
If all goes well and he has a good offseason, by next year Strasburg should be back to the same shape as on June 9th of last year, in spring training next year.
Ryan Zimmerman
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Ryan Zimmerman has been the face of the Washington Nationals ever since they moved to DC. He is the franchise player and made the All-Star team in 2009. The Nats (disregarding the current five-game losing streak) have been flirting with .500, and they have done so without the leader of the team.
Zimmerman was placed on the DL and has been almost unapparent all year. The Nats are currently a bunch of role players (Desmond, Espinosa, Morse) and, apart from Werth, have no real star. Imagine what the team would be like with Zimmerman.
Desmond and Espinosa get on base, Werth hits a double and bats in both base-runners. Zimmerman then steps up to the plate and knocks it out of the ballpark, and all of a sudden, the fans look up and the Nats have a 4-0 lead with no outs. With a lineup including Zimmerman, the Nats could really contend with the top teams around the MLB.
Role Hitters
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The Nationals have some good role players that can come up to the plate and bat in the run to win the game. As shown against the Orioles in their 17-5 win, the Nats have the power behind the plate to go the distance and score some runs. Consistency is the key to winning games though. The players need to spend a little more time in the cages and try to up their batting averages a little. The highest AVG is .254 from Werth and most of the team is batting under .200.
With the Nats sitting near the bottom of the league after this skid, they should get a good hitter in the draft, someone who could go along with Werth, Zimmerman and Harper to make the 3, 4, 5 spots in the Nats lineup unstoppable. Some free agent smaller-market players would also help the Nats fill up the bottom of the lineup.
The Nats have a long way to go on the offensive side of the plate, (21st in runs this season and 29th in Batting AVG) but have what it takes to get to the top. With a good pick in the draft, a clean bill of health for Zimmerman and Harper to add to their lineup, the Nats could really stun the league with impressive hitting.
Pitchers
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The Nats have a good set of relief pitchers: Tyler Clippard, Drew Storen and Doug Slaten all have solid ERA's and can get the last out when needed. A bigger weakness is the starting pitchers. There seems to be a good rotation (Hernandez, Marquis, Lannan and Jordan Zimmerman), but there is no stand out for a starter, something desperately needed with the Nats' lack of offense.
It could be either through a trade or in the free agency market this offseason, but the Nats need a big name on the mound. There are some big names whose contacts expire this offseason that would really take the Nats to the next level. Chris Carpenter, Scott Kazmir, Roy Oswalt and CC Sabathia are all big names that could get more numbers in the win column. Hopefully we can get one of these players without spending a ridiculous amount of money.
A rotation consisting of Strasburg, Sabathia, Lannan and Livan could really make for a successful year and may give some confidence to the batters to reach a next level in their game. With a help from the offense and the hypothetical starting rotation above the Nats could possible reach postseason.
Conclusion
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If all goes well, with the uprising of Bryce Harper, the recovery of Strasburg and Zimmerman and some smart moves in the offseason, the Nats could make a run for their money in next year's season. They could have a league leading starting rotation as well as some All-Stars on their roster.
I can't wait till next year!
