National Record

As the 2011 campaign comes to a close Wednesday September 28th the Washington Nationals turn their focus towards 2012  and future years. With a tough walk off loss September 27th, the team cannot reach .500 as they stand at 79-81. However, their are several positive signs for this club on and off the field and .500 should be a minimum expectation in 2012. Lets look at some reasons why things are on the upswing in the Nations capital.

PITCHING:  Little known fact that the Nationals pitchers carry the 8th lowest ERA among the 30 teams in Major League Baseball. When you consider the teams two top young pitchers- RHSPs Jordan Zimmerman(8-11,3.11) and  Stephen Strasburg- threw under 200 innings due to injuries and pitch counts that statistic is amazing. Figure on these two to throw 300 next season as a minimum. Zimmerman had Tommy John Surgery on his right shoulder in 2009 and made his return in September 2010. In 2011, the team shut him down after 161 1/3 innings on August 28th. Strasburg has taken an almost identical route and has looked excellent in his 4 starts, going 0-1 with a 2.00 ERA over 18 innings. Control is clearly not an issue as he K-ed 14 and walked none.  You get these two healthy and they join veteran LH John Lannan(10-13,3.66) , LH Ross Detwiler(4-5,3.00 in 15 games including 10 starts)  and veteran RH Chien-Ming Wang(4-3,4.04 in 11 starts, not signed for 2012  but a good bet to return ) to form a deep and talented rotation with major upside.  The bullpen is already among the elite, featuring all star set up man Tyler Clippard(3-0,1.85, 37 holds) and sophomore sensation Drew Storen(6-3, 2.78, 42 saves. The top 5 arms out of the pen have sub 3.70 ERAs and only one has an opponent batting average above .250! Imagine this group with support from the starters and more rest! Could be scary good! 

CONTINUED IMPROVEMENT PARTICULARLY IN THE INFIELD: Little known fact that the Nationals feature 7 players who hit double figures in home runs. They also have 5 players with 10 or more steals so athleticism is not an issue. This team has both power and speed but they need 3 young players to continue to improve:  The  rookies C Wilson Ramos, 2B Danny Espinosa  and 2nd year  SS Ian Desmond. Desmond has looked good in the final 2 months and Espinosa just needs to relax and let his talent come thru. He is two good to hit .234 and he won’t. His power is not going anywhere either. A full offseason of rest should due wonders for former all star 3B Ryan Zimmerman who missed two months with abdominal surgery.  It is also realistic to think that RF Jayson Werth will have a stronger 2nd season with the Nationals after struggling throughout 2011. 

BRYCE HARPER: He is closer to finding his home in DC everyday and it is a good bet that at some point in 2012 he will make his major league debut. Pitchers eat your Wheaties! 

The 2011 Washington Nationals(72-79) continue to play solid ball and won 5 straight earlier this week(September 11-15) while sweeping a 4 game series for the first time since 2009.  The pitching staff continues to lead the way and the stats support that. The Nationals team ranks among the 30 major league teams: 9th in ERA, 25th in quality starts, 18th in WHIP and 19th in batting average against. These numbers do not fully illustrate the incredible work of the Washington relief corps particularly set up man Tyler Clippard(3-0,1.84 ERA, 35 holds) and closer Drew Storen(6-3,2.94,38 saves). In fact, the entire bullpen is very underrated with the top 5 arms who have appeared in  50+ games all featuring sub 4.00 ERAs. Offensively, the team has struggled and does not rank higher than 22nd in any of the 4 top hitting statistics among the 30 ML teams. Washington is 24th in runs, 27th in batting average, 25 in on base and 22nd in slugging. The team does rank 17th in home runs and stolen bases however. This is a young team at several spots and hopes for internal improvement as well as comeback type seasons from RF Jayson Werth and 3B Ryan Zimmerman would go along way to boost this offense next season. 

SS EXPRESS: RHSP Stephen Strasburg(Tommy John Surgery) has been outstanding since rejoining the club this month. While dealing with a sub 70 pitch count, he has looked incredible in 3 starts. Vs the Florida Marlins September 17th he threw 6 innings of 4 hit ball while allowing 1 run and striking out 3. In his 3 appearances so far, Strasburg has no record while throwing 14 innings with a 1.29 ERA,.188 batting average against, 0.64 WHIP and 11 strikeouts without a walk!!!! Look out MLB in 2012!!!!

REMEMBER THIS NAME IN 2012:  Rookie 1B Chris Marrero has been playing regularly at 1B and has hit .280 with 9 rbi in 75 at bats. The move has allowed the club to move OF-1B Michael Morse to LeftField and might be a forecaster for the 2012  Nationals lineup. Regular 1B Adam Laroche(Signed thru 2012) has missed most of the year with a shoulder that required surgery and this is a spot to keep an eye on. Marrero is a former first round pick in 2006 but has had injuries curtail his development. The youngster broke a leg and tore ankle ligaments in 2008. 

FIRSTS:  LHSP Tommy Milone won his 1st major league game September 15th with 5 and two thirds of 1 run ball vs the New York Mets at Citi Field. The southpaw showed some toughness as well as the game was delayed for 40 minutes in the 2nd inning. Meanwhile, RHSP Brad Peacock, the Nationals Minor League Pitcher of the Year, also won his major league game in his first start 2-0 September 14th vs the same Mets in New York.  He threw 5 innings allowing 2 hits with 3 walks and 2 strikeouts. 

NATIONALS NOTES:  RHSP Chien-Ming Wang continues to show improvement in his starts after missing almost  2 full seasons with a serious shoulder injury. He is now 3-3 with a 4.31 ERA in 56 and third innings(11 starts). He pitched his longest outing since 2008 in a 4-3 win over the Florida Marlins going 6 and two thirds while allowing 6 hits and 3 runs… The Nationals set a franchise record with their 42nd home win September 18th, That number is a season high total since they team moved to Washington in 2005…. SS Ian Desmond continues to swing a hot bat after struggling for the first 4 months with sub .250 batting averages. After hitting .287 in August, he is hitting .284 in September. Lets hope the youngster carries this momentum into the 2012 season.   

A little more than a year after an elbow injury ended his rookie season, Nationals phenom Stephen Strasburg(Tommy John surgery late in the 2010 season)  did not skip a beat and looked like his old dominant self. The 23 year old right hander struck out 4 and walked none over 5 innings , leaving with a 3-0 lead. Washington ultimately ended up losing the game (7-3 to the Los Angeles Dodgers) but both fans and players had to be excited in what they saw on the mound.  Originally scheduled to throw 4 innings(60 pitches tops), Strasburg was so dominant and under control that his pitch count(11.2 per inning) allowed  the team to get him thru 5 frames. “It just worked out that way,” Strasburg said. “It really is a mindset. Guys don’t want to get to two strikes, so you have to make quality pitches early in the count, try to get them to put the ball in play. Weak contact and get quick outs.”The #1 overall pick in the 2009 Major League draft was clocked as high as 99 mph and while throwing 40 strikes out of the 56 pitches he tossed.  After allowing a lead off double to rookie speedster Dee Gordon, he retired 11 straight before allowing a single to veteran Juan Rivera. His Skipper was impressed. “He was outstanding,” Nationals manager Davey Johnson said. “He looked totally relaxed, in control. He had all his pitches working. He made it look easy. He had a real low pitch count. He looked strong in the end. He made it easy going five innings with the rain coming, so it was a pretty easy hook.”

The Washington Nationals(63-73 as of September 3rd) will receive a huge lift  September 6th when RHSP Stephen Strasburg(Tommy John Surgery) will make his major league return vs the Los Angeles Dodgers at Nationals Park. The club expects him to pitch to 5 to 6 innings and he will make four starts in September, all at Nationals Park. The first overall pick in the 2009 MLB draft was 5-3 with a 2.91 ERA in 2010 before the injury in August.  In his last rehab start in the minors September 1st vs Double A hitters, he touched 99 mph and was perfect thru 4 innings. He tossed 6 scoreless innings while allowing 1 hit,striking out 4 and walking none. He appears ready! 

PUDGE ACTIVATED, BERNADINA CALLED UP:  Nationals activated future hall of fame catcher Ivan “Pudge” Rodriquez from the 15-day disabled list September 3rd after he missed almost 2 months because of a right oblique strain. The team also recalled OF Roger Bernadina from Triple A Syracuse September 2nd after fellow OF Laynce Nix injured his right groin. Nix is expected to miss about a week while Berandina is battling a minor knee injury he suffered Thursday September 1st while at Syracuse. In 71 games with the big club, Roger hit .247 with 5 home runs, 20 rbi and 35 runs scored. 

PLAYER-COACH: Nationals Manager Davey Johnson meet with veteran RHSP Livan Hernandez(8-12,4.29 IN 28 starts)  September 2nd to inform him that his start Sunday September 4th would be his last in 2011. The team wants to work in young pitchers such as Strasburg and LHSP Tom Milone in September. Johnson asked the popular team leader  to remain with the club in a pinch hitting role and become a mentor/coach. The 36 year old Cuban would like to return to Washington in 2012 as a long reliever, a move that Johnson would recommend to the Nationals front office. 

DON’T BLAME THE HITTING COACH:  While the Nationals rank near the bottom of every offensive  statistic in the league, do not blame hitting coach Rick Eckstein, according to Johnson. “I think he is one of the best hitting coaches in baseball. He is a hard worker, very detail-oriented and I agree with his philosophy,” Johnson said. “I know a lot of about hitting and I know a lot about teaching hitting. He is certainly one of the best, if not the best in baseball today.I would vouch for him to the nth degree. I work closely with him. We have conversation about every hitter in the lineup. …. I love Rick Eckstein. He has done an outstanding job. As far as I’m concerned, he has a great future as the hitting coach.” The two have a history together as Eckstein was Johnson’s bench coach in the 2006 World Baseball Classic and 2008 Olympics in Beijing for Team USA.