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Nationals Rising

From: Scott Allen | April 26, 2010 | Comments(0) | Print | Share |

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I know it is very early in a long MLB season to get to excited , or disappointed, over how certain teams have begun.  I am one of those people that seem to write off the Washington Nationals before the season even begins, but I always have that little bit of optimism hoping that they might muster up some quality wins and maybe compete at some kind of level with the rest of the league.  It seems maybe the chips are falling in the right places for the Nationals, at least to begin this 2010 season.  

With a new skipper in Jim Riggleman, and quality aquisitions in the offseason, the Nationals organization is showing that they seem serious about competing this year and for years to come.  Many people feared that the Nationals weren't going to be able to ink a deal with their newly drafted star pitcher Stephen Strasburg; however the Nationals stepped up the plate and signed Strasburg to a multi-year deal.  Other offseason movements that seems to have helped the Nationals so far were signing Ivan Rodriguez, Livan Hernandez, and Matt Capps.  Moreover, the Nationals have player makers in Ryan Zimmerman, Cristian Guzman, and Adam Dunn.

At this point, the Nationals are 1.5 games out of the division lead and 6th in the league.  For a team that has struggled since its move to the nation's Capital, the fans and city have much to be excited over already.  Rodriguez was brought in to help prospective catchers in their development; however he has taken it upon his shoulders to lead the Nationals in batting average, 3rd in on-base-percentage, and 3rd in slugging-percentage having 25 or more at bats.  Furthermore, at this moment he currently leads the NL in batting average with a .411.  As unexpected as this was for the league to see Rodriguez back with great performance, it was surely unexpected for the Nationals to get as much production out him as they are.  Money well spent by the Nationals.

Finally, a sore point for years in the Nationals organization has been pitching.  While pitching this year has not been stellar, it has been much improved.  Livan Hernandez is currently in 2nd for ERA in MLB with a 0.75.  Furthermore, Matt Capps leads MLB with 8 saves.  Moreover, while the Nationals could have started Stephen Strasburg right away, they decided it was best to develop him further by sending him to the minor leagues in order to work him from the stretch.  As of right now, it seems to be working out well for Strasburg.  Expectations have Strasburg being called up sometime around June 1st, which right now would be an excellent addtion to the Nationals pitching rotation.

As I mentioned, it is early in the season, but I feel the Nationals deserve some positive mentioning.  The organization seems to be finally on the right track with the player acquisitions and development programs.  With many more games still to come, the Nationals story this season could be one of those unforgettable moments, at least for Nationals fans.  As for Major League Baseball, this just goes to show that any team really can compete in any one season with the right personnel at the helm.  As for right now, it is great to see that the Nationals might finally be on the right track to consistently competing.