The Washington Nationals, who are in fourth place in the NL East, continue to struggle while their starting pitchers remain tops in the league.
For many folks, the best way to neutralize the excessive number of runs being scored in this current incarnation of MLB is through dominant pitching. However, this season, the 4th place Washington Nationals are proving that in the grand scheme of things, dominant starting pitching doesn’t a team make.
As I write this, according to FanGraphs, Max Scherzer (2.5) and Stephen Strasburg (1.9) lead MLB in fWAR. What’s more, Patrick Corbin (1.4 fWAR), whom the Nats signed to a 6-year, $140M this offseason, has the 7th best fWAR in MLB.
As a team, Nationals starting pitchers lead MLB in fWAR (6.1). They rank in the top 10 in ERA (3.92), FIP (3.54), and K/9 (10.32).
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Despite this fact, the Nats are currently 11 games under .500 and sitting firmly behind three NL East teams. Not only that, they’re 7.5 behind the 2nd Wild Card and also have the 7th worst run differential (-38) in MLB.
The problem with the Nats this season is two-fold. First, the team struggles to score runs, seldom leading late in games. Second, when the team does have a lead, they tend to surrender it.
In fact, compared all MLB teams, the Nationals have 9 blown saves (BS) this season, that’s one less than the leading Oakland Athletics. Sean Doolittle, who had just one BS in all of 2018 already has two in 2019.
All of this has culminated an extremely disappointing first 1/3 of the season. While there’s still plenty of baseball to be played, with the trade deadline fast approaching, many have speculated whether the Nats will be sellers.
With two division rivals in the Atlanta Braves and the Philadelphia Phillies featuring dynamic rosters, the Nationals would be wise to move some of their veterans while their prices are high.