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Washington Nationals: Max Scherzer expected back Thursday

By Tyler Roberts

WASHINGTON, DC - JULY 25:Washington Nationals starting pitcher Max Scherzer pitches to Colorado Rockies in the fifth inning at Nationals Park July 25, 2019 in Washington, DC. The Nets lost to the Rockies 8-7.(Photo by Katherine Frey/The Washington Post via Getty Images)
WASHINGTON, DC - JULY 25:Washington Nationals starting pitcher Max Scherzer pitches to Colorado Rockies in the fifth inning at Nationals Park July 25, 2019 in Washington, DC. The Nets lost to the Rockies 8-7.(Photo by Katherine Frey/The Washington Post via Getty Images) /
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The Washington Nationals will get a big boost on Thursday when starting pitcher Max Scherzer is scheduled to return from a rhomboid strain.

Max Scherzer, the Washington Nationals ace has been on the Injured List a few times this season.  Originally he was on that list on July 13th and then came back July 25th when he pitched against the Colorado Rockies and then went back on the list.

As far as pitchers go, Scherzer is the most important player on the Nationals roster.  As a three-time Cy Young Award winner, he is the workhorse and the guy with the most experience.

Currently, he is 9-5 with a 2.41 ERA with 189 strikeouts in 134 1/3 innings pitched. He is also leading all NL pitchers in WAR at 5.4 and tied for 2nd in ERA with Mike Soroka.

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The Nationals as a team are 14th in the MLB in team ERA at 4.44.  This is due to a strong pitching rotation which includes Scherzer, Patrick Corbin, and Stephen Strasburg.

This strong three is great despite not receiving the amount of attention the Houston Astros rotation gets.  Granted the Astros have the bigger names, these guys are solid and can hold their own.

The biggest reason this is a big deal getting Scherzer back is making sure he is hitting his stride as the playoffs arrive.  Now entering the stretch part of the season, it’s important to have your pitching rotation clicking on all cylinders come playoff time.

That Nationals at this point are 68-56, 5 games behind the Atlanta Braves for the NL East lead.  They are also in the first NL Wild Card spot, leading by 2 games over the Chicago Cubs.

The Wild Card race is a crowded one in the National League with five teams within four games of that spot and having your ace and entire pitching staff clicking is going to be important to secure a playoff spot.

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Getting Max Scherzer back and the way the Washington Nationals offense is humming, scoring 62 total runs in their past 5 games, this team locks up a wild card spot.

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