Washington Nationals: 60 game season may be to team’s advantage

Could a 60-game schedule be beneficial to the Washington Nationals?

In the daily soap opera which is the baseball negotiations, it seems there was a bit of a breakthrough in talks recently. Commissioner Rob Manfred and Player Rep Tony Clark were able to restart talks and an agreement to begin the season may be on the horizon. Word of a 60-game season has been dangled and if this comes to fruition, the Washington Nationals will have a leg up.

A 60-game schedule would be more of a sprint than a normal marathon 162-game format. For 60 games teams would want to have their best pitchers throw the majority of innings. A team with a three-headed pitching monster bodes to do well in this scenario.

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With Max Scherzer, Stephen Strasburg, and Patrick Corbin taking the ball for three/fifths of the starts, the team should have an advantage in silencing opposing hitters.

The bullpen was atrocious last year, though GM Mike Rizzo has gone a long way in retooling for a better run this year. Will Harris was brought in to bridge the gap from starter to closer Sean Doolittle, and Daniel Hudson was brought back to serve as a late-inning reliever as well.

With 60 games to play, the emphasis of winning each game will be enhanced greatly, with games being treated as potential play-in games. This will happen regardless of how many teams end up making the postseason.

Lesser-known relievers will be looked over and the best pitchers will be used most often. Expect workhorse Wander Suero to get the call a lot less this year and ultimately be more effective.

The numbers being discussed right now are 60 games in 70 days. I wouldn’t be surprised to see the Washington Nationals use those off days to skip spots in the rotation and get the big three to the mound more often.

Manager Dave Martinez and his “Go 1-0 Today” mentality allowed him to control pitchers in the 2019 postseason and secure a World Series win. Look for this same mindset in the shortened season.

If this deal gets done, look out for the Washington Nationals. Based on the pitching staff they’ll be bringing along, they may find themselves in the World Series yet again.