Washington Nationals Team Awards at the First Quarter Mark
Through 51 games, the Washington Nationals are 30-21 and a game up on the New York Mets in the National League East. Which players have stood out so far this season?
Happy Memorial Day everyone! With the MLB season having reached its unofficial first quarter mark, District on Deck decided to hold voting for team awards based on performance so far this year. Each writer was asked to cast a vote for team MVP, Cy Young, Most Encouraging Player, and Most Disappointing Player.
Has Bryce Harper done enough as the reigning league MVP to defend his title? Or has Daniel Murphy surpassed the 22-year old phenom with his red-hot start at the plate?
When a team ERA is below a 3.00, you know you have a tall task ahead of you when you’re asked to pick the best pitcher on the staff. Stephen Strasburg has gotten off to a stellar start, but does it outshine the rest of the rotation’s performance?
Which players have had the most encouraging performance so far this year? Most disappointing? The contenders for both of these categories stretch far and wide across the team.
Overall, the Nats have allowed the second fewest runs in the majors and are tied for thirteenth in runs scored. They have had key contributors on both sides of the ball that have helped pick this team up after a disappointing end to last season. Who took home awards at the first quarter mark of the 2016 campaign? Read on to find out.
Next: MVP
MVP
Last year, Bryce Harper became the youngest player in the history of baseball to unanimously selected as the league MVP. In 2016, however, Harper falls short of earning that title due to the presence of free agent acquisition Daniel Murphy.
The former Met received all six votes from the DoD staff, and by taking a quick look at his numbers, it’s easy to see why. Murphy enters play Monday owner of a .387/.420/.597 slash line with 72 hits, seven home runs, 14 doubles, and 30 RBIs. Of the 49 games he has appeared in this season, Murphy has only failed to get a hit in seven of them.
Among the team leaders in nearly every offensive category, Murphy is the clear-cut MVP. He’s recorded 24 multi-hit games, the most in the majors, and has 23 extra-base hits. Murphy has only struck out 22 times, the fewest on the team among players with more than 140 at-bats. While he leads the club with five errors in the field, the Nationals knew that was coming when they signed him. They will certainly take the miscues with the glove as long as the hits keep on coming.
Bryce Harper has put up some solid numbers to keep himself in the running (13 HRs, .416 OBP), but his prolonged slump over the past month knocked him down a notch. This title is still his for the taking with more than 100 games left to play. If Harper can rediscover his rhythm, the sky’s the limit.
Next: Cy Young
Cy Young
The Nats’ pitching staff has had some serious expectations over the past few years. They had three pitchers finish in the top-10 in Cy Young voting in 2014, and entered last season heralded as of the most fearsome rotations in recent memory. They failed to meet those expectations, however, and missed the playoffs. This year, expectations were much lower than in years past, but the pitching staff is showing everyone just how dangerous they can be. And at the forefront of it all is none other than Stephen Strasburg.
Strasburg is 9-0 on the season, posting a 2.69 ERA and 1.09 WHIP with 90 strikeouts across eleven starts. The former No. 1 overall draft pick signed a seven-year, $175 million extension in early May, and is proving his worth each and every time he takes the mound. Strasburg has always been among the top strikeout artists in the league, but this may finally be the season where he puts it all together and competes for a Cy Young.
Gio Gonzalez (3-3, 3.57 ERA) received a vote for his early success. After watching his ERA rise in each of the past three seasons, Gonzalez has worked closely with pitching coach Mike Maddux to tweak his mechanics and improve his pitch selection out on the field. So far, it has worked well. It will be interesting to see if the Nats’ lefty can keep it up for an entire season.
While the bullpen did not garner any votes, they still deserve some recognition for the work they’ve put in. The relief corps sports an NL-best 2.66 ERA and has been surprisingly dependable thus far in 2016.
Next: Most Encouraging Player
Most Encouraging Player
In 2015, Nats catchers ranked 25th in all of baseball with a .223 batting average out of the catcher position. Wilson Ramos finally had an injury-free season, but he struggled to put up the numbers that the Nationals believed he was capable of when they traded for him in 2010. This year, however, Ramos has gotten off to a stellar start offensively, and is finally looking like the premiere offensive catcher he has always been touted to be.
Ramos is currently hitting .336/.381/.533 with six home runs and 24 RBIs. He has the highest batting average among catchers with at least 75 plate appearances while drawing ten walks as opposed to only 16 strikeouts. Ramos has also thrown out 33% (four-for-twelve) of baserunners trying to steal.
The Buffalo received three votes to take the category, but three other Nationals each earned a vote as well. Gonzalez got one for his aforementioned fast start to the season. Gio has been an above average pitcher over the past three years, but has been unable to regain his 2012 form. His early success is an encouraging sign of his return to ace-status.
Tanner Roark (3-4, 2.71) may not be the first name that jumps out at you when taking stock of the Nationals repertoire of arms, but the Illinois-native has been quietly dependable so far this season. Despite the fact that he’s the team’s “No. 5 starter,” Roark has a sub-3 ERA and the third most strikeouts on the staff.
Rounding out the list is key bullpen arm Shawn Kelley (1.50 ERA, 0.89 WHIP), who was signed over the offseason as major component in Mike Rizzo’s bullpen makeover. So far Kelley has earned every bit of his contract, leading the team with a 12.0 K/9.
Next: Most Disappointing Player
Most Disappointing Player
While the Nats are sitting in first place, there are still a few disappointing players who have not lived up what we’ve come to expect. Jayson Werth received half the votes for most disappointing player, giving him the “win” in this final category.
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Werth sports a lowly .224/.282/.400 slash line with seven homers and 42 strikeouts. Among players who have appeared in at least 40 games for the Nats, only Michael Taylor has reached base less. While he did provide some fireworks with a grand slam in yesterday’s win over St. Louis, Werth has been a glaring hole in the Washington lineup.
Bryce Harper made his way into this category, having received a vote from DoD staff writer Matt Holleran, who explained his reasoning.
“Now hear me out on this one. It is hard to say a guy who has 11 homers, 31 RBI and an OBP of .430 is ‘disappointing’ but for Harper it is. Bryce started off on an absolute tear, and looked well on his way to back to back MVPs. Over the past few weeks Harper has struggled, posting a batting average of less than .220. I believe if the Nats are going to go very far this season, they need Harper to get going and be the backbone of the lineup.” (h/t Matt Holleran)
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Ben Revere and Ryan Zimmerman each received a vote as well. As their .516 and .754 on-base plus slugging percentages, respectively, might indicate, neither player has been able to get much going offensively. Revere missed a month with a muscle strain and has struggled to catch up with the rest of the league. Zimmerman got off to a slow start, but has been doing better as of late.