Washington Nationals July 2016 Month In Review

Starting Pitching: B-

Since the All-Star Break, the Washington Nationals have gotten good production from their starting pitching. When you look at their ERAs’s since that point, the other starter with an ERA over three is Strasburg (three).

If there were negatives to the rotation, it was the performances of their two top pitching prospects, Lucas Giolito and Reynaldo Lopez. While both pitchers have bright futures, neither starter went past five innings in any game. Giolito and Lopez are both in the triple-A rotation right now, continuing to work on their development.

The two pitchers who had four wins in the month of July were Strasburg and Scherzer. Strasburg had his first loss against the Dodgers on July 22, but he had a 2.08 ERA and held opponents to a .127 batting average in five starts. As for Scherzer, he went 2-1 with a 1.32 ERA in five starts and his 39 strikeouts were the fourth most of any National League pitcher.

As for the other two starting pitchers, Tanner Roark led the team in innings pitched at 36.1 and went 3-1 with a 2.97 ERA in six games (five starts). But, the surprise of the month was the consistency of Gio Gonzalez. The left-hander had a 2.70 ERA in five starts.

If Gonzalez continues to put up these strong numbers, it further adds to the depth that this rotation has when the Washington Nationals eventually get Ross back into the mix. This rotation has the good back end starters to go with a great top three in Strasburg, Scherzer, and Roark.

Next: Bullpen