Washington Nationals: MLB The Show 17 Simulation
In honor of the release of MLB The Show 17, District on Deck will simulate an entire regular season and postseason for the Washington Nationals.
With the regular season just days away, everyone will be making their predictions on how the Washington Nationals will do in 2017. Of course, one way you can play out the season is with the release of one of the top baseball video games on the market.
The newest iteration called MLB The Show 17 comes from the fantastic developer SIE San Diego Studio. The yearly series that’s exclusive to Sony has already been released for the PS4.
The game is a great way for people to choose their favorite team and enjoy America’s pastime. The Show presents baseball in a superb way while making new enhancements each year. Some of the new features include Retro Mode, an improved Diamond Dynasty, more expansive Road To The Show and a deeper Franchise Mode.
The feature which stands out is Retro Mode. This mode travels players back to the 90s with one button utilized to throw pitches and swing the bat.
It also has custom audio, commentary from Ken Griffey and visuals that make you feel like you’ve stepped into a local arcade.
In honor of the game’s release, District on Deck will simulate an entire regular season and postseason for the Washington Nationals.
We’ll let you know what stood out over the course of a long season, such as who was the Nationals best pitcher, hitter, reliever and if there was anything which stood out.
How We Simulated Our MLB 2017 Predictions
I used Franchise Mode in MLB The Show 17 with current rosters. I went through a simulated Spring Training and proceeded to the regular season.
The regular season was simulated with gameplay options set to “Auto” to ensure it was fair for all teams.
I did find it interesting that I received some trade proposals throughout the simulation and the results at the end of the season were surprising.
With that, let’s get to the predictions for the Washington Nationals 2017 season, thanks again to MLB The Show 17 for the simulation.
April Results
The Washington Nationals were victorious in their first game of the season against the Miami Marlins. However, that was the highlight for them in the first month. They ended the month with a 10-14 record.They had a pair of three-game losing streaks, including losing four consecutive games to end April.
The best hitter for the Nats during that month was outfielder Bryce Harper. He posted a .297 batting average with eight home runs and 20 RBI. He set the tone for the lineup in the month of April.
Tanner Roark was the premier pitcher in the rotation for the club. He accumulated a 1.55 ERA and 0.72 WHIP in 29 innings. It was a positive sign to see Roark start the new season on a high note.
The closer situation for the Nats has been a major issue this spring. Shawn Kelley began the year as the Nationals closer, and he performed adequately. Kelley saved six games, compiled a 3.32 ERA, fanned 11 batters, and his WHIP was 1.17.
Koda Glover became the team’s closer after the initial month as he was promoted from the minors.
One reason the Nationals were under .500 after April is that they allowed five or more runs in seven of their 14 losses.The pitching for the team improved steadily over the next couple of months, and it was reflected in their record.
May Results
The Nationals had a winning record the following month as they went 15-14 in May, which pushed the overall record to 25-28. They ended May strong, by winning six of their last nine contests.
Their best hitter in May was Daniel Murphy as he had 16 home runs, 38 RBI, and a .323 batting average after two months of action.
As for the starting rotation, the leader on the staff was Max Scherzer as the ace posted a 7-1 record with a 3.18 ERA, 80 strikeouts, and a 1.19 WHIP through May.
In the bullpen,Glover didn’t allow a run in two games and saved a pair of games in his first full month as closer.
The Nats did have a five-game losing skid in May but had two separate winning streaks in which they won at least three games. They also lost three series to divisional opponents during this month as the Philadelphia Phillies, and Atlanta Braves gave them problems.
There were six losses that the Nationals surrendered five or more runs, an indication the pitching for them was improving.
The team was fourth in the National League East as they finished one-third of their schedule.The slow start by them was alarming, but things picked up quickly in the four months that followed.
June Results
The third month of the year saw the Nats turn a corner as their overall record finally got over .500. They ended June with a 42-38 record, which put them third in the NL East, five games back of the New York Mets. By the end of the month they were tied with the San Francisco Giants and Braves for NL Wild Card.
Harper was the club’s best hitter once again as he tallied 19 homers, 53 RBI and his average were .297 at the three-month mark.
Scherzer remained dominant in the rotation, pushing his record to 11-1 with 124 punch outs, 2.66 ERA, and a 1.18 WHIP.
Glover racked up six saves in June, but his ERA rose to 3.55 along with ten K’s and two blown saves.
The Washington Nationals won nine of their last 12 games to close June on a high note. They won two of three series against teams in their own division. They had an important four-game set facing the Mets in the middle of the month, and the team won three of those games.
To get to that success, the team had three separate winning streaks in which they won at least three games, including a string of four consecutive victories. The club was starting to build momentum, and it carried over into the next month.
July Results
The team marched with a full steam in July as they won 17 games to push their record to 59-44. The Nats were on fire during this month as they reeled off nine straight wins, their longest of the season.
The team won 12 of the last 13 games to cap off July in impressive fashion. Due to that success, they narrowed the gap in the division to one and a half games and occupied the first spot in the NL Wild Card race.
The interesting part of this simulation is that I received a pair of trade requests.
The first one came from St. Louis Cardinals on July 6. They asked for infielder Wilmer Difo in exchange for pitcher Zach Duke. I declined the trade as the versatility that Difo can provide wasn’t worth losing for Duke.
The second trade proposal from the Los Angeles Dodgers was intriguing.They offered outfielder Yasiel Puig, infielder Logan Forsythe and pitcher Chris Hatcher for Murphy. The offer was nice but not worth losing someone like Murphy as he became crucial later in the season.
At this point in the season, the best hitter was Harper, who had a 25 home runs, 70 RBI and a .314 average after the month of July. Scherzer remained locked in in the mound with 167 K’s, 2.37 ERA, 1.07 WHIP and a 14-1 record.
August Results
The month of August was filled with positives and negatives. The Washington Nationals gained sole possession of first place in the division on August 4, but their grasp as the top team didn’t last long.
They ended that month with a 77-56 record, sitting a half-game back of New York and still holding on to the top spot in the Wild Card.
However, tragedy struck on August 24, when Harper fractured his wrist and was sidelined for three months. It was a critical loss to be without one of the better hitters on the roster at that junction in the season.
It should come as no surprise that Murphy was the premiere hitter in the lineup at the end of August.He had a .311 batting average with 32 home runs and 92 RBI through the month of August.
Scherzer was the rock in the rotation as he compiled a 2.52 ERA, 211 strikeouts, a 1.06 WHIP and a 17-3 record.
As for a Glover update, was doing a decent job in the closer role. He had 19 saves, a 1.26 WHIP, and a 4.26 ERA in four months pitching out of the bullpen.
Regarding their record, August wasn’t a bad month.They won four consecutive games and didn’t have a lengthy losing streak. The absence of Harper, however, was such a crushing blow.
September Results
The final month of the 2017 season was significant for the Nationals as they were still fighting for a playoff spot. They started September strong by winning four of their first six games.
The club did undergo a four-game losing streak in the middle of the month, but bounced back towards the end of the year as they went 8-4 in their final 12 games.
The team finished the 2017 season with a 92-70 record. This wasn’t quite good enough to win the NL East as the Mets went 93-69.However, they secured a spot in the NL Wild Card game against the Miami Marlins.
It was shocking that the Washington Nationals couldn’t win the division considering they won 92 games, which is typically good enough to ensure a division title.
There were eight losses in September in which the Nats scored two runs or less. The offense struggling to score runs in these losses could be attributed to the absence of Harper.It makes you wonder if the results would be different if Harper weren’t out.
The team came up short in winning the division title but still qualified for the postseason, which is a major accomplishment.
Click on the next slide to see how they fared in the postseason and who was the top hitter, pitcher and reliever for the Nats in the 2017 simulation on MLB The Show 17.
Postseason Results, Top Players, Awards & Analysis
The Nats hosted the one-game playoff to determine the NL Wild Card winner and defeated the Marlins 7-0.
They advanced to the NLDS and faced the Los Angeles Dodgers for the second straight year. The Nats were swept by the Dodgers in three games and scored just three runs in the series.
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The simulation gave me a surprising result as I thought the Nats would not only win the division but at least make it to the NLCS.
Regardless, it was still enjoyable observing how the team performed over the course of a season.
The top hitter on the team was Murphy, who accumulated a .314 average, 36 home runs, 107 RBI and a .921 OPS. He also led the NL with 202 hits.
He was a constant threat in the lineup, and his role increased once Harper was sidelined. This was one reason I didn’t feel comfortable moving him in the requested trade by the Dodgers.
One player who deserves an honorable mention is shortstop Trea Turner.He posted a .288 average in 153 games with 88 runs scored, 167 hits, 19 home runs, 70 RBI and 40 stolen bases.
Adam Eaton was remarkable during the simulation as he hit .303 with 184 hits, five home runs, 56 RBI and 23 steals.The speedy combo at the top of the lineup wreaked havoc against opposing teams.
The best pitcher was Scherzer, who posted a 20-5 record in 229 innings with 258 strikeouts, a 2.40 ERA, 24 Quality Starts, and three complete games. Another member of the rotation who made his presence felt was Roark. The right-hander tossed 189 innings, fanned 162 batters, tallied a 2.62 ERA, and his WHIP was 1.06.
The standout member of the bullpen was Kelley. He had a 2.39 ERA in 101 2/3 innings, 119 K’s, and a 1.08 WHIP.
Glover was decent in the closer role, finishing the season with 26 saves (six blown saves), 1.39 WHIP and 31 strikeouts.
Murphy and Turner each won a Silver Slugger for second base and shortstop, respectively. Anthony Rendon earned a Gold Glove at third base, and Stephen Drew got the award at shortstop.
In case you were wondering, the Boston Red Sox defeated the Chicago Cubs 4-2 in the World Series.
The NL East standings for the 2017 season were New York Mets (93-69), Washington Nationals (92-70), Miami Marlins (91-71), Atlanta Braves (82-80) and Philadelphia Phillies (78-84).
Next: Guthrie Last One Standing For Long Man
That was amazing running the simulation, thanks to MLB The Show 17. You can leave a comment below on your thoughts about the simulation and what you think about the game.