Washington Nationals: 5 takeaways from the 2018 schedule

WASHINGTON, DC - AUGUST 13: Max Scherzer #31 of the Washington Nationals pitches to Kelby Tomlinson #37 of the San Francisco Giants in the third inning during Game 2 of a doubleheader at Nationals Park on August 13, 2017 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Greg Fiume/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON, DC - AUGUST 13: Max Scherzer #31 of the Washington Nationals pitches to Kelby Tomlinson #37 of the San Francisco Giants in the third inning during Game 2 of a doubleheader at Nationals Park on August 13, 2017 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Greg Fiume/Getty Images)
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Washington Nationals
(Photo by Stephen Dunn/Getty Images)

Early West Coast trips

Every season, managers look at long west coast trips as series that could make or break a team. Next year, the Washington Nationals will get most of those trips out of the way early.

In the first month of the year, the Nats will make visits to Dodger Stadium (April 20-22) and AT&T Park (April 23-25) to take on the Dodgers and Giants. Then, in May, they will play at San Diego (May 7-9) and Arizona (May 10-14).

On the one hand, it is good to get most of the long travel out of the way early and the Nats will play those teams when the weather is cooler compared to June and July. However, there is one drawback to playing all the west coast games early.

At the end of the season, the Washington Nationals final series will be at Coors Field when they take on the Colorado Rockies. Now, no one knows if those games will mean anything right now, but Colorado weather in September is very unpredictable. It could be a nice sunny day or you never know if snow might end up being in the forecast.

Over the course of April and May, the Nats will play 26 games against the NL West, so keep an eye on what moves those team make when the offseason approaches. ‘

Schedule