Washington Nationals: 5 storylines to watch as Dodgers visit
By Drew Douglas
Howie Kendrick playing his former team
After spending 2015 and 2016 with the Los Angeles Dodgers, Howie Kendrick was traded to the Philadelphia Phillies. The Phillies then went on to trade him to the Nats. Now with the Nats, Kendrick has never played the Dodgers as a former Dodger. That is, until this weekend.
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For whatever reason, players typically perform exceptionally well against their former teams. Kendrick is no different. Throughout his career, he has played for the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, the Dodgers, and the Phillies. Oddly enough, he has extraordinary stats against all three of those teams.
When the Angels came to Nats Park about a month ago, Kendrick had one of the best games of his career, crushing two homers en route to a Nats win. When the Phillies came to Nats Park last week, Kendrick performed well again, going 5-for-9 in the three-game series.
Kendrick already has good numbers against the Dodgers throughout his career, a .325 batting average in 33 games, and he has yet to play them as a former Dodger. Considering his prior success against the Dodgers, he could be in for a phenomenal series this weekend.
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Both the Nationals and Dodgers have already clinched their respective postseason births, but this could still be a very telling series. If the two teams are lucky, they may even find each other in the opposing dugout come October. A rematch of last year’s NLDS, a possible postseason preview, Daniel Murphy’s prior success against the Dodgers, the Dodgers’ terrible skid, and Howie Kendrick playing his former team should all be storylines to watch during what looks to be an entertaining weekend series between the top two teams in the National League.