Washington Nationals: Dates to know for the 2018 season
By Brian Foley
June 12-13: Bryce Harper bowl (at New York Yankees)
The Nationals host New York for a two-game series in May, but the free agency chatter will really ramp up when Washington heads to the Bronx in June. This offseason, the GM Brian Cashman ducked under the 2018 luxury tax as the Yankees set themselves up for a free agent spree in 2019. In case D.C. sports fans weren’t tired of seeing Kirk Cousins photoshopped onto opposing uniforms for the past 24 months, this Nats-Yanks series is sure to push them over the edge.
(Oh, and this is also a potential World Series matchup. The star power in this hypothetical championship duel would be unreal).
July 16-17: All-Star Week
All-Star festivities are rolling into the nation’s capital this summer. On Monday, the games best sluggers, potentially including Harper, will take on the Red Porch and the Nationals Park fences.
On Tuesday, the American League and National League All-Star squads will hit the field for the mid-summer classic. Five Nationals – Harper, Strasburg, Max Scherzer, Daniel Murphy, and Ryan Zimmerman – earned All-Star nods last year; Anthony Rendon and Trea Turner also have realistic All-Star shots in 2018.
Aug. 10-12: Redemption opportunity (at Chicago Cubs)
Washington will have to wait until the second half of the year for redemption against the Cubs after last October’s NLDS heartbreaker. Chicago lost the aforementioned Arrieta to free agency, but added righty Yu Darvish on a six-year, $126 million deal.
Adding to the fun, Chicago has been rumored as a potential landing spot for Harper this winter. Martinez also gets the chance to face his former team in his first season as the Nats’ manager.