Washington Nationals: Three Positives for Nats with May Underway
By Tim James
The Washington Nationals failed to meet the team’s expectations in April. Here are a few reasons to stay positive as the month of May begins.
The first 32 games of the Washington Nationals 2019 season have not gone as planned in many ways.
Injuries to key contributors such as Anthony Rendon, Trea Turner, Ryan Zimmerman and, recently, Juan Soto have made a once powerful lineup unproductive.
The Nationals’ offensive depth has been tested right out of the gate. Victor Robles has stepped up and performed, as have both of the Nats’ new catchers, Yan Gomes, and Kurt Suzuki. However, the rest of the group has underwhelmed.
An epically lousy start to the season by the Nats’ bullpen crew certainly did not help matters. For the first few weeks, only Sean Doolittle could be reliably called upon to get outs, but he is typically reserved for save opportunities only.
As MASN’s Mark Zuckerman tweeted, 11 of the Nationals’ 18 losses have been caused by blown leads, most of which are the bullpen’s fault.
While they did have one stretch of 16 consecutive scoreless innings, it is very much a work in progress for Davey Martinez, and Paul Menhart, the new pitching coach.
Despite the struggles that have left fans frustrated and the team’s management searching for answers, there have been positive developments amid the otherwise depressing start to the season.