The Washington Nationals will have a losing record on their most recent road trip. Is there a chance for a rebound during the rest of May?
The Washington Nationals are in the midst of one of the most brutal road trips in recent memory.
Their comeback victory again the Philadelphia Phillies on May 4 seems like it occurred months ago as four consecutive multi-run losses followed it.
As a result, the Nats are falling farther and farther behind the leaders in the National League East. After Friday’s games, they sit 6.5 GB of the Phillies, 3.5 GB of the Atlanta Braves, and 3 GB of the New York Mets.
With Max Scherzer and Stephen Strasburg slated to pitch tonight and tomorrow, winning one of the remaining two games in the Dodger series and earning a split is well within reach, keeping the Nats within striking distance of the division leaders.
After Sunday’s afternoon game, the Nats take a much-needed off-day on Monday. Once the schedule resumes on Tuesday, the Nats will play 10 of their remaining 17 May games in Washington D.C.
During this period, the Nats will have a chance to gain ground on the second and third place teams in the N.L. East.
The Nats play 13 intradivisional games in May, seven of which come against the Mets.
(As if the Nats weren’t sick of them enough from playing those guys in six of the first eight games of the season).
The Nats also get a chance to pad their win total with a four-game weekend series against the Miami Marlins.
Believe it or not, there are teams indisputably worse than the Nationals. The Marlins are one of them, as their ten wins rank dead last in the MLB. Their team OPS of .595 also ranks dead last and is nearly 50 points behind the next worst team.
Rounding out divisional play for the month, the Nats will visit Atlanta for a two-game set before another off day on May 30.
The one series I’ve yet to mention is a home series against the Chicago Cubs. This series could be big trouble.
Sure, the Cubs are a good team and all, but I’m not talking about baseball. There is a more pressing issue at hand.
The Nats and Cubs play the Sunday Night Baseball game on ESPN during the “GOT” series finale.
After what David Bote did to the Nats last season, there is only one way for the team to respond.