Washington Nationals on brink of history in 2019 World Series

Completing the plan put in place

The Washington Nationals still have one more step to take in this 2019 World Series, but they’re on the verge of completing a plan that was put in place a long time ago.

Mike Rizzo took over as the Washington Nationals general manager in 2009, the same year the Nationals took Stephen Strasburg first overall in the MLB Draft.

The next year they took Bryce Harper first overall, and then the year after that they took Anthony Rendon sixth overall.

That would be the last time the Nationals picked in the first half of the MLB Draft as they began a run of success by making the postseason in 2012.

Rizzo was building the foundation of a winner in Washington, while owner Ted Lerner was willing to open up his checkbook when needed to give Rizzo all the tools he needed.

Rizzo used those resources to acquire and sign guys like Max Scherzer and Patrick Corbin to pair with Strasburg.

He also pulled the trigger at the right time in trades for Trea Turner and Adam Eaton.

And then, of course, there was the foresight to sign 16-year-old Juan Soto back in 2015 when he was ranked as just the 25th best international prospect — props to you if you recognize five names ahead of Soto on that list.

All of these moves were made to put the Washington Nationals on this path and in a position to make history for this franchise.

While it may come to a surprise to some who haven’t been paying attention, this is something that has been in the works for a decade that has finally come to fruition.

This team was destined to be here, they deserve to be here.