It should come as no surprise to anyone that 39 games in and the Washington Nationals are in the cellar of the NL East. Sitting at 13-26, Washington has the second worst record in the league, ahead of only the Cinncinatti Reds (11-26). Starting pitching and offensive consistency have plagued the Nats — with the team unable to get out of its own way. They also lead the league in errors (32), with five coming in their last three games. Despite the struggles, a few players have found a way to stand out.
Here are the three biggest surprises to the start of the Washington Nationals’ 2022 season
The Bullpen
Entering the 2022 season, the Washington Nationals’ biggest weakness was the bullpen — having finished 2021 in all of baseball in losses (42), tied for last in FIP (4.86) and blown saves (34), 29th in ERA (5.08), and fWAR (-0.2), and 28th in LOB% (67.7%). Despite having one of the worst relief cores in 2021, they decided against completely revamping the group. They signed veteran Steve Cishek and brought back old friend Sean Doolittle on respective one-year deals.
Additionally, they signed a plethora of aging veterans and players coming off of injuries to minor league deals. Mike Rizzo and Dave Martinez decided to trust their incumbent group and hoped for Tanner Rainey, Kyle Finnegan, and Mason Thompson to take the next steps.
Through 37 games, the Nationals bullpen has been inconsistent, going 2-3, with a 4.08 ERA, and a 3.61 FIP. They’ve only stranded 70.7% of runners and are a measly 4/8 in save opportunities. Yet, compared to last year this group is drastically improved, though that’s not saying much.
Part of the bullpen’s recent struggles is due to injuries, with Doolittle and Thompson having both been placed on the 60-day IL. A bright spot has been Victor Arano posting a 1.36 FIP in 16 2/3 innings.