image uploaded by yostinator on Flickr
By Andrea Klee
Last week, we looked at two things that may turn the 2012 Nationals team into one that could make a run for the playoffs. Well, in the meantime, Major League Baseball made things a little easier for our friendly ballplaying neighbors; MLB just instituted an additional wild card team from each league. That means, potentially, that a team could make the playoffs even if its record is not historically great. And last season’s World Series winner was actually the worst team in the bunch that made it to the playoffs. So should the Nationals make it, anything, seriously anything, could happen.
In fact, I was in Vegas last week and, for fun, I placed two highly optimistic $10 bets on the Nats: the first to make it to the World Series, the other to win. Oddsmakers have the former at 8-to-1, the second at 18-to-1. Not terrible, surprisingly.
And now, check out these three additional reasons the Nationals may be in that position come September:
3. Starting pitching
Before the offseason began, the starting pitching lineup included Jordan Zimmermann, John Lannan, Chien-Ming Wang, Ross Detwiler and someone you might have heard of: Stephen Strasburg. Jordan Zimmermann turned in some stellar performances throughout the past season, but was limited to 160 innings, allowing him to heal following his return from Tommy John surgery. Going into 2012, he’s ready to put in the work, and will likely be a solid number 2 on the rotation. Stephen Strasburg is also a Tommy John-recoveree, though one year behind Jordan, and therefore will also be limited to 160 innings in 2012. Chien-Ming Wang was re-signed as a free agent over the offseason. Wang returned mid-season from about 2 years away, after major shoulder issues kept him sidelined. He’s fought to get back into the game, and several games I attended left me feeling optimistic that he could be back to his old self, which was really very good. Now, I’ll get back to the other two 2011 pitchers in a minute.
In two somewhat surprising moves this offseason, Mike Rizzo traded away four of the Nationals top prospects—Tommy Milone, Brad Peacock, A.J. Cole and Derek Norris—to Oakland for Gio Gonzalez, a young left-handed starter that has been great and is expected to exceed his past performances. He typically has had some control issues, but those have steadily been lessening as he’s matured. Rizzo followed up the trade by signing Gonzalez to a contract extension, ensuring he’ll be third in the rotation, following Strasburg and Zimmermann, until 2016. The second starting rotation acquisition came a few weeks before spring training, when Rizzo signed free agent starting pitcher Edwin Jackson, partially to create further stability in the starting rotation—Jackson has typically been a workhorse, turning in 200 innings of work—and will be helpful when Strasburg is shutdown for the season in late August or early September.
So now there are at least two odd men left out and fighting for jobs. John Lannan, the opening day starter in 2009 and 2010, who was once the cornerstone of the organization, doesn’t have an assured place with all the slots filled, but this quandary will work itself out over Spring Training. Ross Detwiler is also looking for work. At times, Detwiler has showcased stellar stuff, but overall has been inconsistent and has not, as teachers would say, lived up to his potential.
However, an overabundance of pitching is a good problem to have. Starting pitchers get injured, and having more than necessary is essential. Further, this is the strongest group assembled since the team arrived in town, and the buzz among actual baseball writers is heightened. It’s going to be a very interesting year.
4. The Face of the Franchise: Ryan Zimmerman
Of the two Zimms on the team, Ryan is the one that non-fans are likely aware of, though he’s a quiet leader. The new Nationals’ very first draft pick in 2005, Zimmerman just signed a contract extension that will keep him in a Nationals uniform through at least 2019, hopefully finishing his career here. That’s a rare trait in today’s baseball player: someone who wants to stay with the same team. He’s put up strong offensive numbers, and has been a steady and reliable defensive force at third base since 2005. The one thing to watch is his propensity for injury; he sat out much of 2011 with a torn abdominal muscle that needed surgery, and he also missed a large part of other seasons with injuries. But Zimmerman often delivers the fireworks (or blasts on the Navy horn); he has many career walk-offs, more than anyone else playing currently. He played through the hard times at Nationals Park, and will hopefully be rewarded with some high notes in the next few years.
5. Michael Morse
When he goes into Beast Mode, Michael Morse turns on the power. Thanks to him, the Nationals had some offense in 2011, hitting 31 home runs in all, with Zimmerman out and Jayson Werth slumping. He’s a joy to watch, because he exhibits an exuberance for the game; he seems grateful to be there, playing every day, because, for him, that role wasn’t guaranteed until last season.
Where did Morse come from? Well, he was bounced around through several farm systems, and continuously missed out on his big chance. When he played for the Nationals in 2010, he primarily was off the bench or a late-in-the-game substitution. Last spring training, Morse absolutely crushed baseballs, and won himself a starting job for the first time just based on that offensive performance. However, when he started the season, Morse slumped a bit, ultimately losing his spot once again. Adam LaRoche, the Nationals first baseman, who had a tear in his shoulder, ended up needing surgery, and Morse took over for him. And that’s when the fun began. Morse began to hit, a lot, and baseballs began flying out of the ballpark. At one point in the season, he trailed only a couple of hitters in offensive numbers, names such as Pujols and Fielder and Braun. It’s a feel good story of a guy finally getting his shot, and proving that he deserved it all along. No one really knows if Morse can keep this up, but he’s gonna give it a shot (moreover, he believes he can), and it’s a fun thing to follow.