His & Herz

 

When you're talking about a decidedly noncompetitive team, you have to look for the people that may not have the biggest statistical advantage but the bones are there. I think about when Robbie Ray was with the Diamondbacks, back when they were bad. There was one year where I think he led the league in losses but still struck everybody out. Same with Sandy Alcantara a few years ago, he was losing a ton of games, but you can't really blame him. Sometimes it's not you, it's just the team you're playing for.

The Nationals have four very good pitchers with sub-.500 W/L ratios that have held things up this season [and also Patrick Corbin]. I can see MacKenzie Gore, Jake Irvin, Mitchell Parker and D.J. Herz being real standouts in a version of this team that isn't mediocre. Hell, if Josiah Gray is back next year, in full force, he could be the fifth man that makes that rotation into a powerhouse. 

Looking at D.J. Herz this year, you can definitely see how good he'd look if he had a better team behind him. He's 4-7, but he has a 3.70 ERA and 98 Ks through his first 17 MLB starts. Herz was one of the guys the Nats got from Chicago in the deal that sent Jeimer Candelario to the Cubs, and seeing that Candelario is currently hurt on a different NL Central roster, Herz is looking like the better end of the deal. He's strong, imposing, reliable, consistent and strikes people out. He's also a pretty unique type of pitcher, there's not a ton of people out there who lunge at you blonde and red-faced. Like you're being attacked by Ian Ziering. 

This year alone, the Nats have called up Mitchell Parker, D.J. Herz, James Wood, Jose Tena, Trey Lipscomb, Andres Chaparro, Dylan Crews and Darren Baker. That could be the makings of the next generation of Nationals baseball. It's similar to the Orioles in the past few years, where you'd blink and then Rutschman, Henderson, Hall and Rodriguez would all be up in the majors. Well, now Dylan Crews and James Wood are 2/3rds of the Nationals outfield, and both are doing alright. Not full levels of dominance yet [like C.J. Abrams], but they've hit well enough to remain at the MLB level. Which is a very good thing for the future of this franchise.

I honestly think the Nats might have enough to compete next year. They only need one or two slight retoolings, and maybe some small free agency pieces like Adam Frazier who'd transition into support roles when everything worked out. The bulk of the youth movement is up, and hopefully they'll be helping this team along pretty soon.

Coming Tomorrow- For two years running he's been one of the best relief specialists in Detroit, which is honestly saying something.