Since December 2013, the Nationals have traded pitchers Robbie Ray, Nick Pivetta, Lucas Giolito and Reynaldo Lopez. All four have been starters in the major leagues this season, with varying degrees of success.
The Nationals, meanwhile, have seen their season unravel thanks to a revolving door of ineffective — with the exception of All Star Max Scherzer — closers, relievers and, most surprisingly, starters.
Starting pitching, the team’s strength as recently as a couple of seasons ago, has imploded this year.
It’s one of the reasons third-place Washington (60-61) was nine games back of first-place Atlanta in the National League East through Wednesday.
Scherzer (15-5, 2.19), slated to pitch at home Friday night against the Marlins, is on track for a possible third straight Cy Young Award in the National League.
But the three other returning members of the rotation have struggled. And two of them have an ERA a full run higher than last year. Stephen Strasburg (6-7, 3.90) had a 2.52 ERA in 2017 while Gio Gonzalez (7-9, 4.12) posted a 2.96 mark.
Tanner Roark (7-12, 4.12 through Wednesday) has actually improved since last season, when he had a 4.67 ERA. But the right-hander lost six straight decisions before winning four starts in a row going into his Thursday outing in St. Louis.
Strasburg, who threw a bullpen session Wednesday, has made just 14 starts and has been on the disabled list since July 25 with a cervical nerve impingement. He could start at home Tuesday against the second-place Phillies, who entered Thursday seven games ahead of the Nationals.
Strasburg has made less than 29 starts in each of the previous three seasons.
“I think you just got to listen to your doctor,” Strasburg said Wednesday. “If I was here there’s no guarantee that I would be contributing. I’d like to think I would be.”
He could certainly do better than lefty Tommy Milone (1-1), who has an 5.24 ERA in four starts in Strasburg’s stead.
Fellow fill-in starter Erick Fedde is 1-3 with a 5.79 ERA in six starts this season. He has been on the disabled list since July 5 with right shoulder inflammation.
Rookie Jefry Rodriguez is 1-1 with a 5.84 ERA in six games, including four starts. He may be best suited out of the bullpen, where the Nationals could also use some help these days.
Austin Voth, now at Triple-A Syracuse, allowed seven runs in less than five innings in his only start for the Nationals this season — on July 14 against the Mets.
In part thanks to Scherzer, the Nationals’ starters had a 3.89 ERA through Wednesday for the sixth-best mark in the league.
Jeremy Hellickson was signed at the end of spring training and eventually became the No. 5 starter. He took the spot of A.J. Cole, who was 1-1 with an ERA of 13.06 in four games (two starts) this year with the Nationals and is now a Yankees reliever.
Hellickson bounced back from a horrid 2017 season and is 5-3 with an acceptable 3.57 ERA this season. But he has averaged just under five innings in 18 starts, and that puts pressure on the bullpen to get the remaining outs.
He had to leave his start in Wednesday’s 4-2 loss in St. Louis when he hurt his pitching hand while trying to make a play at the plate after his wild pitch.
“Our pitching we’ll get straightened out,” manager Dave Martinez said Wednesday. “Our bullpen is beat up a little bit.”
If Hellickson can’t make his next start, the Nationals will once again need another starter, unless Strasburg can fill the void.
Would it help to have either all-star Ray (3-2, 4.83), Pivetta (7-9, 4.37), Lopez (4-9, 4.40) or Giolito (8-9, 6.15) in the rotation? Probably. But like several teams, the Nationals decided to trade youth for veterans for a postseason shot. Now those decisions could be hurting this season’s longshot playoff push.
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