End of the Road 2015: Washington Nationals

After their win Saturday, the Washington Nationals have been mathematically eliminated from the MLB postseason because of New York Mets’ win, meaning that they’ve effectively come to end of the road in their 2015 season. As we’ll do with each eliminated team this season, let’s give them a send-off that would make Boyz II Men proud. 

We’ll look at the high and lows of their season, what bright spots their future might hold and what questions need answering as they prepare for 2016.

HIGH POINT: During one stretch in May, the Nationals won 18 of 23 games and were looking every bit as advertised in terms of a frontrunner for the National League pennant. Washington was nine games over .500 and on May 26 when the positive mojo seemed to start to lose its steam. The team lost seven of its next 10 games and has played sub-.500 baseball since May 25.

[On this week’s StewPod: The major storylines heading into the week of the MLB season.]

LOW POINT:
With all the injuries, disappointment and turmoil the club experienced this season, it’s difficult to pick just one, but we’ll go with Saturday since it marked the official demise of what nearly everyone expected to be a memorable season. Most consdered Washington a contender to represent the National League in the World Series when he season began. So falling so woefully short of that a week before the regular season ends and being eliminated on a day when they recorded a walkoff win sounds abour right in terms of lowpoints.

BEST HIGHLIGHT:
Max Scherzer missed a perfect game with two outs in the bottom of the ninth on June 20 by hitting Pittsburgh pinch-hitter Jose Tabata with a pitch, but Scherzer did manage to complete the no-hitter.

HOPE FOR THE FUTURE: Well, The roster does include Bryce Harper, one of the best young talents in the game who will be given strong consideration for the National League MVP award despite the season his team has produced. Pitching staff also includes Stephen Strasburg and Max Scherzer, two guys capable of greatness even though neither achieved it this summer.  There are some decisions to be made about who fills out the roster around those guys but there is no reason to think Washington won’t be incontention for the playoffs deep into the 2016 season, especially if some of the chemistry issues in the clubhouse get solved over the winter.

QUESTION THAT NEEDS ANSWERING: Matt Williams led the Nationals to 96 wins and won the National League manager of the year award in 2014 but apparently lost his team at some point this season and is future with the club is very much in doubt. General manager Mike Rizzo has many personnel decisions to make, including whether to bring back popular players such as pitcher Jordan Zimmermann and shortstop Ian Desmond.

Footnote:  The Seattle Mariners, Boston Red Sox, Tampa Bay Rays and defending champion San Francisco Giants are the teams next in line to be eliminated. 

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Kyle Ringo is a contributing writer to Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter! Follow @KyleRingo