After winning nine games across a season defining 10-game road trip, the Washington Nationals were flying high with confidence. Unfortunately, the injury bug dealt a serious blow as Adam Eaton, acquired in the offseason from the Chicago White Sox to be the Nationals’ centerfielder and leadoff batter, tore his ACL and will miss the rest of the season.
Washington Nationals’ Adam Eaton (2) is safe at first against New York Mets first baseman T.J. Rivera (54) during the ninth inning of a baseball game, Friday, April 28, 2017, in Washington. Eaton was injured on the play. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)
It is a devastating turn of events for the first place Nats, whose high-powered offense has been on cruise control for the better part of April. Through April 28, Washington was scoring 6.3 runs per game, nearly a full run more than the next team. Daniel Murphy, Bryce Harper and Ryan Zimmerman have delivered outstanding starts to the season and lead the majors in RBIs. A key reason for their productivity was Eaton, who has been the table-setter envisioned when the trade was made. A gritty and undersized sparkplug who goes by the nickname of Mighty Mouse, he provided a 297 batting average, .393 on-base percentage, and .462 slugging percentage in his first 23 games before going down.
Despite the loss of Eaton, Dusty Baker’s lineup up is still loaded. Young phenom Trea Turner looks as good as any leadoff hitter in the game—and he will be thrust back into that role. Harper looks to have regained his 2015 MVP form. Ditto for Murphy, last year’s MVP runner-up. And Zimmerman looks better than both of them—and everyone else in the majors right now—with a .402 batting average, 11 home runs and 27 RBIs.
Washington Nationals’ Daniel Murphy, center, turns to Bryce Harper, right, as they head to the dugout with Ryan Zimmerman after Murphy hit a three-run home run off Colorado Rockies relief pitcher Chris Rusin during the seventh inning of a baseball game Wednesday, April 26, 2017, in Denver. Washington won 11-4. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)
Beyond the notable injury, the team has been on a roll. Zimmerman’s resurgence has been borderline amazing. In a 5-3 loss to the Mets on April 29, Zimmerman provided all the run support the Nats needed, going 3-for-4 with a solo homer. His 11 home runs in April matches his career high; he hit 11 in September 2013. Zimmerman’s shot against the Mets broke a tie with Andre Dawson to move into second place on the franchise list with 226.
Still, after suffering two losses in a homestand against the New York Mets and being confronted with Eaton’s injury, Washington may be a in a bit of trouble. There is no way for the offense to keep up their torrid pace of April; eventually the massive holes on the team’s defense will be exposed. The bullpen is in shambles as two of its supposed stalwarts, Joe Blanton and Blake Treinen, have been flat-out awful—both relievers finished the month with ERAs over 10.
With a four-game lead in the National League East, April has been a good month overall for the Nationals, but there are still huge questions to answer before this team will contend for a world championship.
