Nats who's hot/who's not-6/26

Photo by USA Today

By Michael Huberman

CSNwashington.com

Record: 4-3

Runs per game: 4.42

Opponent runs per game: 3.85

Team slash: .252/.298/.395

Opponent slash: .259/.295/.381

Team ERA: 3.52

HOT:

Stephen Strasburg, SP – 1-0/1 ER/7 IP/5 H/9 SO

After his dominant outing Friday night against the Rockies, Strasburg has now given up just two runs in twelve innings since coming off the disabled list. Some will look at Strasburg’s 4-6 record and think he hasn’t performed up to expectations, but a closer look at his number reveals just how good he’s been this year. As Mark Zuckerman highlighted in his piece on some of the Nats’ more surprising stats, Strasburg ranks in the top ten in the National League in ERA (2.40), strikeouts per nine innings (8.97) and hits per nine innings (6.67).

Jordan Zimmermann, SP – 1-0/0 ER/8 IP/6 H/9 K

Zimmermann latest outing served as yet another piece of evidence to support his candidacy to start the All-Star Game for National League. The competition is tough with Clayton Kershaw, Adam Wainwright, Patrick Corbin, and Matt Harvey all having legitimate cases to make the start. Whether Harvey gets the nod in front of the hometown Citi Field crowd remains to be seen, but Zimmermann’s numbers (10-3, 2.26 ERA, 0.93 WHIP, 5.07 K/BB ratio) stack up well against his rivals.

Ian Krol, RP – 0-0/0 ER/2.1 IP/0 H/4 SO

Krol has now thrown eight and two thirds consecutive scoreless innings, including two dominant innings on Sunday against the Rockies. Krol has now struck out 12 batters while giving up just one hit and one walk in his brief career. Losing Michael Morse may have hurt, but picking up a young, power left-hander with the potential to dominate out of the bullpen isn’t a bad return.

Jayson Werth, OF – 6-15/3 R/3 RBI/.500 OBP/.467 SLG

The Nationals will need a healthy and productive Werth in their quest to turn this season around, and of late they’ve certainly gotten the production. Since he returned June 4 against the Mets, Werth is hitting .297/.375/.484 with three home runs and 10 RBI. In his last ten games, Werth is an impressive 12-for-29 (.413) with two home runs.

Adam LaRoche, 1B – 9-18/1 HR/1 3B/.571 OBP/.778 SLG

LaRoche’s three run homer off Trevor Cahill set the tone for the Nationals’ 7-5 win over the Diamondbacks on Tuesday night, and recently he’s been hot. Since the Nationals’ 4-2 loss June 18 against the Phillies, LaRoche is 11-for-22 (.500) with a triple, home run, three walks, and five RBI.

NOT:

Dan Haren, SP – 0-1/6 ER/3.1 IP/7 H/5 SO

After his latest poor outing Saturday against the Rockies, Haren has now lost in six of his last eight starts. He’s tied with Jeremy Guthrie for the league lead in home runs allowed (19), he’s in the top ten in hits allowed (105) despite only pitching 82 innings, and opposing hitters are hitting .306 off of him, placing him 96^th of 98 qualified starting pitchers.  Obviously this is not what the Nationals had in mind when they signed him this offseason, but even the biggest optimist has to be surprised by how poorly Haren’s pitched. It’s never easy to watch a veteran struggle like this, so hopefully Haren’s trip to the disabled list will give him an opportunity to figure things out.

Ross Detwiler, SP – 0-1/3.2 IP/7 ER/9 H/2 HR

Ross Detwiler through May 15, before his trip to the DL: 2-4 with a 2.76 ERA in 45 2/3 innings. Ross Detwiler since returning from the DL on June 13: 0-2 with 8.59 ERA in 14.2 innings. The back end of the rotation was once a strength for the Nationals, but with Detwiler and Haren’s recent struggles, could it be time to see what’s available on the market?

Kurt Suzuki, C – 3-19/1 XBH/2 RBI/.190 OBP/.401 OPS

Suzuki’s been in a tough spot due to Wilson Ramos’ injury issues, but the 29-year-old has really struggled at the plate. After putting up a .243/.274/.257 slash with just one extra-base hit in May, Suzuki’s been even colder in June, as he’s put together a .143/.210/.214 slash with four extra-base hits in 56 at-bats.