The Washington Nationals had a very successful season, finishing with a 95-67 record and clinching the National League East Division. They will be playing the Los Angeles Dodgers on Friday at 5:30 PM ET on Fox Sports 1. The Nationals are led by some big names such as Bryce Harper, Max Scherzer, and Stephen Strasburg. Yet the smaller names on the team have been what really makes this Nationals team one to worry about in the playoffs, with the signing of all-star second basemen Daniel Murphy, all-star catcher Wilson Ramos, and Rookie of the year candidate Trea Turner. All of the names mentioned had career years and batted above .300.  Daniel Murphy finished the year batting .347 with 25 homeruns and 104 RBIs. Wilson Ramos finished the year injured with a torn ACL, but still batted .307 with 22 homeruns and 80 RBIs. Trea had an amazing year starting as a shortstop and then making the adjustment of moving into the starting center fielder role for the Nats. He did just fine with the change by making only two errors the whole year and swiping 33 bags and only getting caught 6 times.

Last year’s MVP of the National league was Bryce Harper who had an amazing year batting .330, with 42 homeruns, 124 walks, and 99 RBIs. However, this year Harper had a below average year batting .243, with 24 homeruns, 108 walks, and 86 RBIs. Harper is still young but the Nationals fans hope Bryce will reach his full potential and become an even better up-and-coming star in the MLB. Stephen Strasburg had a very good start to the year for the Nats but sadly finished on the Disabled List. Nonetheless, he did finish with a 15 and 4 record and a 3.60 ERA. Even though Max Scherzer didn’t throw 2 no-hitters this year, he did arguably have his best season as a National, finishing with a 20 and 7 win to loss record, 284 strikeouts, and a 20 strikeout game.

This Nationals team is certainly a team to be reckoned with, finishing with a 95 and 67 record. The Dodgers must be wary about possible NL MVP Daniel Murphy, NL Rookie of the Year Trea Turner, and NL Cy Young Max Scherzer.