Inspired by an MLB Network segment about each team in which they named the top players — position by position, we did the position players already — and now move to the starting rotation. This was fairly simple doing the first four names. Putting them in order of impact was a little more difficult.
For our purposes, let’s do a list of just Nationals players to keep this simpler.
No. 1 Starting Pitcher — Max Scherzer
CThis one of course came down to the two greatest pitchers in Washington Nationals history and choosing between Max Scherzer and Stephen Strasburg. Statistically in the regular season, the choice is Scherzer with the highest WAR of any Nats’ player and just ahead of Ryan Zimmerman with a +40.3 WAR in a Nats uni. That bested Strasburg by exactly 8.0 WAR, even though Scherzer only had 6 2/3 seasons donning the Nats uni. If you went postseason as your critieria, you go with Strasburg. This is about the whole package.
Of course Scherzer will be headed for enshrinement in Cooperstown in the Hall of Fame in the next decade. His two no-hitters, his 20-K game, the World Series championship, MVP votes, All-Star games, and the two Cy Young Awards are just some of his accomplishments as a Washington Nationals star. In fact, all but in the COVID 2020 season, Scherzer finished at or near the top of Cy voting in the rest of his Nats tenure totaling six years with top votes for the best NL pitcher.
Scherzer’s consistency and dominance were one thing, it was the way he competed and came into each Spring Training with something he tweaked or tried to improve on in the offseason. He never settled for “good enough” — it was about trying to be the best. Scherzer was one of the first pitchers known to go into the “pitcher’s lab” as those were getting popular in the last 10+ years.
No. 2 Starting Pitcher — Stephen Strasburg
This was easy to pick Stephen Strasburg at No. 2, once we established that Scherzer was at the top. Yes, Strasburg also ranked second for pitchers in most career WAR (32.3) in a Nats uni. And yes, Strasburg was a Nats for life player over three separate contracts that started with the largest signing bonus in baseball history at $15.1 million that still stands today. Remember when Strasburg signed as the clock was about to expire?
It was the Strasburg and Bryce Harper‘s draft deals that changed the way draft bonuses are done today in a slotting system. Nobody has gone over $10 million to this point in the new draft bonus era. With salary inflation, one day someone will eclipse the $15.1 million. Strasburg proved to be worth his first and second contract for $175 million. Unfortunately that third contract for $245 continues to be a cash drain on this Nats’ team as Strasburg fell to a career-ending injury. Still, he was so good for nearly 10-years and was the MVP of the Nats World Series win.
Strasburg’s career included All-Star appearances, Cy and MVP votes, and other accolades. Never forget that Strasburg began his career as an accomplished hitter too. He won the 2012 Silver Slugger with a .759 OPS and a .333 OBP. In that season, he had a better OPS than his three primary catchers that season as well as any bench player who appeared in 10-to-70 games. So when people would say that you need to play at least three games a week to stay potent with the bat — Strasburg proved that wasn’t the case.
What Strasburg will be forever loved for was his postseasons. His 1.46 ERA in the postseason for pitchers with at least 50.0 innings is near the tops with all Hall-0f-Famers.
The pitchers with the lowest career postseason ERAs (min. 50 IP) are:
- Mariano Rivera (0.70 ERA)
- Sandy Koufax (0.95 ERA)
- Christy Mathewson (1.06 ERA)
- Stephen Strasburg (1.46 ERA)
No. 3 Starting Pitcher — Jordan Zimmermann
The kid from Wisconsin that everyone passed on in the first round of the draft in 2007 was still there for the Nats in the second round. Jordan Zimmermann ranks third in WAR in a Nats uni at 20.3. They called him the bulldog for his demeanor on the mound. He was a 2-time All-Star and got Cy votes in two years. His best year was probably 2012 with that 2.94 ERA, and he was a Cy snub with no votes. He was pitching coach, Steve McCatty‘s prized pupal on when to pitch to contact to stay efficient in pitch counts. The Cy voters loved the higher strikeout pitchers, and while JZim was good, there was Clayton Kershaw, Strasburg, and the Nats also had Gio Gonzalez.
People might forget, four of the Nats starting pitchers in 2012 finished in the Top-25 in ERAs with Gonzalez, Zimmermann, Strasburg, and Ross Detwiler. Only Edwin Jackson was outside of the Top-25 in all of baseball. That was like having four No. 1’s on the staff in that magical season. A lot of credit to McCatty and manager Davey Johnson.
Zimmermann would throw the first no-hitter in Nats’ history, and also author some incredible postseason moments as a starter and a reliever. When Zimmermann showed emotion, you knew it was real. So underrated because he pitched in the shadow of Strasburg, the Zimmermann tenure was probably under-appreciated with a career 3.32 ERA in a Nats uniform, and his best season in 2014 with that 2.66 ERA was dominant. Four of his seasons, Zimmermann made every start he was penciled in for. If not for TJ surgery to start his MLB career, he might have been the best pitcher in Nats history.
No. 4 Starting Pitcher — Gio Gonzalez
When the Nats traded an absolute haul for Gio Gonzalez prior to the 2012 season, you might have thought ex-GM Mike Rizzo lost his mind. But Rizzo had a contract extension ready to go that would keep Gonzalez for seven years. His 2012 Nats’ debut season just edged out Jordan Zimmermann as the best pitcher that season as we discussed above.
Some would say that Gonzalez was as frustrating to watch as he was great in results. Known as the nibbler, he would go through bouts of 0-2 counts to start an at-bat then seemingly allow the count get to 3-2 to a walk. He would load the bases, and escape with no runs given up. But the pitch counts later in his career kept him from going deep in games. If you love pitcher wins, strikeouts, and low ERA, then Gio was your guy for a lot of his Nats’ tenure. If you detested walks and relied on FIP, well, Gio wasn’t going to be your cup of tea.
From 2012-2016, his ERA climbed every year going from 2.89 to 4.57, then in 2017, he returned to the Gio magic with a 2.96 ERA. He was a Nats’ All-Star in his career and two-times got Cy votes in that 2012 and 2017 season.
Gio didn’t understand his own analytics and wasn’t happy getting pulled early in starts. He wanted to be treated like Scherzer, but Gio wasn’t built like that. Too often Gio would pitch mostly fastballs and curveballs and find himself at 100 pitches or more in just 5.0 innings. But he’d pitch over 120 pitches if you let him — and he did.
In 2018, Gonzalez was traded to the Brewers and they changed him to a short-starter, and he thrived in that role with a career best 2.13 ERA averaging just over 5.0 innings. Today, a 5.0 inning starter isn’t that uncommon. We placed the lefty from Hialeah at No. 4 because of his overall impact of winning and his 21-8 mark in 2012 might stand for the rest of time in Nats’ history.
No. 5 Starting Pitcher — Livan Hernandez
This is where Nats’ fans might want other names here. Yes, Livan started as an Expo so technically his 19.8 career WAR wasn’t all in a Nats’ uni. Hernandez came from Cuba to the United States and was a star in Miami. He was traded to the Giants then to the Expos. The Nats traded him in 2007 and he came back to the team in 2009 as a free agent. He was an old-school pitcher where going deep into games mattered. He finished his career with 50 complete games. He paced himself, and rarely threw the ball at max effort.
In the Nats’ inaugural season in 2005, Hernandez somehow started 35 games, pitched 246 1/3 innings, and still managed to keep his ERA at 3.98. In 2010, he had his best season with the Nats at a 3.66 ERA at the age of 35. In the days when pitchers batted, he was adept at bunting. He was so good that the team had him demo bunting for all of the players. Hernandez was featured on the show MTV Cribs in 2005 as they toured his home and his car collection. On the field, he wasn’t flashy. Off the field, he was known as a showman.
Honorable Mention
This would probably be the time to mention some other notable starters in Nats’ history. And there were a lot. John Patterson could have been one of the greatest if his career wasn’t cut short by injuries. He was part of the Expos to Nats players back in the day.
Speaking of old-school guys, John Lannan started two Opening Days for the Nats. He kind of followed in Livan’s footsteps and didn’t throw at max effort. On Rizzo teams, he wanted those strikeouts, and Lannan’s best full-season was a K/9 of just 3.6 in 2008. In 2012, Davey Johnson named Lannan in Spring Training as a starter — but Rizzo days later penciled up the Opening Day roster, and Lannan was sent to Triple-A with Ross Detwiler taking his spot. Some think that when Lannan took the team to an arbitration hearing that was the reason for the demotion. Only Rizzo knows the answer to that. Lannan would make some key spot starts in the 2012 season — but was still non-tendered after that season.
Who else would you put on this list? Patrick Corbin had a very good 2019 season and of course a huge contributor to the Nats World Series win. But the rest of his five seasons with the team weren’t good overall. Some might put MacKenzie Gore on this list too. Let’s face it, there haven’t been dozens of great Nats starters over the years to place on this list. You had Tanner Roark, Anibal Sanchez, Joe Ross, Doug Fister, Jason Marquis, Shawn Hill, Chien-Ming Wang, Mike O’Connor, and Tim Redding as candidates for some great moments in Nats history. Roark had more than a few great moments. In fact when Scherzer was signed as a free agent, Roark was stuffed into the bullpen by default.
The rotations in 2007-2010 were lean as they have been the past four years. Rebuilds are tough. Some players take advantage of the opportunity. Who are some of your favorites?
Agree or Disagree
Certainly there will be some disagreement here. You can tell us how you would set your Nats top franchise starting pitchers. All I know is that in 10 more years, there better be some new names on this list!
