The Nationals have placed starting pitcher Jason Bergmann on the 15-day disabled list with a strained left hamstring.  Bergmann has been one of the best starters for the Nationals this season so this hurts them.  Bergmann has started 14 games this season and he is 2-5 with a 4.56 ERA and a 1.23 WHIP.  He has thrown 75 innings and he has allowed 63 hits, walked 29 batters and whiffed 55.  Lefty Billy Traber will likely get a shot to replace Bergmann in the rotation.  He has pitched in 25 games (1 start) this season for the Nationals and he is 2-1 with a 4.09 ERA and a 1.42 WHIP.  In 33 innings this year he has allowed 36 hits, walked 11 batters and whiffed 23.

The Nationals have rewarded 2B Ronnie Belliard with a 2-year, $3.5 million dollar contract extension through the 2009 season.  Belliard has earned the contract because of his play on the field which has been very good.  He has played in 85 games so far this season for the Nationals and he is 81 for 266 (.305 avg, .754 OPS) with 23 runs scored, 5 homers and 29 RBIs. 

The Nationals have signed Hector Carrasco to a minor league contract for the rest of the season.  He pitched in 29 games (1 start) for the Angels this season and he was 2-1 with a 6.75 ERA and a 1.75 WHIP.  Carrasco threw 38.1 innings and he has allowed 44 hits, 8 homers, walked 23 batters and whiffed 33.  Carrasco will be in the Nationals bullpen soon and he will likely pitch decent for them as this was a good signing.

Mike Bacsik, Ray King and Jason Simontacchi have been throwing batting practice after the game has begun.  Simontacchi is in the Nationals starting rotation for now but one has to wonder how long they will stick with him.  He is 6-6 with a 6.11 ERA and a 1.58 WHIP so far this season.  It’s hard to imagine him getting his season turned around when you realize that he has allowed 86 hits and 10 homers already this season.  Lefty Mike Bacsik is also in the Nationals current rotation but he might not be there too much longer.  He is 2-6 with a 5.20 ERA and a 1.50 WHIP so far this season and that just won’t get it done in the major leagues.  He has allowed 69 hits (12 of them homers) in only 55.1 innings this season.  Situational lefty reliever Ray King has been awful this season also as he is 0-0 with a 5.40 ERA and a 1.48 WHIP this season.  He has allowed an amazing 5 homers in only 21.2 innings this season.

Many thought the Nationals were going to have a pretty awful pitching staff….but they haven’t been that bad.  It’s too bad that the Nationals couldn’t keep Shawn Hill and Jason Bergmann both healthy because they have both been outstanding this season.  Hill is 3-3 with a 2.70 ERA and a 1.06 WHIP so far this season while Bergmann is 1-5 with a 3.47 ERA and a 1.11 WHIP this year.  Both of those pitchers have what it takes to be major parts of the future rotation of the Nationals.  Jesus Colome has been quite a find.  He always has had the stuff to succeed in the majors but he never put it all together on the pitchers’ mound until this season.  He is 4-0 with 1 save, a 2.76 ERA and a 1.29 WHIP this year as he seems to have found a new home in Washington.  Chad Cordero has also pitched pretty well this year as he is 1-2 with 15 saves, a 3.00 ERA and a 1.36 WHIP.  He likely will be traded in the coming weeks to a contender.  Jon Rauch (3-2, 3 saves, 3.86 ERA) and Saul Rivera (2-2, 3 saves, 3.62 ERA) have also been dependable in set up roles for the Nationals this year.