The Nationals have really tightened up the bullpen this season especially at the end of games. 26-year old righty closer Matt Capps and 25-year old righty reliever Tyler Clippard have both been outstanding for the Nationals this season. Capps was brought in as a free agent after he had a off year for the Pirates in 2009. He has pithced in 12 games (0 starts) for the Nationals so far this season and he is 0-0 with 10 saves, a 0.68 ERA and a 1.35 WHIP. Capps has 15 strikeouts in 13 1/3 innings for the Nationals this season as he is being very aggressive and it’s paying off. Tyler Clippard has pitched in 11 games (0 starts) for the Nationals so far this season and he is 3-0 with a 0.54 ERA and a 0.84 WHIP. He has only given up 7 hits in 16 2/3 innings for the Nationals this year with 20 strikeouts as he has been truly awesome this year. Capps & Clippard are a big reason that the Nationals are hovering around .500 so far this year.

Starting LF Josh Willingham is off to a great start for the Nationals this year. Willingham has played in 20 games for the Nationals this season and he is 20 of 63 (.317 avg, 1.000 OPS) with 13 runs scored, 3 homers, 12 RBIs and 4 stolen bases. He is also showing great discipline at the plate as he has walked 18 times while only whiffing 9 times so far this season. Willingham is in line to have a career year as long as he can stay healthy. That might be easier said than done as he has had issues with his back in the not so recent past.

The Nationals have placed veteran starting pitcher Jason Marquis on the 15-day disabled list with a elbow problem that will cause him to miss between 4 and 6 weeks. Marquis has been pathetic so far this season for the Nationals starting 3 games in which he is 0-3 with a 20.52 ERA and a 2.88 WHIP. He has allowed a stunning 18 hits (2 homers) and he has walked 6 batters in only 8 1/3 innings pitched this season. You just knew something had to be wrong with Marquis physically and it was smart to shut him down quickly so that he can get healthy.

UPDATE: (5/12/2010) - Marquis is going to have surgery this Friday to remove bone chips from his throwing elbow. He will miss at least the next two months for the Nationals.

The Nationals have re-signed 40-year old lefty reliever Ron Villone to a minor league deal. Villone pitched in 63 games (0 starts) for the Nationals last season and he was 5-6 with a 4.25 ERA and a 1.71 WHIP. Villone will try to work his way back to the Nationals’ bullpen in 2010.

The Nationals are sitting at 6-6 on the season which has them in 4th place in the N.L. East, 2 games behind the Phillies. The Nationals have been outscored 77-60 this season so the pitching has been pretty awful. Timely hitting is the main reason that the Nationals are winning their fair share of games but for the winning to continue the pitching has to improve. The Nationals will host the Rockies (4 games) and Dodgers (3 games) this week.