24-year old righty reliever Tyler Clippard is stepping up for the Nationals. He was a starting pitcher in the minors for the Yankees but he appears to like his new role which he is excelling at. Clippard has pitched in 25 games (0 starts) for the Nationals this season and he is 2-1 with a 2.56 ERA and a 1.03 WHIP. Clippard has only allowed 21 hits in 38 2/3 innings this season while whiffing 45 batters as his stuff seems much better in the shorter stints in games out of the bullpen. The Nationals hope he keeps up the good work and finishes the season strongly.

24-year old lefty John Lannan is without a doubt the best starting pitcher the Nationals have to offer. He has started 16 games this season and he is 5-5 with a 3.45 ERA and a 1.35 WHIP. Teams have been asking about Lannan’s availability but the Nationals would be nuts to move him as solid young lefty starting pitchers are hard to find. Lannan is the kind of pitcher you can build a staff around.

32-year old righty Mike MacDougal has taken over as the closer of the Washington Nationals. He has pitched in 15 games so far this season for the Nationals and he is 0-0 with 3 saves, a 1.26 ERA and a 1.33 WHIP. The Nationals have been picking up pitchers at a alarming rate trying to catch lightning in a bottle and it looks like they might have some in MacDougal.

23-year old lefty starting pitcher John Lannan has been outstanding this season but you wouldn’t know it looking at his record. Lannan has started 20 games this season for the Nationals and he is 6-10 with a 3.33 ERA and a 1.29 WHIP. He should have a lot more wins than he has as either the Nationals’ offense or bullpen often seems to let him down when he pitches. Still, it’s nice to see a young pitcher that the Nationals can try to build a pitching staff around.

Big Jon Rauch has done a great job this season filling in for injured closer Chad Cordero. A lot of teams have interest in trading for Rauch but the Nationals’ would be smart to keep him. Rauch has pitched in 43 games for the Nationals this season and he is 4-2 with 17 saves, a 2.49 ERA and a 0.95 WHIP. Rauch has also had great control so far this year as he has only walked 6 hitters while whiffing 40 in 43.1 innings for the Nationals. The Nationals have strength in the bullpen and they should try to hold onto all of the pitchers out there unless some team overwhelms them with an offer that they can’t refuse.