“Stuck in the Middle with You,” was a catchy bit of FM ear candy in the 1970s, but there’s nothing sweet about what the Nationals are stuck with in the middle of their pitching rotation these days.
Getting from their All-Star-level starters to the team’s more-than-solid closer has become a daily dash across a minefield for the Nationals, currently in the midst of West Coast road trip.
In games through Sunday, the Nationals’ pitching staff had an ERA of 3.48 in the first six innings — eighth out of 15 teams in the National League. But from the seventh inning and on, that number balloons to 5.