As I write this, the Washington Nationals are 17-28, which is 9.5 games back in the division.
As for the National League, Washington is outpacing onlythe Arizona Diamondbacks and Pittsburgh Pirates.
The Nationals could, theoretically, still sneak into the playoffs, but it’s a long shot. Coming into the season, many were high on the defending champions, but a slew of injuries have derailed any potential plans the Nats had to repeat. Mix in some underperforming assets and it’s the correct combination for a letdown of a year.
According to RotoWire’s injury list, the Nationals currently have 19 players on the IL (including the three opt outs, Ryan Zimmerman, Joe Ross, and Wellington Castillo, as well as a pair of suspensions).