The mostly uninspiring history of the Nationals is littered with pitchers whose mission was simple: Keep the ball down in the zone, induce groundballs and pray their defense could finish the job.
VIERA, Fla. -- The Nationals could have handed the ball on Opening Day to any one of their top four starters, and few would have raised an eyebrow. Gio Gonzalez is a 16-game winner and All-Star.
VIERA, Fla. -- Spring training pitching lines mean very little in the grand scheme of things. Guys are more interested in getting work done and building up arm strength than producing results.
It's a tired cliche among baseball folks: "You can never have enough pitching." Yes, it's true. No team has ever been hurt by having too many good pitchers on its staff.
With each passing year, the Nationals begin to establish more and more of their own identity. When they first arrived in town in 2005, they were still the relocated Montreal Expos.
