The Nationals (93-69), actually finished with a better record than the St. Louis Cardinals, who won the NL Central with 91 wins. They feature three aces in Max Scherzer, Stephen Strasburg, and Patrick Corbin, to go along with two of the best hitters in the game in MVP-candidate Anthony Rendon and second-year star Juan Soto, first against the Brewers and then potentially against the Dodgers.
Washington was one of the hottest teams in baseball in the second half. On June 29, the Nationals were 41-41, a perfectly adequate .500, which meant their playoff hopes were limited. The team was in such a bad spot that rumors abounded surrounding the possibility of trading their superstar thirdbaseman Rendon.