But given the injury that knocked Stephen Strasburg out of the Nats' NLDS rotation, and the one that kept Joe Ross limited down the stretch, Gonzalez was Washington's clear No. 3 starter heading into the postseason. The club's success will depend upon how he fares in Los Angeles, where Gonzalez should be the most-rested National heading into a key Game 3 after the Nats evened the series. He flew ahead of his teammates due to Saturday's postponement, which eliminated Sunday's travel day.
"This is what everybody wants to do is play in the postseason, and I'm having an opportunity to actually pitch in it," Gonzalez said.