The Washington Nationals' erratic first half of the season has been a learning experience for the fans as they come to grips with a team that may not, after all, be the first-ever 162-game winner, and for the clubhouse staff as they conduct detergent-related science experiments to get chocolate sauce out of jersey fabric.
Baseball rarely ever follows a script, but it looks like the Nationals didn't even attempt to learn their lines. After opening the season as consensus World Series favorites, Washington promptly started said season with a 3-8 record. The team followed that early face-plant with three months' worth of peaks and valleys.