When Dave Martinez evaluates the way his players performed during the truncated 2020 season, he discounts whatever happened to start. With a pandemic and an abbreviated spring training period, the uncertainty of it all impacted some of his players early on.
So instead, the Washington Nationals manager looks toward the end of the season, right when his team began turning a corner — and right when the campaign came to an abrupt end, 102 games sooner than usual.
As Martinez and the Nationals prepare for the 2021 season, they believe there will be a return of some normalcy, at least where their pitching staff is concerned.