Washington Nationals

Every few seasons, a small market team emerges as a surprise contender.  Caught up in the rush of playoff talk, these teams often rush into trades without realizing the consequences of dealing away prospects in hopes of securing a playoff berth.

The Montreal Expos were that team in 2002. They made a blockbuster trade and in the process traded away three future All-Stars.

The Washington Nationals have frequently been the worse team in baseball. In their short existence, they have never won a World Series or even made it to the playoffs.

Constantly, the Nats have been plagued by inconsistency and failure to deliver the finishing touch.

This year, however, the Nationals are going to make the playoffs.

Heading into spring training, Michael Morse had already proven that he was a major league hitter. In parts of seven seasons, the 29-year-old had batted .284/.347/.440 with 21 homers and 92 RBI in 661 at-bats.

If he had a good spring, he had a lock on at least half of the left field job, likely platooning with Roger Bernadina. His spring however, was a knockout. Morse batted .364/.421/.818 with nine homers (second in the Grapefruit League) and 18 RBI.

He won the left field job outright.

Having completed an old fashioned double-header over the weekend, the Washington Nationals get set to  complete three games in a 24 hour span.

Sitting at 9-8 right now, a record good enough to sit on top of the N.L. Central, few notice because the Philadelphia Phillies and Atlanta Braves dominate the N.L. East ink.

Tonight, the Milwaukee Brewers (7-5) come into Washington, D.C. to face off against the Nationals (5-7).

Trips to Miami have been less than stellar for the Washington Nationals, and through the first two of a three-game set against the Marlins, nothing has changed.

The Nats blew leads on consecutive nights and were up against Florida ace Josh Johnson in the series finale. A Marlins' sweep looked about as likely as Pudge Rodriguez hitting into a double play.

When Stephen Strasburg was pulled from his start on August 21, the Nationals organization immediately knew it was a huge loss, competitively and financially.

Widely considered the "most-hyped draft pick in draft history," Strasburg was supposed to be the savior for the Nationals for years to come.

When he made his debut in June, every sign pointed to that notion becoming reality.

After the Washington Nationals’ 11-2 humbling at the hands of the Atlanta Braves, Ryan Zimmerman promised a better effort from the club on Tuesday. Then Zimmerman went out and backed up that promise.

Despite Zimmerman’s tremendous effort, a lack of clutch hitting and a tenth inning error by Jayson Werth allowed the Marlins to win 3-2 on a walk-off hit by Donnie Murphy.

After an exciting winter and encouraging spring, the Washington Nationals could not wait for Opening Day 2011 to arrive.

After an uneventful 2-0 loss at the hands of the Atlanta Braves though, the day turned out to be one the Nats will want to forget. The day was marred by umpire Tim Welke's amoeba-like strike zone, frigid temperatures and ominous dark clouds.

But it's Opening Day, so let's forget about the bad and look for the silver lining.

After an up-and-down winter and an encouraging spring, the Washington Nationals start their 2011 campaign Thursday with a matinee matchup with the Atlanta Braves.

While every Nationals fan is salivating over what 2012 and 2013 may bring, 2011 will be an interesting and important year for the organization going forward. Let this season forever be known as "The Foundation."