Washington Nationals: 5 keys to victory in Wild Card Game

3. Strasburg in relief

If there’s any silver lining to be found in the inexplicable decision made by Baltimore Orioles manager Buck Showalter in the 2016 AL Wild Card Game to ride with Ubaldo Jimenez in extra innings while Zach Britton watched helplessly from the bullpen, it is that managers are now starting to manage the game for what it is — an absolute must-win game that has to be treated like there is no tomorrow. To that end, aces Stephen Strasburg and Patrick Corbin will join starter Max Scherzer on the Nationals roster for the Wild Card Game.

It’s going to be all hands on deck for the Nationals, and don’t expect any member of the team’s shoddy bullpen to see the mound in this game unless the score gets out of hand early. For as much money as Washington has spent on starting pitching, this is how it should be. The Brewers will attempt to counter that trio with as much as they can get out of relief ace Josh Hader.

Strasburg will be first man up out of the bullpen for the Nationals and he is coming off one of the best seasons of his 10-year career in the big leagues. Maybe it has something to do with all the hype that followed him as a No. 1 pick, but Strasburg has always been underrated. He has a better career ERA than Scherzer, lower WHIP, lower home-run rate, better FIP and better strikeout-to-walk ratio.

In 10 years, Strasburg has never pitched in relief, so the Nationals will need to try their best to have a set plan for when he will enter the game so that he can stick to his typical routine as closely as possible. It always seems like a great idea to use an ace in relief in a must-win game, but it doesn’t always work out.