Despite losing 7 games in a row over the course of the last 2 weeks, the Nats are back on their climb to .500 following their sweep over the weekend, back at 59-61 for the year, and on a 3 game winning streak. With the cold streak hopefully well behind them, if the Nats are going to get hot, they must do it now with the NL Wild Card race heating up, and slowly tightening. If the Nats are going to be in contention to end their 7 year playoff streak, they must get at least 2 games back over the .500 line by the time August is over, as they currently sit 4.5 games out of the 3rd spot, and none of the other teams will be slowing down for them. There is also added pressure on the Nats to catch fire in August, as their remaining schedule for the month is very doable, before starting off September with back-to-back series against 2 division leaders in the Braves and Dodgers.

In their sweep over the weekend, the Nats heard whisperings from analysts that they haven’t heard all season: the Nats bullpen stepped up. Putting their bullpen through a huge revamp, moving arms up and down while also dealing for arms from other teams, they finally saw some results from what the deadline was all about over the weekend. Yovanny Cruz, included in the Luis Garcia Jr. trade pitched 2 outings against the Reds over the weekend, pitching 2 innings, allowing 0 runs, striking out 2 and acquiring a hold. Then, on Sunday, Jake Bird and Will Dion, both acquired in trades to the Nats over the deadline also got their chance, pitching a combined 4 innings, striking out 3, and allowing 0 runs. With the 3 new bullpen arms pitching at a higher level than the bullpen has preformed the whole year, Nats fans finally have some optimism going forward into the season, now hoping the weekend starts weren’t a fluke.

With the bullpen starting to turn the corner, the Nats offense finally feels it can work freely, as they have felt helpless for many games this year. Still leading the MLB in HRs, RBIs, Runs Per Game, stolen bases and OPS, if this bullpen can stay on a consistent pace, the offense turns this Nats team into a nightmare for opposing teams. Hopefully now able to have the freedom to score insurance runs to add to their lead, rather than feeling the need to score to stay in the game, the Nats offense should see some added opportunities to swing freely and focus more on getting on base, than driving in crunch time RBIs.

Also making waves as more good news for the Nats pitching rotation, since returning from injury on July 29th, Trevor Williams has been the real deal for the Nats as a long-reliever. Despite seeing a starting role in past years, and possibly working back towards the bigger role, Williams has been a great reliever since his return, pitching 8.1 innings, striking out 11, and not allowing a single run. The more options for the staff to look at in the pitching rotation the better, so let’s hope Williams can continue efficiency similar to this as the season goes forward.

Next Game: vs. Chicago Cubs, Tonight, 6:45 PM ET, Nationals Park

Probables: Nats — Jake Irvin, Cubs — Shota Imanaga

Key Storyline: Can the Nats make it 4 straight wins coming off a rest day at home against the Cubs?

The Rochester Red Wings, the Nats Triple-A affiliate, begin the week with a 67-45 record after dropping Sunday's series finale to the RailRiders. Despite the loss, Rochester won the six-game series 4-2 and continues to lead the International League East, powered by one of the league's most productive lineups featuring Trey Lipscomb, Leandro Pineda, Yohandy Morales, and Sam Petersen as several players remain in the conversation for a call-up to Washington.

The Harrisburg Senators, the Nats Double-A affiliate, open the new week at 54-53 after closing out a 5-1 series victory over Chesapeake with a 1-0 shutout on Sunday. Harrisburg continues to stay in the Eastern League playoff hunt, backed by a strong pitching staff and a talented core that has helped the club build momentum heading into another key week of August baseball.

The Wilmington Blue Rocks, the Nats High-A affiliate, enter the week with a 54-52 record after falling 4-2 in their six-game series against Brooklyn despite Sunday's 8-6 victory. Nats top overall prospect Eli Willits continues settling into High-A competition, while Wilmington remains firmly in the South Atlantic League playoff race with another important series beginning today.

The Fredericksburg Nationals, the Nats Single-A affiliate, remain first in the Carolina League North with a 67-40 record after completing an impressive 5-1 series win over Delmarva. The FredNats rallied for a dramatic 9-8 walk-off victory on Sunday and continue to feature one of the youngest and most talented rosters in Single-A, serving as the foundation of the Nats’ player development pipeline.