Nats face good test in extended stretch vs. playoff contenders

There's a ballgame tonight at Nationals Park, the first such ballgame there in 16 days. Such is life when you have a three-city road trip coming out of the All-Star break.

The Nationals team that takes the field tonight will be markedly different than the one that was last seen here July 9, when Joe Ross departed with an injury that turned out to be a torn elbow ligament and Matt Albers closed out a 10-5 victory over the Braves.

Edwin Jackson is now the No. 5 starter. Ryan Madson and Sean Doolittle now pitch the eighth and ninth innings. Andrew Stevenson is on the big league roster.

Here's what hasn't changed: The Nationals remain one of the best teams in baseball. Despite all the injuries and roster turnover and debate over Dusty Baker's lineup construction, this team just went 7-2 on the road and sports a 59-38 record, a .608 winning percentage that equates to 98.5 wins over a full season.

I know what some of you are saying right now in response: "Big deal. They play in the weakest division in the majors and don't beat good teams."

Guess what? You're wrong. Well, not about the weak division part. The National League East is dreadful. But the Nats are doing just fine against good teams. Actually, they're doing way better than just fine.

Do you know what the Nationals' record this season is against the Dodgers, Cubs, Diamondbacks and Rockies? How about 11-6. That's a .647 winning percentage. Against everybody else, they're 48-34, a .585 winning percentage.

Yes, the Nationals have played better against the NL's other playoff contenders than against the rest of the league.

No, they haven't played many games against top competition, but they've more than held their own when given the opportunity. And they're currently in the midst of a challenging portion of the schedule. They just played in Arizona, winning two of three. They now host the Central-leading Brewers and then the wild card-contending Rockies before heading back out on a road trip that includes a trip to Wrigley Field.

So this will be a decent test for Baker's squad. But if they handle it the way they've been handling the tests they've already faced this season, they'll emerge even stronger than before.