Cincinnati Reds face reeling Nationals as trade deadline looms

Photo by Ishika Samant/Getty Images

Here are all the reasons why - on paper - the Cincinnati Reds should waltz right past the Washington Nationals in this week’s series in the nation’s capital:

• The Nationals are in dead last in the NL East at just 39-60 overall
• They’ve lost 10 of their last 12 games overall
• They just lost on Sunday to the San Diego Padres 8-1, and their already taxed bullpen was forced to shoulder a gaudy 6.2 IP in the process
• Sunday’s loss also featured their ace in lefty MacKenzie Gore (who was shelled in 2.1 IP), meaning the Reds won’t face Gore in this series
• The Reds are the greatest baseball team the world has ever seen

Cincinnati, fresh off taking the series in New York against the Mets over the weekend, has surged right back into the playoff hunt, and their work in the Big Apple actually pushed them past the St. Louis Cardinals and into 3rd place in the NL Central. They also leapfrogged the Birds in the NL Wild Card chase and now sit tied with the San Francisco

Giants at just 2.5 games back of the Padres for the senior circuit’s final playoff spot.

I suppose I could have made that last paragraph a bullet point for why the Reds should waltz right past the Nationals, too - they’re the team entering this series with absolutely everything to play for. They’re playing good ball when it matters most, doing everything in their power to cement their status as buyers ahead of next week’s July 31st trade deadline.

Brady Singer will toe the rubber for Monday’s series opener, while fireballing rookie Chase Burns will follow him with Tuesday evening’s start. Nick Lodolo will then take the mound for Wednesday’s matinee series finale before the Reds head back to GABP for a 9-game homestand against Tampa Bay, the Los Angeles Dodgers, and the Atlanta Braves that will both bridge the trade deadline and help define not just the 2025 season, but how this era of the Reds front office will be judged ad infinitum.

It would go a long, long way towards making things more obvious if the Reds could simply take care of business against a bad, bad Nats team this week.

Photo by Focus on Sport/Getty Images

Go Reds!

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