The Washington Nationals Will Turn the Corner Sooner Than Expected

The Washington Nationals are on a pace to finish the season at 56-106, four games worse than last year’s woeful effort.   Their wish list for next year, however, is not nearly as long as their record would suggest.   They are set with quality major leaguers at catcher (Jesus Flores), first base (Adam Dunn), shortstop (Cristian Guzman), third base (Ryan Zimmerman), left field (Josh Willingham), and center field (Nyjer Morgan) .   Second is a problem and right field could be if Elijah Dukes doesn’t continue to mature. That said, had Dukes played regularly this year, he would have been on pace to hit .260-15-97, certainly good enough for a six-place hitter.   Really, if the Nationals upgrade second base—or move Guzman to second and find a new short stop—the offense will be just fine.   The bullpen, once the worst in major league baseball, has also become at least major league average, maybe a little bit better.   Mike MacDougal (1-0...