As a kid in the 1950s, I grew up in the Washington, DC area. I followed the local baseball team, the Washington Senators. I can't tell you how many times I was taunted by other family members from the NYC area, because I was a Senators fan. They always said, "1st in war, 1st in peace, & last in the American League". The Senators, owned by Calvin Griffith (curse his memory) were a truly miserable team. To me, the taunts were worse coming from NY Yankees fans, who in the 50s & 60s, came to believe that the Yankees were entitled to be permanent champions.
A brief history of baseball in Washington:
1891-1960 – Washington Senators – Moved to become the Minnesota Twins.
1961-1971 – Washington Senators – an expansion team, moved to become the Texas Rangers.
1971 to 2005 – No Major League baseball team at all.
2006 to present – The Montreal Expos moved to Washington to become the Nationals.
The Old Senators had been a good team in the distant past. They went to the World Series in 1924, 25, and 33, winning it 1924 – 95 years ago. It's been a very long drought.
I was 11-years old in 1960 when the Senators left Washington. In reaction to that insult, I decided that baseball wasn't worth my attention or loyalty. I still am aloof and distant to MLB as a sport. While baseball was gone, NFL football was the ONLY game in town. In 1970s & 80s, the Washington Redskins became a very good team, and the whole town got behind them. Even today, that lasts, despite the efforts of the present owner to drive away those fans.
At first the new Nats were pretty bad, as the other MLB owners had delayed the move from Montreal to Washington until they had stripped the team of any talent it had. By 2012, that changed, with the Nats consistently finished 1st or 2nd in the National League East division. They had very poor luck in post-season play, usually getting eliminated in the first round of playoffs. Twice, the St. Louis Cardinals were responsible for that. More about St. Louis later.
This 2019 season, the Nats finished 2nd in the NL East, 93 wins 69 losses, with an overall 0.574 record. That earned them a spot in the playoffs as the 1st NL Wild Card team.
However, the Nats had gotten off to a terrible start earlier in the 2019 season. As of May 24, 2019, 50 games into the season, they had a 19-31 record (0.380) and were last in their division. Then they turned it around. The rest of the regular season, 112 games, they were a very hot 74-38 (0.661).
Since May 24, including 17 post-season games, the Nats were 86-43 (0.667). I think they were the hottest team in baseball in that time window. In their 17 post-season games, the Nats were hotter, 12-5 (0.706). They beat Milwaukee in the single-game Wild Card playoff, and beat the 106-win LA Dodgers 3-2 in a 5-game series. It was particularly gratifying to sweep the St. Louis Cardinals in 4 straight games to easily win a spot in the World Series. Apparently the odds makers in baseball weren't paying attention to which team was hot, making the 107-win Houston Astros the heavy favorite.
The Nats finished the regular season with 8 straight wins. If you include those with the post-season, the Nats were 20-5 during the last 25 games it played (0.800). No team in baseball was hotter.
The fans in Washington had a great time watching the "underdog" Nats defeat the heavily-favored Houston Astros. It wasn't the first time the "Wise Men" of baseball got it wrong. So, please indulge me while I celebrate.
First in War, first in Peace, and First in Major League Baseball