John Patterson has proven himself twice this year. The first time was during his first four starts, when he gave up only 3 runs in 27 innings for a sparkling 0.98 ERA, coming out of nowhere to be the Nats #2 starter. Over the next three starts, however, things turned sour. The next three starts, over 13 innings, saw Patterson give up 11 runs, raising his ERA to a "lofty" 2.98. All of a sudden, John Patterson seemed more like Tomo Ohka than Jim Palmer. A stint on the disabled later, however, and big John was proving himself yet again. In his last three starts, Patterson has pitched 18 innings, giving up only 3 runs and lowering his ERA back down to a stunning 2.54. He is back on track to be the #2 guy in the rotation, and a solid #2 guy at that.

John Patterson won the game for the Nationals Saturday night. The offense reverted back to its usual, sputtering self, producing only 4 singles, a double and a triple, this against Jamie Moyer, who had a 5.21 ERA going into the game. Had the team not been protected by that magic shield of perfection that has enveloped the Nationals for more than 10 days, I would have been worried. But until a team shows that it can penetrate the Nats anti-trouble bubble, I'm not too concerned. One hit ... 14 hits. It doesn't matter. The Nats will win.

With each game, the Nationals are showing that they have two of the best pitchers in baseball, and one of the best rotations. John Patterson's emergence as a top-flight starter has further solidified this team's already bright future. To be a champion in major league baseball, you MUST have two great pitchers and three solid guys to fill out the staff. With Livan and Patterson, we've got the two great ones. I'd resign Esteban Loiaza, who is without question is back from his self imposed black hole of last year. Tony Armas is good enough for the number 5 slot. The question now becomes Ryan Drese and can he fill the #4 slot, both this year and long term.

Let's not get ahead of ourselves. The Nationals are 10 games over .500, but the Phillies are matching them win for win. The magic has to end sooner or later. The question then becomes, how does the team react when it does? Do they do a nosedive and end up back around .500? or are they mature enough to rebound and start a new streak?

Of course, they way they are playing, we may never find out.