It’s funny to say now, but Davey Martinez realized this year’s Nationals were ready to win when he watched last year’s Nationals lose. It wasn’t the defeats themselves, 107 of them in all, but the way the young players responded.
They moped. They sat in silence and hung their heads. They looked miserable.
Part of the manager wanted to cheer them up, to remind them that this was all part of the process. But part of him rejoiced. “It’s a good sign,” he says.
