Early this morning, the Lerner family, who owns the majority stake in the Washington Nationals, sent out a note thanking fans for a great season in DC. That letter is shown above.

The Lerner family purchased the Nationals in 2006, and the subsequent seasons didn't go particularly well for the team until the 2012 season, when the Nats jumped on the scene to win 98 games and finished with the best record in baseball. Just the gesture of the note above shows this ownership group is committed to bringing a winning baseball team to DC for years to come.

This letter is a classy move after an historic season and one that people will remember for generations. They certainly had no obligation to do so, and actually, the Nats fans should be thanking them for a whole lot of reasons, too. These include bringing Mike Rizzo on as GM, spending big money on players like Jayson Werth and Ryan Zimmerman, and for committing to "a World Series trophy" in Washington.

This offseason, we will probably see the Lerners spend more of their money to make this team better, and we should continue to thank them for their dedication toan up-and-coming baseball franchise in our Nation's Capital.

So, thank you, Lerner family.

Bryce Harper turned 20 yesterday. Just take that in for a minute. The player who hit second for most of the season on the team with the best record in baseball was a teenager who finished with a .270/.340/.477 slash line. We can no longer say that Harper is the first teenager to do something new, but we can certainly look back on his 2012 campaign now that he’s no longer a teenager.

We’re talking about a 19 year old with an .817 OPS behind only Mel Ott and Tony Conigliaro. He finished with 22 home runs, second only to Conigliaro, and his 57 extra base hits were the most in history. He was the first teenager in postseason history to hit a triple and the second to hit a home run.

His 4.9 WAR on FanGraphs is the second-best for all Nats position players, bested only by Ian Desmond, and his 9.7 UZR (Ultimate Zone Rating) ranks best on the Nats. It’s even better than Danny Espinosa and Adam LaRoche, who had phenomenal defensive seasons. Even the Sun Monster can’t get in the way of that number, but that’s probably because those dropped flyouts aren’t considered errors.

He did this despite pedestrian July and August numbers, which makes it that much more impressive. Harper is going to be a staple to this Nats team for years to come as he matures as a hitter and a fielder. The only difference is now we can’t describe the amazing things he does by saying “Bryce Harper is the [insert number here] teenager to....”

Harper is more than just a number of extremely impressive stats. He’s a key figure in the Nats clubhouse and a force in the lineup. Now, just imagine where he’ll be in five years if this is how he started his career.

The season is over, but baseball never ends. We talk about the Washington Nationals and the season that was, reminisce about the good moments and the not so good moments of the postseason, and give out our 2012 season accolades. We hope the listening is as therapeutic as the recording.

As Ryan Zimmerman recorded the last out of the Washington Nationals’ season early Saturday morning, my legs gave out. I sunk into my seat, as others around me processed in their own way what had just happened.

Some applauded, showing their support to the overall effort Washington had put forth this year. Some booed. Most just silently turned and began walking toward the aisle.

I sat. No thoughts went through my head. No what-ifs, or what-now’s. I just sat and felt the pain shoot deep through my veins. I had been standing for hours. First with joy, then in support, and finally with angst. I was exhausted, I couldn’t and wouldn’t budge. I had no way of convincing myself of some manufactured positive notion of the outcome of the game, as others had. I just sat there and took it in. I let it burn.

My entire section aside from my girlfriend and I eventually had made their way up the steps to exit the stadium.  Nearly 46,000, all dressed in red and white had evacuated Nats Park almost as quickly as the hopes of a National League Championship Series appearance had left our hearts. Not me. I just sat there and stared, motionless, at the field.

An usher came by and told us we’d have to leave. This was the same woman who had earlier told our section we had to sit down when Gio Gonzalez was setting up a payoff pitch to end an inning. I ignored her. I just stared.

I could feel my phone buzzing in my pocket. Surely the result of texts and tweets. Some from friends of mine, or fans of the blog. Some from jerks that I went to college with who for some reason wanted to make me feel worse in this moment than I alredy did. I didn’t look. 

Soon the lights at Nats Park started incrementally shutting off. A perfect allegory for the light of hope that the Nationals had filled the city of Washington with over the course of the summer.  As the last lights flickered out, two more ushers came by and told us that the park would be closing, and that we would simply have to leave. I stood up, didn’t say a word, and made my way toward the Metro for the longest ride home of my entire life.

I woke up this morning and gazed at the ceiling for a good hour. I kept replaying the ninth inning over and over in my head. Why did they just give the Cardinals second base twice in that inning? Especially when they represented the tying and go-ahead runs? How tiny was the strike zone that Drew Storen was pitching to? How could the Nats not have just gotten one-more strike, one-more out?

In the end it didn’t matter. This isn’t a question game. It’s just a fact. The Nationals, who skyrocketed to the top of baseball faster than nearly any team that has ever played the game, came crashing back down last night in one of the worst meltdowns in postseason history. And it hurts. It hurts a lot.

I’ve been thinking about this all day now, and I’ve come to the conclusion that if there is any silver lining for what happened this series it’s that we simply got to feel what this pain is like. In many ways, we were spoiled this season. We went from so bad, to so good, so quickly, that some of us simply took for granted what its like to struggle your way to the top.

Oh, Nats fans have struggled in the past, for sure. For half a decade we were the worst team in baseball. But that pain is very different from the pain we all felt last night. That pain is a longing, a lightless hope that you hold anyway despite any reasonable common sense. This pain, however, is a dagger. Nats fans allowed their hopes to fly unguarded into the night  as the team’s ace started the game looking like he would pitch a shutout, and the team’s lineup mashed the ball in a way they hadn’t done since August. That utter Joy disappeared in a span of 40 minutes, and the season ended in the blink of an eye.

So let it burn Nats fans. Feel this pain. Remember this pain. If for no other reason than that sometimes you can’t really appreciate how much you love something until it is taken away from you. Let this pain build your passion. Let this pain grow your love for this team, and let this pain serve as a constant reminder that nothing as a fan is ever guaranteed, which means that every single thing you are given is a gift.

Remember how low this low feels, so that someday, whether it be next year or decades from now…you can really understand how good the high is.

Nationals fans came to the park looking for a reason to explode in the deciding Game Five of the National League Division Series. In the early innings, it looked like they’d get their wish. Baseball can be a cruel beast, though, as the Nats saw a once commanding lead disappear, and their season ended in heartbreaking, cruel, and disappointing fashion.

Early on, Gio Gonzalez showed why he’s a leading Cy Young Award contender. He shut down the Cardinals in the early innings and showed why he’s been the Nats best pitcher this season. The offense got on board early, too, to help his cause.

Jayson Werth doubled down the left field line, which Bryce Harper followed up with a triple. Ryan Zimmerman came in, calm, cool, and collected, and drove a two-run home run to the right field seats. It gave the Nats an early three run lead, but they weren’t done yet.

In the bottom of the third, Harper massacred a baseball to the right center field seats for his first postseason blast and just the second postseason home run by a teenager in baseball history. Michael Morse followed up with a home run into the Cardinals bullpen, scoring Ryan Zimmerman. The Nats had a six run lead, and it looked like they were headed to their first franchise NLCS birth since 1981.

But it was not to be. The Cardinals chipped away at Gio Gonzalez in the fourth and fifth innings, and they cut the Nats lead in half. The bullpen once again didn’t help the Nats cause, and besides their stellar performance in game four, it was one of the main factors for the team's demise. Edwin Jackson, Tyler Clippard, and Drew Storen all gave up runs as the defending World Series champs made the Nats lead erode, slowly but surely.

Storen gave up four runs in that harrowing ninth inning as the atmosphere at Nats Park quickly went from elation to devastation. Storen had the Cardinals down to their last strike twice, once in a 2-2 count and the other in a 1-2 count, and he walked both batters. Those batters ended up making the difference in the Nats 9-7 loss. The Nats closer just couldn’t throw strikes, and it cost them the game. It’s certainly not entirely Storen’s fault, but he had a two-run lead with three outs to get. He couldn’t do it.

There is no way to aptly describe the hurt on Davey Johnson’s face during his post-game press conference. “I’m sorry,” Davey said to the fans that stuck by the team all season. “We’ll make it up to them next year.” You could almost hear the lump in the manager’s throat as he said it. He meant it, and as bad as fans feel, I’m not sure there’s a way to appropriately describe the hurt the players and coaches feel.

As fans, we’ll feel this hurt for a while, too. There was so much anticipation and expection about this postseason, and it feels like we were robbed. This is just a somber reminder that there are no guarantees in baseball. We’ll be with you all offseason, recapping this season that will be remembered for years to come, and preparing for the 2013 campaign. Thank you for sharing in our dedication to the Washington Nationals this season. It’ll be a tough offseason, but we’ll make it through together.

After more than six months of baseball, 98 regular season wins, and four exciting National League Division Series games, this series finale is upon us. At 8:37 pm tonight, Gio Gonzalez will throw out the first pitch for the Washington Nationals in a pivotal game five. Nationals Park will absolutely be rocking from before the first pitch as fans feed off the energy of Jayson Werth's ninth inning, 13-pitch walk-off home run last night. No matter how this game ends, though, you have to reflect back on the season that brought the Nats to this point.

This isn't meant to prepare anyone for a loss today in any way. It's just, these games don't mean as much, to me at least, unless you look back on how you got here. Remember where we all thought this Nationals team would be on April 4, and look where they are now. They finished with the best record in baseball, finished with the top seed in the NL, and can move on to the Championship Series with a win behind a leading NL Cy Young contender.

It's not at all warm at Nats Park hours before game time, and it's just going to keep getting cooler. That and the breeze coming in from the outfield means the Nats, a power hitting team, will struggle to take any baseballs for a ride tonight. They'll have to win on the first half formula that brought the Nats so many wins early: starting pitching and just enough offense to squeak by. It'll be up to Gio Gonzalez and the Nats bullpen to keep this game under control.

We've got rubber stamp lineups for both the Nats and Cards behind their best starting playoff pitchers. Win or lose, it should be electric here all night. The Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Martin Dempsey is throwing out the first pitch and the US Army Chorus Quartet is singing the National Anthem and God Bless America. Only in our Nation's Capital. Just remember the excitement of the regular season no matter the final result of tonight's game, and stay after the game ends to give your team the standing ovation they deserve.

I simply couldn’t bring myself to writing keys to the game for game three of this series. It was an 8-0 blowout, and they keys were evident from the box score alone: no offense or pitching. Thursday’s game four matchup was a different story, though. Behind excellent pitching and one huge offensive play, the Nats walked away with a 2-1 victory to force a game five today.

3. Holy bullpen, Batman

For all the talk of bullpen struggles in games one through three, game four changed the entire dynamic. Jordan Zimmermann came out of the bullpen in the seventh and set the tone for the Nats relievers. It was his first career bullpen appearance, and he struck out the side. Not to be outdone by the starter, Tyler Clippard came in and struck out the side in the eighth. Drew Storen came in and almost did the same, but instead caused Matt Carpenter to pop out on a great catch by Ian Desmond to end the inning. The bullpen struck out eight of the nine batters they faced.

2. Ross Detwiler spins a gem

All the pressure came down on Ross Detwiler as the Nats tried to stave off elimination for another day, and boy, did he succeed with flying colors. He located his fastball and sinker, worked in his slider beautifully, and never let himself get flustered, even with an unpredictable strike zone by home plate ump Jim Joyce. It was by far the biggest game of Detwiler’s career, and he put together what may be the best outing of his career, giving up one unearned run on three hits in six innings of work. If the Nats win game five today, Detwiler is a huge reason why. 

1. Jayson Werth hits walk-off homer on 13th pitch of the at-bat

What else can you say besides the header for this one? After fighting off 12 pitches from Lance Lynn, the 13th pitch came over the plate, and Werth gave it a ride into the St. Louis Cardinals bullpen. Pandemonium ensued. If you haven’t already heard Charlie Slowes’ radio call of the event, you haven’t lived. I have listened to it at least a dozen times so far, and I plan on listening over and over again.

Charlie Slowes walk-off call (audio from Washington Post)

In a night where the Nationals managed to muster just three hits, Washington was able to hang on in what had the potential to be their last game of the season by the sheer will of their bullpen.

Following a stellar start from Ross Detwiler, which yielded just three hits and one unearned run over 104 pitches, the Nats remained deadlocked in a 1-1 tie with the Cards after six.  That’s where Davey Johnson made the decision to turn to the bullpen with the hopes that the squad that the team had relied on all season would be able to succeed where they had failed in the past two games.

The result? Electric stuff from two of the usual suspects, Tyler Clippard and Drew Storen, and flat out unbelievable stuff from the team’s No. 2 starter Jordan Zimmermann. In a rare relief appearance in the seventh, Zimmermann struck out all three batters he faced, using just 12 pitches. The right-hander’s fastball sat at 97 mph on the gun and his slider, which usually rests in the mid-to-high 80’s sat at 91.

“Yeah, the guys said, he needs to be our closer, “manager Davey Johnson said in his postgame press conference.

“But Zimm said to McCatty, he said “I just tried to throw it as hard as I could throw it.”

Clippard and Storen were just as effective in the eighth and ninth. Clippard struck out three of the four batters he faced, and Storen struck out two before ending the inning with a pop-up to shallow left.

At one point, the Nationals bullpen had recorded all of their eight outs as strikeouts.

In the bottom of the ninth, Werth took to the plate to matchup against Lance Lynn for the Cardinals. An epic 13-pitch at bat culminated with a walk off shot for Werth that brought the house down at Nats Park.

“He’s a remarkable guy,” Johnson said.  “He can force a pitcher ot throw a lot of pitches, and he did that time.”

Nats fans can look at tonight’s game in one of two ways. A squad which had struggled to hit the ball managed to earn just three hits on the game, and only had five base runners overall. One could wonder if the issues that have crippled the top team in baseball this series are over, or if the inevitable was merely delayed.

On the other hand, the Nationals pitching returned to its electric form. Washington won games early on in 2012 on the sheer will of their pitching and timely hitting. It was a formula that worked well until the team found their groove in the middle of the summer. It’s not ideal, but if Gio Gonzalez can take the mound tomorrow night for Washington and replicate what we saw here tonight, then Washington will , no matter what, have a punchers chance at the NLCS.