Dan Haren Finally Coming Through for Washington Nationals


Daniel Shirey-USA TODAY Sports

The Washington Nationals signed Dan Haren because they needed someone to fill the open No. 4 slot in their rotation. Haren was awful during his first four starts but has finally turned it around during his last two, including a dominant performance on Thursday where he threw eight innings and gave up just one run.

Haren moved to 3-3 on the season and may be turning into the pitcher that he was expected to be when he was signed.

Haren gave up 12 runs in his first three starts, and I really believed that he was done with his career. I know everyone has a slow start, but that start didn’t give me any hope at all. There must have been something that clicked though over the last two weeks.

This is a very different pitcher on the mound and one who looks deserving of $13 million this season. The Nationals really need Haren to be that guy because of all the injuries they are dealing with right now.

Washington is just 15-14 heading into Friday’s play. We are seeing the Haren that was dominant just a couple of years ago and it is definitely a welcome sight for Nationals fans. The question will now be whether or not he can keep this up. If he can continue to do this, Haren may be in line to finish with 13-15 wins before this year is over with.

The Nationals would likely make the playoffs as well, which was the goal to begin with. The turnaround continues for Haren in Washington as positives and wins pile up.

Andy Schmidt is a writer/columnist for RantSports. Follow him on Twitter @ASchmidtSports, like his Facebook page or add him to your network on Google.

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