I KNOW they're not a fluke. I've just sat through too many melt downs. They're wearing the same jerseys they wore in 2009. That's hard to erase. Just glad the team isn't playing with that mentality.
They are wearing nearly the same hats the team wore in 1971, but an interesting comparison is to the 1925 team, which played well all year.
1925 Nationals: 73 - 40 on August 19, beating Tris Speaker's Indians 12 - 8. (Speaker went 3 for 5, raising his average to a respectable .391).
2012 Nationals: 73 - 45 on August 15, continuing to trail the '25 pennant winners by about 2.5 games. Also respectable, especially since the 1925 team had had no long-term injuries to the key players.
This team looks good.