Cole (12-12) was saddled with the loss Friday against the Nationals. He allowed three runs on eight hits and a walk while striking out seven over 5.1 innings.
Cole allowed just one run through the first five innings before running out of steam in the sixth. He allowed singles to Trea Turner, Anthony Rendon and Daniel Murphy before being pulled from the contest after just 5.1 innings of work, spoiling his chance at his first quality start since Sept. 6. The 27-year-old faltered during the final month of the regular season, allowing 22 runs over 36 innings in September and will conclude the 2017 campaign with a pedestrian 4.26 ERA; the highest mark of his five-year career. A propensity to serve up the long ball was the main culprit of Cole's struggles in 2017, as his 31 home runs allowed currently rank as the second-worst mark in the National League, trailing only John Lackey.