WASHINGTON -- The Nationals held the final meetings to settle their National League Wild Card Game roster on Monday, but they had most of the final week of the regular season to start forming their plan after locking up a playoff spot on Sept 24.

When the dust settled, Washington opted to carry nine pitchers on its roster, including each of its top four starters, to potentially pitch behind Max Scherzer. Missing from the roster was Wander Suero, who had become one of manager Dave Martinez's most trusted relievers but struggled down the stretch. Instead, the Nats opted to carry a third catcher, Raudy Read, and two extra outfielders, Andrew Stevenson and Michael A. Taylor.

“We've got to play to win one game,” Martinez said. “All year I told these guys, my message was clear with them, ‘Hey, let's go 1-0,’ and that's not going to change today.

“How we do that, we have to wait and see. But we're going to try to go 1-0 today.”

• Gear up for the postseason

Blueprint for new-look bullpen laid out
If the Nationals' plan for Tuesday goes accordingly, their final tally of pitchers will include only five names: Scherzer, Stephen Strasburg and Patrick Corbin, with Sean Doolittle and Daniel Hudson mixed in along the way.

But as much as having Strasburg and Corbin in the bullpen can be a threat, Martinez knows that luxury has its limits. The tandem will enter the game only at the start of an inning.

That's where Fernando Rodney, Tanner Rainey and Hunter Strickland come in. If things were to go awry for Scherzer early, Martinez didn't balk at the idea of having Doolittle and Hudson -- his two most trusted relievers -- entering to clean up the mess. But having the additional trio of steadfast relievers at his disposal adds even more flexibility.

“Just having those guys who have done it before, who [also] have experience pitching in the postseason, I like that,” Martinez said. “And then all of a sudden now, a clean inning, you have a Strasburg, you have a Corbin, if we need [Aníbal Sánchez], you have Sánchez later on. I think our bullpen is set for this one game today.”

Martinez said he stayed away from Suero and elected to include Rainey and Strickland because he “like[s] the velo” when paired with recent performance.

Rainey, for his part, has pitched eight consecutive scoreless outings. Meanwhile, Suero has scuffled lately, but he would be a near lock on a potential NL Division Series roster.

So now the Nats feel they have options and backup plans, especially with the inclusion of Sánchez, who will likely only enter if the game goes to extras.

Bench pieces provide flexibility
Martinez is going to have a number of weapons at his disposal on the bench, but no manager in the NL used fewer pinch-hitters this season. That was in part because of the strength of his lineup, which features several players without heavy platoon splits, and is representative of a starting staff that usually pitches deep into games.

But on the whole, Martinez has not managed aggressively with his bench this season, so it will be interesting to watch how he uses the increased flexibility of the Wild Card roster given speedsters Taylor and Stevenson joining Ryan Zimmerman, Matt Adams, Gerardo Parra and Brian Dozier on the bench.

“You look at our lineup, there's really not a whole lot of guys to pinch-hit for,” Martinez said. “We've got two lefties in the lineup that don't struggle really against lefties. You've got another switch-hitter [Asdrúbal Cabrera], you've got right-handed hitters that don't really struggle against right-handed pitching.”

But Martinez knows there's nothing he can hold back in the Wild Card Game. If a run-scoring opportunity spot were to arise early, with Scherzer not deep into his pitch count, Martinez could face a tough decision.

“We have a couple guys that could pinch-run,” Martinez said, “and also we have a couple guys -- big bats -- that can pinch-hit in the pitcher spot.”

Read offers security
It may be odd to see a team use three catchers for a Wild Card Game, but the Nationals are doing so out of an abundance of caution.

The right elbow inflammation that derailed Kurt Suzuki’s September is said to now be a non-issue, but should anything pop up on Tuesday, Read’s presence provides security behind Yan Gomes.

Additionally, it would allow the team to pinch-hit for Gomes in a late, high-leverage situation should the moment arise.

“I know Suzuki is good,” Martinez said, “but if something had to happen and we had to get Gomes in the game, having that extra catcher helps a lot.”