The Washington Nationals picked the right time to get hot.

The team scored seven runs in the first inning at home in Washington, to beat the St. Louis Cardinals 7-4 for a four-game sweep of the National League Championship Series.

The wild-card team, which quickly dispatched the Los Angeles Dodgers in the division series, benefited from its star pitchers -- Max Scherzer, Stephen Strasburg and Anibal Sanchez -- who have closed the doors on opponents.

NATIONALS' STRASBURG DOMINANT IN 8-1 WIN OVER CARDINALS; 1 WIN FROM WORLD SERIES

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The team will have one week to bask in the glory of the city's first pennant in 86 years before the Nationals face off against either the New York Yankees or the Houston Astros in the World Series.

The first version of the Washington Senators won three American League pennants -- in 1924, 1925 and 1933 -- and won the World Series only in 1924. That club became the Minnesota Twins after the 1960 season.

A new Washington Senators club started in 1961 and had little success before becoming the Texas Rangers after the 1971 season.

The nation's capital then had no Major League Baseball until the transplanted Montreal Expos arrived in 2005.