Location: Washington, D.C. | Ballpark: Nationals Park (41,222) | Spring Training: Viera, Fla.
Managing Principal Owner: Theodore N. Lerner | GM: Mike Rizzo | Manager: Jim Riggleman (interim) | World Championships: 0
Season in seven words: "A joke that's not quite funny. Again." ... Hero: The Rays wouldn't deal Evan Longoria straight up for Ryan Zimmerman, but they wouldn't laugh at the offer ... Loserhead: There's not enough space in this column. Hell, there's not enough space on the Internet ... Key need: Credibility in the wake of the Bowden fiasco and several seasons of meandering effort. Bring in Bobby Valentine. Just do it ... Prognosis: Waiting on Strasburg.
09/29/2009
30
29
They've reestablished their historically bad bona fides over the last few weeks. This franchise needs a full-body enema, if such a thing exists.
09/22/2009
29
29
By defeating the Mets last Friday, the Nats trimmed their magic number down to 7,272. ... Even Jim Riggleman has to realize that his stealth campaign for the full-time managerial gig isn't going to end well. To restore credibility, the Nats need to hire a name. That means either Bobby Valentine or Buck Showalter. Selfishly, I prefer the former: he'd give me more material to work with, especially if he returns to the fake-mustached, opponent-baiting tactics of his Metsie tenure.
09/15/2009
29
29
I don't want to be a buzzkill here, but Ian Desmond's hundreds of so-so minor league at-bats are likely a more accurate barometer of his ability than his first 15 in the bigs. Fall in love with September call-ups at your own peril, kids.
09/08/2009
29
29
Gulag.
09/01/2009
29
25
They're back to the soggy play of May/June, lollygagging on the base paths and ignoring the cut-off man the way they might a mall cop. ... Which isn't to say they've had the best of luck. Now everybody's hero Nyjer Morgan is gone for the year with a broken hand, the very one he used to give reaffirming slaps on the back to teammates who had just moved the runner over. ... Story headline upon which I did not expend a precious, precious click: "Nationals to reshuffle starting rotation." ... In the wake of his spotless August (10 K's in 14 innings, with a .184 OBP against), Mike MacDougal is a veritable late-season roto god. Please prepare a sacrifice of your juiciest meats and your softest hand-woven linens. ... Awesome quote to take way out of context: "He's just tender" (Jim Riggelman on Cristian Guzman's injured footie-foot, as opposed to the player's personality or torso elasticity).
08/25/2009
25
25
Five-game losing streak? Pitching staff about to become a ward of the state? Bah! They are a franchise on the upswing! Didn't you hear them at Stephen Strasburg's introductory press conference? They're turning over a new leaf! There were fireworks! The USC Marching Band played! Forty white doves were released! And did you see the way Strasburg bent the brim of his freshly sewn Nationals cap? That's ace material, my friend!
08/18/2009
25
25
One streak ends and another begins. It's the cirrrrrclllle of liiiiifffe. ... Give Stephen Strasburg some credit: He agreed to his $15.1 million deal a full 131 seconds before the midnight deadline, thus giving us writer types precious extra time to file our stories. ... Do you think Adam Dunn's critics in Cincy noted his .764 OBP during the weekend series and Laynce Nix playing left field for the Reds, then regretted their decision to run him out of town? Probably not. Because, see, he strikes out a lot! And striking out a lot negates everything else! God, I hate other people.
08/11/2009
25
28
I believe! Sort of!
08/04/2009
28
29
That's right: the Nationals have surged yet another spot up the chart, skip-jumping over the cloddish Royals ... The downside of the Nats' mild success, of course, is that now I'll be forced to cover them as I would a real organization, as opposed to a tee-ball team or a traveling ensemble of sock puppeteers ... Besides, the Nats were less than dumb at the trade deadline for a change, dealing the two guys whose contracts dictated that they had to go (Nick Johnson and Joe Beimel) and ending the practice of handing out contract extensions to whipped-cream aficionados (Dmitri Young, Ronnie Belliard). This constitutes real progress.
Preseason Power Rankings
Date
Ranking
Previous
02/16/2009
24
-
This is Year 5 for the Nats in D.C. and the franchise looks every bit as dizzy as it did in Year 1. ... I understand wanting your fans to have some small degree of hope heading into the season, but that doesn't justify adding Adam Dunn -- an offensive force, mind you -- to an 1B/LF mélange that was overcrowded to begin with. ... They'll score some runs, especially on the days when they jam Dunn, Lastings Milledge and Elijah Dukes into the lineup at the same time, but it's impossible to take that no-K pitching staff seriously.
