Nationals Rumors

Odds & Ends: Rays, Posey, Smoak, Hillman

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | May 14, 2010 at 4:42pm CDT

Some links as we wonder what to make of the red-hot Padres…

Ace Walker was the pitcher of the year in the independent Northern League last year, but he didn't get any calls from MLB teams over the winter, reports Adam Wazny of the Winnipeg Free Press.
High schooler Tony Wolters, who was one of the top shortstops available in this year's draft, has been ruled ineligible, according to John Manuel of Baseball America.
Rays manager Joe Maddon told Scott Miller of CBS Sports that the Rays have to operate with "one eye on the present and one on the future" to win with their budget.
MLB.com's Chris Haft suggests the Giants could put Aubrey Huff in left field to make room for Buster Posey's bat at first base.
RotoAuthority explains why it's a little early to talk about a Barry Zito renaissance.
The Rangers would only consider trading Justin Smoak for a player who would put them "over the top," in the opinion of Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News.
Joe Posnanski notes that Dayton Moore fired Trey Hillman days after praising him and suggests that the decision wasn't Moore's.
Tigers GM Dave Dombrowski told Marc Carig of the Star Ledger that the Tigers were always confident in Austin Jackson's defense.
The Nationals have the resources to make midseason moves if necessary, writes ESPN.com's Buster Olney.
James Paxton, a sandwich pick the Blue Jays failed to sign last year, makes his independent league debut tonight. One scout told John Manuel of Baseball America that Paxton threw 88-90 mph and looked rusty in exhibition games.

Nationals Considering ‘A Handful’ For Top Pick

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | May 14, 2010 at 3:26pm CDT

The Nationals are considering 'a handful' of players in preparation for the draft, GM Mike Rizzo told MLB.com's Bill Ladson. Naturally Bryce Harper is one of the prospects the Nationals are watching, but they aren't committed to taking him.

"I wouldn't say we are leaning toward anybody." Rizzo said. "We are leaning toward a handful of people."

A baseball source told Ladson that the Nationals are also considering pitchers Drew Pomeranz and Jameson Taillon and shortstop Manny Machado. Some have questioned Harper's character, but Rizzo made it clear that he doesn't share those doubts.

"We have no problem with Bryce Harper's character," Rizzo said.

Harper has seemed like a likely selection for a while, but the Nationals have repeated that no decisions have been made, as much as they like Harper's ability and makeup.

Possible Destinations: Andruw Jones

By Howard Megdal | May 14, 2010 at 10:30am CDT

Was a better bargain than Andruw Jones signed this winter? The White Sox added him on a one-year deal worth $500K, and all he's given them so far is a batting line of .260/.360/.604. Meanwhile, the man patrolling his old Atlanta center field home, Nate McLouth, checks in at .167/.302/.271, and Gary Matthews Jr., who will make twice what Jones does from the Mets this year (and next year!), is hitting .152/.235/.196.

The problem is, this hasn't allowed the White Sox to move into contention. Thanks to a 14-20 start, combined with Minnesota's 22-12 beginning, Chicago is already eight games out, with Memorial Day still weeks away. So it may well be that the White Sox can, and should flip Jones to a contending team down the stretch. And that reasonable short-term deal means some of the smaller-market contenders are likely to be in the Jones sweepstakes.

What are some possible destinations?

Washington could be a good fit. Willie Harris is hitting just .182/.313/.418, and with Willy Taveras also getting outfield at-bats, so Jones could be a good fit for regular corner outfield time. The Nationals have several pitchers set to join the big league team, but little in the way of outfield prospects at the top of their system. For now, the Nationals say they're content with Harris and Roger Bernadina.
Cincinnati has seen Drew Stubbs struggle in center field so far; he's hitting just .196/.283/.321. It shouldn't be hard to convince Dusty Baker to play the veteran Jones over Stubbs, either. It's not clear that Jones is still an every day center fielder, but Chicago has already played him there four times in 2010.
The Padres have Kyle Blanks in left field, Tony Gwynn Jr. in center field, and Will Venable in right field. Of the three, only Blanks profiles as a top prospect, so the other two could be vulnerable to a Jones acquisition, should San Diego remain in the race.
With Eric Chavez and Jake Fox struggling, and Rajai Davis reverting to form, the Athletics could use Jones in either center field or at designated hitter to support an imposing starting rotation. The move sounds a lot like acquiring Frank Thomas, doesn't it?
And don't fall asleep on Seattle, either. Currently 6.5 games out, the Mariners have the talent to climb back into the race, but their DHs, Ken Griffey Jr. and Mike Sweeney, simply aren't hitting. Jones could also slot into left field.

One thing's for sure: those who believed Andruw Jones' career was over- a sad thing for anyone who saw him dominate baseball in his 20s- appear to have been premature.

Odds & Ends: Indians, Dunn, Cardona, Giants

By Zachary Links | May 13, 2010 at 10:45pm CDT

Let's check out some links on a beautiful evening in New Jersey..

Indians manager Manny Acta says that he's still focused on developing the team's young talent, writes Paul Hoynes of The Plain Dealer.
Adam Dunn says that signing another two-year deal wouldn't be his preference, though he's not opposed to it, writes Bill Ladson of MLB.com.
Other clubs are upset over Toronto's reported agreement with Adonis Cardona, writes Jeremy Sandler of the National Post.
Even more from Baggarly, as he tells us not to expect the Giants to sign Jermaine Dye or call up Buster Posey in the coming days.
Andrew Baggarly of the Mercury News (via Twitter) doesn't think the Giants would benefit from bringing back Ryan Garko.
Former Royals manager Trey Hillman said that the team had a lengthy players-only meeting prior to being swept by the Rangers, tweets Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports.
Giants manager Bruce Bochy, GM Brian Sabean, and hitting coach Hensley Meulens are "talking over options" following a 1-hit loss to San Diego, writes Andrew Baggarly of the Mercury News (via Twitter).
The Reds have promoted Yonder Alonso to Triple-A Louisville, tweets Ben Badler of Baseball America. Baseball America's 2010 Prospect Handbook rated Alonso ahead of Mike Leake in Cincinnati's farm system but behind Todd Frazier.
MLB.com's Jesse Sanchez writes that Major League Baseball is hoping to clean up the sport in Venezuela.

Odds & Ends: Abreu, Torrealba, DeRosa, Strasburg

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | May 13, 2010 at 4:00pm CDT

Links for Thursday, as we await an Opening Day rematch between Josh Johnson and Johan Santana…

Tony Abreu could be an attractive trade chip if the D'Backs shop him for relief help, writes Bob McManaman of the Arizona Republic.
Ken Griffey Jr. should retire gracefully, writes MLB.com's Hal Bodley.
We shouldn't be surprised to see Drew Storen arrive in the majors before Strasburg. As Ben Goessling of MASN.com explains, the Nationals may choose to reward Storen for signing so soon after they drafted him.
Yorvit Torrealba has been one of baseball's best free agent bargains, if you ask MLB.com's Corey Brock.
In a pre-draft notebook, MLB.com's Jonathan Mayo explains why pitcher Peter Tago is gaining on some fellow amateurs and the answer is pretty simple.
Wondering which pitchers have seen their strikeout rate climb or tumble this year? RotoAuthority has the results for the season so far.
If Mark DeRosa hits the disabled list, the Giants will rely on their own players, mostly John Bowker, according to Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle.
ESPN.com's Buster Olney believes the Nationals would like to debut Stephen Strasburg at home, while his colleague Rob Neyer can see the Nats breaking him in on the road. Last night I suggested we could see Strasburg's first MLB start against the Astros in early June.
Marc Hulet of FanGraphs says it's too early to worry, but pitching prospect Aaron Crow reminds him a little of another former first rounder in the Royals' system: Luke Hochevar.

When To Expect Stephen Strasburg

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | May 12, 2010 at 8:53pm CDT

It's easy to forget just how quickly Stephen Strasburg has risen through the minor leagues. This time last year, he hadn't even been drafted; one record setting contract and seven minor league appearances later, it's safe to say he's ready for the major leagues.

Before tonight's start, he had combined for a 1.29 ERA with 10.6 K/9 and 2.2 BB/9 across the upper minors. Tonight he outdid himself, no-hitting the Norfolk Tides through six innings. Strasburg added seven strikeouts and walked one batter, just the third baserunner he has allowed in 12 Triple A innings.

So when can Nationals fans expect Strasburg to deliver his first major league pitch? Nationals president Stan Kasten told MLB.com's Bill Ladson that it will be "soon," without being any more specific. A glance at the Syracuse Chiefs' schedule shows that Strasburg will likely start on the 17th, the 22nd and the 27th of May.

That would line Strasburg up for a June 1st start. If the Nationals keep him in the minors for three more May starts, they can call him to the majors on June 1st. That would almost certainly be late enough to prevent Strasburg from becoming a Super Two player and earning millions more through arbitration. However, calling Strasburg up in May would give him a chance at Super Two status.

In theory, the Nationals could make money by calling their phenom up. As USA Today's Mel Antonen reported this week, attendance figures and merchandise sales have spiked wherever Strasburg has pitched. This could happen in Washington, too, but the Nationals have just five home dates remaining in May, and they would only be able to start Strasburg once on their upcoming homestand.

It seems much more likely that the Nationals will keep Strasburg in the minors for three more starts, save themselves a few million and call on the phenom to face the Astros in Houston June 1st.

Possible Areas Of Concern: Nationals, Cubs, D’Backs

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | May 11, 2010 at 8:43pm CDT

It's still early – probably too early to draw definite conclusions about teams' strengths and weaknesses – but let's take a look at some clubs that could look to improve in certain areas. This is purely speculative, and remember – these weaknesses could become strengths in a matter of weeks.

Nationals right fielders are hitting .159/.276/.327 this year. No one player is to blame, as Willie Harris, Roger Bernadina, Cristian Guzman, Justin Maxwell, Mike Morse and Willy Taveras have all spent time in right this season. None of those players has hit more than three homers, but Jim Riggleman recently told Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post that he has confidence in Harris and Bernadina because of their defense.
Possible solutions: Jose Guillen could become available, though the Royals say they don't expect to make moves soon. Free agents Jermaine Dye and Gary Sheffield would likely bring more power than the Nats' current mix.
The Cubs have used six right-handers in relief this year and only one – Carlos Marmol – has an ERA below 6.00. Now ERA can be deceiving, but Marmol and Carlos Zambrano are the only Cubs relievers who have struck out more batters than they have walked (Marmol by a wide margin, as he has an astounding 18.4 K/9 rate).
Possible solutions: As Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune reports, the Cubs could call on Triple A right-handers Jay Jackson and Casey Coleman. The Cubs could also look to the free agent market; is Juan Cruz worth a flier? Alternatively, GM Jim Hendry could call up the Mariners or D'Backs, two teams with all-right-handed bullpens.
The Mariners appear fine without a left-handed reliever, but the D'Backs, who don't have a left-handed pitcher on their active roster, have allowed a .294/.356/.496 line against lefty batters this year. The D'Backs have a bullpen ERA of 7.09, so righties are hitting them, too.
Possible solutions: The D'Backs could pursue a trade for a left-hander, but GM Josh Byrnes told Nick Piecoro that he would prefer to be patient. There isn't much available on the free agent market, other than Eddie Guardado. The D'Backs could call on Jordan Norberto, who was in the majors earlier in the year, or Zach Kroenke, also at Triple A. Baseball America placed the two pitchers 29th and 30th respectively when ranking top D'Backs prospects before the season.

Nationals Notes: Harper, Right Field, Daniel

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | May 10, 2010 at 5:30pm CDT

The draft is less than a month away and once again, the Nationals appear likely to select the nation's best-known amateur with the first overall pick. Here are the details on the team's draft strategy and a couple other Nats-related notes:

Former Nationals GM and current FOX Sports analyst Jim Bowden says Washington will take Bryce Harper with the first overall pick (Twitter link). Bowden believes the teenager's makeup is fine, even if he is a little immature. Last month the Nats said nothing was "etched in stone," but the club is monitoring Harper closely, at the very least.
Nats GM Mike Rizzo told Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post that he feels good about the team's options in right field. 'We're going to find out what these players can do," Rizzo said in reference to Willie Harris, Roger Bernadina and Justin Maxwell. That means we shouldn't expect the Nats to sign Jermaine Dye or another free agent right fielder any time soon.
The Nationals released Mike Daniel, an outfielder chosen in the seventh round of the 2005 draft, according to MASN.com's Ben Goessling (via Twitter).
The Nationals need starting pitching, president Stan Kasten told MLB.com's Bill Ladson. As Kasten says, every team needs pitching and the Nats are no exception. Kasten chose not to predict when 2009 first rounders Stephen Strasburg and Drew Storen will make their MLB debuts.

Relievers Headed For Non-Tenders

By Tim Dierkes | May 10, 2010 at 2:04pm CDT

Often due to the save statistic, decent relievers are non-tendered every year because of their expected salaries. It happened to Matt Capps last year. Which relievers might get the axe on this year's December non-tender deadline and join the free agent market?

Bobby Jenks, White Sox. Jenks has only blown one save this year, but Ozzie Guillen is already looking at other closer options. Jenks has racked up strikeouts, but his control is off and he's given up a slew of hits. I felt he was a longshot non-tender candidate last time around. Tendering him a contract and giving a raise on his $7.5MM salary this time probably won't be appealing.
George Sherrill, Dodgers. Giving Sherrill a bump from $4.5MM might not make sense for the Dodgers even if he was pitching well. However, the lefty has completely lost it in the early going with 12 walks and 14 hits in 11.3 innings.
Brian Bruney, Nationals. Bruney would earn more than $1.5MM in 2011 as a fourth-time arbitration-eligible player. With the walks spiraling out of control, there's a good chance the Nats cut him loose as they did with Mike MacDougal last year.
Tony Pena, White Sox. Pena has time to turn things around; he's only tossed 15.6 innings this year. He's earning $1.2MM on the season and would go to arbitration for a second time.
Rafael Perez, Indians. Perez is only earning $795K this year, but even the idea of a guaranteed contract might not work for the Tribe if he repeats his '09 season.
The 2011 free agent list already contains a full slate of relievers, but keep these names in mind as potential additions.

Nationals Pitchers With Major Incentives

By Tim Dierkes | May 10, 2010 at 10:25am CDT

The Nationals guaranteed over $22MM during the offseason to free agent pitchers, with the lion's share going to Jason Marquis. But that total also includes three interesting signings, hurlers who scuffled in 2009 but had prior success. Matt Capps, Chien-Ming Wang, and Scott Olsen were lured to Washington D.C. in part due to big-time incentive clauses. Let's take a look.

Capps was non-tendered by the Pirates and drew interest from a dozen clubs. It came down to the Nationals and Cubs, and Capps ultimately took a one-year, $3.5MM guarantee from the Nats. They have the added bonus of controlling him in 2011 as an arbitration-eligible player. Capps' contract includes solid incentives for games finished – up to $425K. He's already finished 16 games, tying Francisco Cordero for the MLB lead. Capps should be able to max out his incentives this year and earn $3.925MM in total.
Wang signed for a $2MM base salary, and he's also arbitration-eligible after the season. His incentives exceed his base, as he can tack on $3MM. Wang is recovering from shoulder surgery and hasn't headed out on a rehab assignment quite yet, so it appears he won't max out his incentives.
If you blinked, you might've missed Scott Olsen's time as a free agent. After earning $2.8MM in '09, Olsen was non-tendered on the December 10th deadline. The Nats scooped him back up on the 13th with a $1MM base salary. Olsen can earn $2.825MM in incentives based on starts, up to 33. The 26-year-old southpaw is making over $85K extra per start. He's already made five, and sports a 3.54 ERA, 8.4 K/9, and 2.9 BB/9. Like the others, the Nationals control Olsen for 2011 as an arbitration-eligible player. If he continues looking like the Olsen of '06, another non-tender is out of the question.

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