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Now that Derrek Lee has apparently opted for the American League, the Nationals are reportedly willing to give Adam LaRoche a two-year deal. It's not like LaRoche has a lot of options at this point. Reports over the past few weeks have indicated that LaRoche wants a three-year deal in the $21 million range. There's been a reluctance on the part of the Nationals -
Harmon Killebrew's announcement that he's undergoing treatment for esophageal cancer has put a damper on my holiday spirit. I can't sit here and tell you that Harmon's a close personal friend. I've interviewed him several times over the past 35 years and he seems to remember me each time, but that's not the same thing. I can say that in that many years of doing
The first base question for the Nationals should be answered sometime this week, according to club sources. Negotiations with Derrek Lee are pretty close on a one-year deal, but he's also being sought by the Orioles, as is Adam LaRoche. Lee also reportedly prefers to stay in the National League, not a major surprise since he's had his greatest success in the NL, and if
Christmas arrives in about 3 hours on the east coast, and I was thinking back this afternoon to some of the better Christmas mornings I experienced as a kid growing up in the greater Washington area. The first one I recall with any clarity was when I was six. I got a Jerry Mahoney ventriloquist dummy. Paul Winchell and Jerry Mahoney were very popular on
With nothing much going on around the Nationals this week - well, nothing really jaw-dropping, anyway - I thought I'd use this space to hammer on one of my pet peeves: batting practice. I remember watching batting practice years ago where the BP pitcher threw off the mound, and would throw breaking balls and changeups as well as fastballs. The idea was to give the
Matt Chico has been designated for assignment by the Nationals, opening a spot on the 40-man roster. Chico has been DFA'ed before; indeed, he may yet be re-signed to a minor league deal, as he's done before. Not a great Christmas present, for sure, but not the end of the world either. I can't say this move necessarily means that another free agent signing is
Last week I told you the Nationals were talking with free agent outfielder Rick Ankiel. Today, they signed Ankiel to a one-year deal. Ankiel played with the Royals and Braves in 2010, and his numbers weren't terribly impressive. Still, he's a skilled defensive player with some pop in his bat - he's hit as many as 25 home runs in a season for St. Louis
Zack Greinke has been traded to the Milwaukee Brewers for an impressive package of prospects. You may have read that the Royals had also been talking to the Nationals about Greinke, but Greinke had indicated he wouldn't waive his no-trade clause to play for Washington. He'd previously shown a willingness to come to D.C. - until Cliff Lee signed with the Phillies. According to sources
Chatting with a fairly prominent big league scout - not affiliated with Washington - who regularly covers the Veneuelan Winter League produced some encouraging remarks about newly acquired Nationals reliever Henry Rodriguez. "I've seen him throw for years down here," he said, "but he's never shown the command that I saw this year." Rodriguez is a Veneuelan native who signed with Oakland as an amateur
By now you've heard the details on the trade that sent Josh Willingham to the A's for pitcher Henry Rodriguez and outfielder Corey Brown. Rodriguez is a strikeout pitcher. He got into 29 games for the 2010 A's with 33 Ks in about 28 innings. He's hit 100 mph on the gun many times, and turns 24 in February. Brown was a star at Oklahoma
Bob Feller passed away yesterday at the age of 92. Without question, one of the 10- or possibly five- greatest pitchers in baseball history, Bob was his own man, and not someone to be trifled with. I had multiple encounters with Bob over the past 30-plus years. He used to schedule appearances at minor league ballparks across the country and throw batting practice before the
A few days ago, one of my sources mentioned that the Nationals were preparing to sign veteran left-handed hitter Matt Stairs. I did a short take, and asked, "Really?" and filed it away as something that seemed a little improbable. After all, Stairs will be 43 in February, and is pretty one-dimensional: he plays bat, though he did spend 17 games in the field for
Apparently, until Cliff Lee decides whose uniform he wants to wear for the next few years, not a whole lot else is going to get done in the baseball world. Lee's decision had been expected by today, but it appears he's going to require a little more time. While we wait on his decision, let's take another look at the Nationals' first base sweepstakes. I
When Adam LaRoche was a free agent a year ago, the rumor throughout Major League Baseball was that his agent was looking for a multi-year deal worth in the $10 million annual range. He eventually signed a one year deal with Arizona for about $4.5 million. Now that he's a free agent again, and coming off his third straight 25-home run season, he may get
A lot of you, it seems, are convinced that a player's minor league statistics - particularly a pitcher's numbers - paint an accurate picture of his major league prospects. Some of the comments I'm seeing about the Nationals' Rule 5 draft acquisitions this morning - Elvin Ramirez and Brian Broderick - indicate that the Nats may just have well have thrown that money out in
With Carlos Pena off the market, after signing a one-year deal with the Cubs, it's easy to surmise that the Nationals focus will now be on Adam LaRoche. LaRoche, 31 last month, has been a steady performer for seven seasons in the big leagues. He's averaged 26 homers and 93 RBI every 162 games, which begs the question, why has this guy bounced around so
The buzz around the winter meetings is that the Nationals are serious about signing a starting pitcher, and are speaking with representatives for both Carl Pavano and Brandon Webb. Pavano went 17-11, 3.75 with the Twins in 2010, his best year since his breakout 18-8, 3.00 campaign in 2004, the season that got him his first big free agent payday, four years and $38 million
Maybe, by this time, Mike Rizzo has figured out that, regardless of what he does, someone, somewhere, will rip him a new one. The Nationals sign Jayson Werth to a huge contract, which should've quieted that group of naysayers who love to complain that the Lerners are "cheap." Their reaction? "Oh, they never should've spent that much on a player like Werth...." A lot of
Jayson Werth in a Nationals' uniform. Didn't see this one coming, did you? The Nationals' announcement this afternoon that they'd signed the former Phillies' right fielder to a seven-year contract caught more than a few people by surprise. Turns out the ballclub has had this in the works for more than two weeks. "Ted and Mark Lerner and Mike Rizzo flew to California a few
I'm well aware that the winter meetings begin tomorrow, but today we should all pause to observe a very special anniversary. Little Richard was born 78 years ago today in Macon, GA. Say what you will about the various kings of rock and roll, but Richard Wayne Penniman was the guy who really and truly scared the crap out of the greatest generation, as Tom
I can't get too worked up over Adam Dunn's decision to sign with the White Sox. A four-year, $56 million contract is less than what his agent had called "a starting point" for a new deal, and I'll be quite interested in seeing how often skipper Ozzie Guillen -a former Gold Glove shortstop - pencils Adam's name in at first base. For all of those
