Verdicts looming for Morgan and Olsen

September 2, 2010 5:56 PM by Ben Goessling View Comments

I'm up in Baltimore tonight, taking in the Orioles and Red Sox, and I had a chance to talk with a few baseball people about the Nationals and the events of last night:

The consensus among a few scouts was that Nyjer Morgan's biggest offense was the way he came off the field after the brawl at Sun Life Stadium, raising his arms and taunting the crowd.

They didn't have a problem with him stealing two bases in the fourth inning - and as one person pointed out, the Marlins were holding Morgan on the bag when he stole them. If they're doing that, it's clear they expect him to run.

And once Chris Volstad threw behind him, it was clear there was only one way things were going to end. ESPN's Buster Olney reported Morgan will have his suspension hearing on Friday.

For the second time in two weeks, I heard from a scout who covered Danny Espinosa in the Eastern League, and thinks the infielder is going to be a player. He was 1-for-2 in his big league debut last night, driving in a run. The scout sees Espinosa as a consistent 15-20 homer threat in the majors.

The Nationals will have a decision to make on Scott Olsen in a few days; the left-hander has an 8.72 ERA in seven starts since coming off the disabled list and has allowed a .958 OPS against him. He is commanding bonus money each time he starts, and the Nationals could have Yunesky Maya in the majors by the time Olsen makes his next start.

Maya allowed a run in 6 2/3 innings at Triple-A Syracuse last night, and will be among the Nationals' September call-ups.

Ross Detwiler, who pitches tonight at Syracuse, could also be ready to go. It's tough to see Olsen coming back next year, but the decision the Nationals make on him in the next week could expedite that process.