One day after agreeing to terms on a two-year deal with the Nationals, first baseman Adam LaRoche said that despite other offers, he knew this was the place he wanted to be. There were negotiations with the Nationals and with some other teams, but one reason LaRoche did not accept something comparable was because the Nats already had a good team, and he felt most comfortable playing for them. "One of the big ones was I was fighting to get back to Washington," LaRoche said during a...

Back at the Winter Meetings in December, Davey Johnson said that he'd ideally like to add another left-handed reliever to his bullpen, giving him better match-up options late in games. General manager Mike Rizzo echoed that sentiment, but said that the Nationals don't necessarily need to add a late-inning lefty. Rizzo's reasoning was that with Tyler Clippard, Craig Stammen and Ryan Mattheus in the Nationals' bullpen, Johnson has three righties who possess good track records against...

The weeks-long staredown between Nationals general manager Mike Rizzo and first baseman Adam LaRoche has concluded, with the free agent getting the two-year deal the Nats offered rather than the three-year contract he sought. What did we learn from these negotiations? (First, let's just agree that we can call them negotiations, even though there was precious little give and take. Rizzo drew a line in the sand, didn't waver and basically forced LaRoche's hand. It wasn't exactly a...

The baseball recovery clock from Tommy John started on Aug. 31, 2012, for Lucas Giolito. But before that day, the Nationals and baseball gurus got a small window into the immense potential that made Giolito the team's No. 1 selection in the 2012 draft. The 6-foot-6, 225-lb., flame throwing right-hander out of Santa Monica, Calif., pitched two innings for Gulf Coast Nationals and then-manager Tripp Keister saw quickly why the Nationals have such high hopes for the 18-year-old. Giolito was...

In the wake of the news that Adam LaRoche has signed a two-year deal with the Nationals worth a guaranteed $24 million, the most popular question among fans, by far, seems to be the following: Why would the Nats trade Michael Morse? Morse has become a popular guy with teammates and fans over the last couple years, thanks largely to his offensive production (it's tough to dislike a guy who hit .303 with a .910 OPS and 31 home runs two seasons ago), but also because of his quirky, fun-loving...

Major League Baseball and T-Mobile have a deal in place that will give managers the option of using cell phones to contact the bullpen instead of the old dugout phones. I can't wait for Orioles manager Buck Showalter to start texting bullpen coach Bill Castro. Castro probably would have expected an "LOL" last season when Showalter wanted Chris Davis to warm up in the 16th inning at Fenway Park. Jumping topics here, did you know that Miguel Gonzalez didn't lose back-to-back games with...

Here is an interesting question to discuss and debate as we look out the window on these cold winter mornings and count the days until spring arrives: What is the value of a player? When a few people asked me via Twitter yesterday if the Orioles might include Brian Matusz in a potential trade for the Nationals' Michael Morse, it made me wonder about Matusz's - and all players' - trade value. Now I am not proposing the Orioles trade the lefty but you have to wonder how opponents view the...

While the speculation mounts over the Orioles' pursuit of Nationals first baseman Michael Morse, they continue to focus on improving the depth in their minor league system. The Orioles have signed outfielder Tim Smith, 26, to a minor league deal. He hasn't received an invitation to spring training. Smith tweeted the news earlier tonight, and a club official confirmed the signing. Smith batted .288/.372/.386 in 70 games with Single-A Lynchburg and Double-A Mississippi of the Atlanta Braves...

After a few months of extended talks which saw little actual negotiating, the Nationals and Adam LaRoche today agreed on a two-year contract worth a guaranteed $24 million, a deal which brings one player in but will almost certainly send another out. LaRoche returns for the 2013 and 2014 seasons and has a mutual option for 2015, as well. Nationals general manager Mike Rizzo viewed LaRoche as his "Plan A" all offseason, and today, he finally brought back the Gold Glove- and Silver...

The Washington Nationals today agreed to terms with first baseman Adam LaRoche on a two-year contract with a mutual option for the 2015 season. Nationals Executive Vice President of Baseball Operations and General Manager Mike Rizzo made the announcement. LaRoche led all MLB first basemen in 2012 with a career-best 33 home runs and 69 extra-base hits in a fantastic two-way campaign that included a .271 batting average, 35 doubles, a career high-tying 100 RBIs, 67 walks, an .853 OPS, as well as...