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Playing Pepper 2011: Washington Nationals

Posted on March 18, 2011 at 7:58 AM
Filed Under: Playing Pepper | Washington Nationals
Two years ago, I started a series I called Playing Pepper, where I asked questions of bloggers of each major league team about the season to come.  Not only was that informative and entertaining, it led to the spawning of the Baseball Bloggers Alliance.  With spring training coming up, it's time to get back into shape by again playing a little pepper.

Washington Nationals (69-93, 28 GB and fifth in the NL East)

First in war, first in peace, last in the National League.  The old saying about the Senators, with a minor modification, fit the Nationals last season.  

There hasn't been just a whole lot of success in our Nation's Capitol since the Expos became the Nationals.  (Some would argue it's been a long, long time since there's been success in our Nation's Capitol, but that's a political discussion that's a bit off the point.)  The optimism of Stephen Strasburg making his debut was damped weeks later with his Tommy John surgery.

That said, there are reasons to hope, at least in the future.  Strasburg will return.  Bryce Harper is projected to be a top talent.  Drew Storen should hold down the bullpen.  There have been worse times in the franchise's history.

Dave Nichols is a credentialed independent journalist who covers the Washington Nationals and Washington Capitals. You can find his work at NatsNewsNetwork.com and CapsNewsNetwork.com.  He joined me for the last of the Peppers to talk about what's coming for 2011.


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C70: What was your opinion of the Washington offseason? 

NNN: I thought they dramtically overpaid for Jayson Werth and that contract is going to be very costly to them as he ages. He's a good player, but not a superstar, and they're paying him like he's one of the half-dozen best players in the game. I was fine with letting Adam Dunn walk, but not upgrading the starting pitching is going to keep the Nats wins total suppressed again this year. 

C70: With Stephen Strasburg out, who will be the face of the franchise this year? 

NNN: Ryan Zimmerman is the best player on the team, and he's one of the best third baseman in baseball. He just doesn't get the attention nationally since the Nats have been terrible so far in his career. Werth is going to get a lot of attention this year due to the contract. It'll be interesting to see if Werth can perform to his career norms now that he's "The Man". 

C70: Will Rick Ankiel win a starting spot in the outfield and, if so, what kind of numbers would you expect from him? 

NNN: The Nats LF and CF battles will be very interesting this spring. When he signed I'd have said Ankiel was looking at a bench role, but it looks more and more like there will be an open comeptition with Roger Bernadina and Mike Morse in left and Nyjer Morgan in center. Honestly, if he earns playing time I expect a little pop and decent defense, but his slash line will probably not impress. Also, if he does earn playing time, it means the younger players are failing and that's not good news in the long run for the Nats. 

C70: Is there a Nationals prospect that will make a significant impact this season? 

NNN: Catcher Wilson Ramos is the most likely to make an impact this year. The Nats acquired him in the Matt Capps deadline deal last year, and they hope he can split duties with Pudge Rodriguez early in the year and eventually take over full-time as the year goes on. This is also starter Ross Detwiler's make or break year. He's coming off another hip injury due to his funky delivery, but seems to have altered his motion to alleviate the problem. He's former first round (No. 6 overall) pick, and he's a big kid so he's projectable, but he's got to start producing. 

C70: What is your prediction on Washington's record and divisional finish? 

NNN: I haven't finalized a projection--I usually do that later in spring training after position battles settle down a bit. Right now I'd guess 70-72 wins and fourth place over the Mets. The lack of quality starting pitching will keep the Nats from sniffing contention this season. But if they have a good off-season next year, and get a healthy Stephen Strasburg back, 2012 could finally be the start of something very interesting for the Washington Nationals.


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Dave at Nats News Network | March 18, 2011 10:35 AM | Reply

Thanks for inviting us to do this!

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Heroes
Matt Holliday (5)
Matt Carpenter (4)
Rafael Furcal (4)
Carlos Beltran (3)
Jon Jay (3)
Kyle Lohse (3)
Lance Lynn (3)
Yadier Molina (3)
David Freese (2)
Jaime Garcia (2)
Adam Wainwright (2)
Lance Berkman (1)
Allen Craig (1)
Shane Robinson (1)
Fernando Salas (1)
Jake Westbrook (1)

2011 Top Hero: Lance Berkman (24)
2010 Top Heroes: Matt Holliday and Albert Pujols (24)
2009 Top Hero: Albert Pujols (28)
2008 Top Hero: Albert Pujols (25)

Goats
Matt Holliday (4)
Carlos Beltran (3)
David Freese (3)
Jaime Garcia (3)
Marc Rzepczynski (3)
Adam Wainwright (3)
Rafael Furcal (2)
Tyler Greene (2)
Jason Motte (2)
J.C. Romero (2)
Fernando Salas (2)
Mitchell Boggs (1)
Matt Carpenter (1)
Tony Cruz (1)
Daniel Descalso (1)
Jon Jay (1)
Erik Komatsu (1)
Kyle Lohse (1)
Victor Marte (1)
Eduardo Sanchez (1)
Jake Westbrook (1)

2011 Top Goat: Ryan Theriot (12)
2010 Top Goat: Brendan Ryan (14)
2009 Top Goats: Rick Ankiel and Todd Wellemeyer (13)
2008 Top Goat: Troy Glaus (13)

2012 Happy Flights
Happy Flights: 7
Happy Flight Opportunities: 12
Happy Flight %: 58%

Through 5/20

    Cardinal Nation Approval Ratings (March 2012)
    Adam Wainwright 91.9% (down 2.8%)
    Chris Carpenter 90.1% (up 3.2%)
    Lance Berkman 88.6%
    Tony La Russa 88.2% (up 17.4%)
    Yadier Molina 87.4% (up 3.7%)
    Matt Holliday 87.3% (down 3.8%)
    David Freese 85.5%
    John Mozeliak 85.4% (up 13.3%)
    Mike Shannon 85.3% (up 0.4%)
    Jose Oquendo 84.7%
    Derrick Goold 82.8% (down 5.0%)
    Mark McGwire 82.6% (up 20.1%)
    John Rooney 81.5% (down 2.8%)
    Mike Matheny 81.1%
    Bill DeWitt 79.8% (up 8.8%)
    United Cardinal Bloggers 78.9%
    Skip Schumaker 73.3% (up 9.2%)
    Jim Hayes 71.9% (down 4.2%)
    Jon Jay 71.1%
    B.J. Rains 69.5% (down 0.9%)
    Kyle Lohse 68.9% (up 13.8%)
    Dan McLaughlin 68.0%
    Joe Strauss 67.7% (up 10.2%)
    Ricky Horton 67.5% (down 1.6%)
    Al Hrabosky 66.4% (up 3.2%)
    Albert Pujols 54.9% (down 45.5%)
    Colby Rasmus 46.5% (down 35.3%)

    2011
    Dave Duncan 87.9% (up 0.9%)
    Matthew Leach 85.5%
    Pop Warner 76.7%
    Ryan Franklin 72.8% (up 3.1%)
    John Vuch 68.9%
    Jeff Luhnow 66.4%
    Dan Lozano 58.7%

    2009
    Rick Ankiel 83.9%
    Chris Duncan 69.1%


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