We’re about 27 hours from the MLB Trading Deadline for the season, and it’s time to ask: What can the Nationals do before 4pm on Tuesday to help themselves? It’s not like we’re heading to the Playoffs this year, hell, I think it’ll be a struggle to come up with 70 wins. Looking to the Future, though, is what we ought to be doing as a franchise right now. In just 9 months, the Nationals will open their next season in the as-yet-unnamed new ballpark on the banks of the Anacostia. To make good on their promise to the city to do their best to craft a winning franchise, it’s time for the Lerners, and their proxies Nationals President Stan Kasten and General Manager Captain Leatherpants Jim Bowden to start looking.
How can the Nationals improve? Do you keep or trade Dimitri Young (currently #8 in batting average)? Is Young the kind of guy you could build a team around? It’s clear that Nick Johnson isn’t ever going to be the hitter he once pretended to be, and that the Nats are going to need to slough off his contract ASAP. Cristian Guzman? Let’s just say it’s probably in the best interest of the team that he has, in fact, resumed his play from the 2006 season.
With sluggers like Mark Texeira (though he may be heading to the Braves today) on the block, perhaps it’s time the Nats made a move to come up with an Ace-to-be in exchange for Young? There’s no question he could provide some much-needed pop for one of the dark horses in the hunt for the Playoffs.
There’s no question: A .450 team will NOT put butts into the seats at the new stadium for long. There’s the lure of the new stadium, surely, but with only 16,000 full-season-ticketholder-equivalents (which is an awfully hyphenated term…) the Nats have to think about putting some excitement into the club, which could mean the pickup of a big name pitcher or hitter, which could increase the steady draw.
Or, they could do nothing, like last year. We all know how well that turned out.
This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs
I live and work in the District of Columbia. I write at We Love DC, a blog I helped start, I work at Technolutionary, a company I helped start, and I’m happy doing both. I enjoy watching baseball, cooking, and gardening. I grow a mean pepper, keep a clean scorebook, and wash the dishes when I’m done. Read Why I Love DC.
