Washington Nationals: The State Of The Franchise
By Ron Juckett
STATE OF MANAGEMENT
General Manager Mike Rizzo threw the gauntlet down when they snatched Eaton from the Chicago White Sox. After a Winter Meetings most of you want to forget, the front office replaced Ramos at catcher and moved Turner to short.
Yes, closer, closer, closer, but the Nationals achieved two out of three goals from the end of the last season. Tired of ending the season before the NL Championship Series, the team changed their planning. Washington senses they can win now and, after a few bad starts, made the move that will make or break Rizzo’s season.
Along the way, they improved their international scouting department and made clear they want to keep Dusty Baker in the dugout. By giving Harper over $13 million, they hope perhaps there is a road to avoid the slugger hitting free agency too.
With Baker and his staff, the Nats played relaxed, professional baseball last year. Whatever stresses that rocked the clubhouse stayed quiet. The focus was on the field, not bickering in the press.
As the Nats remain successful, their draft slots creep closer to the back end of every round. Keeping the farm system stocked with potential gets harder every year. The hiring of De Jon Watson will help with that and international players.
With a modern facility now in West Palm Beach, the Nats have all the current bells and whistles at their disposal to get the long training process off right.
The state of the coaching staff is outstanding while the reasoning behind the front office is solid. But, a drop off in results changes everything.