The Nationals’ performance at the winter meetings last week in Indianapolis certainly opened some eyes around the game.
They made the first deal at the meetings, acquiring right-hander Brian Bruney from the Yankees for their pick at the top of the Rule 5 draft, which turned out to be Dodgers’ outfield prospect Jamie Hoffman. Bruney was, at one point, considered a possible heir apparent to Mariano Rivera in the Bronx. Rivera, however, had other ideas and shows little sign of needing a replacement anytime soon. Yes, Bruney had an elbow issue that put him on the DL briefly in 2009, but had no problems the final three months of the season. He’ll have a new World Series ring to show his teammates in Washington.
Bruney’s specific role is to be named later, in the sense that, while he hasn’t closed since pitching in Arizona a few years ago, he throws in the mid-90s and seems to have the kind of bulldog mentality teams look for. He’ll provide some competition for Mike MacDougal, if indeed Mike is still with the club come mid-February.
The Nationals then signed free agent catcher Ivan “Pudge” Rodriguez to a two-year deal worth somewhere between five and six million dollars. There were some raised eyebrows around the hotel ballroom when that deal was apparent, but I-Rod reportedly had at least one, and perhaps more than one, other one-year offer for close to $4 million. He’d been targeted as the club’s first choice for a backup/fill-in for Jesus Flores at season’s end, and given the pedigree of Assistant GM Bob Boone, one wonders why anyone would question the decision.
The Nats search for starting pitching bore no fruit at the meetings themselves, but their willingness to spend at-or-above market price put them in play on a number of names, including ex-Rockies’ righty Jason Marquis — an innings workhorse who won 15 games for Colorado in ’09 and has averaged about 32 starts every year for the past six seasons. A former Braves’ first round pick, the Rockies declined his option for 2010.
John Smoltz is still on the Nationals’ radar, as is almost every other decent free agent starter out there outside of John Lackey. It was perfectly clear in chats with executives throughout both leagues that these aren’t the same Nationals of the past few seasons.
The club’s accumulation of front office talent this offseason is playing a big-time role in their construction of a roster. GM Mike Rizzo has said it over and over again: The Nats aren’t rebuilding; they’re building. Starting from scratch, really. Their critics are fond of knocking the Lerners as if they’ve presided over the long-term fall of an empire. In truth, they’ve only been in charge for three seasons, and have made some mistakes they freely admit to. But make no mistake about it: The Nationals aren’t some plaything. They want to win, and after a few false starts, are starting to look like they really mean it.
Phil Wood is a contributor to
Nats Xtra on MASN. Contact him at
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