A Dunn extension and a man of letters
I was told on Monday - off-the-record - that the Nationals were interested in signing Adam Dunn to a contract extension.
Now that it's out there, I'll quote someone who's pretty close to Adam who told me that Dunn's preference is to play baseball, not play bat.
"Adam really doesn't want to DH in the American League. He wants to play the field, and believes his first base defense has reached the adequate level. He knows he's no Gold Glover, but believes that he'll get better, and is anxious to improve that aspect of his game."
If you've been through the Nats' clubhouse, it's pretty clear that Dunn's a one-for-all, all-for-one kind of guy. His teammates love him. If he's determined to play in the field - and he's still in his prime - then he's got to play in the National League. In another story he described the extension talks as being at the zero stage, and inasmuch as they've just started, that's a fair assessment.
The other bit of interesting news is the signing of Miguel Batista to a minor league contract. Batista is no kid - he'll turn 39 in 3 weeks - but he's coming off of an effective year in the Seattle bullpen. He's below .500 for his career, both starting and relieving, and has been in the organization before, originally signing wth the Expos in 1988, and pitching in Montreal 1998-2000. He made $9.5 million with the M's last year, so a minor league deal is quite a step down. He pitched for Jim Riggleman in Seattle in 2008, and knows Mike Rizzo from his time with Arizona, so perhaps those connections played some role in today's signing.
Batista is a also true renaissance man, having published a book of poetry ("Feelings in Black & White") and a novel ("The Avenger of Blood"), in additon to his accomplishments on the mound.
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Categories (click for archive)Phil Wood |
This is off subject, but I wonder if you have seen the new cold weather caps now available. According to MLB shop, the players will wear these new caps during cold weather games. Seems like a good idea now that Minnesota has given up it's domed stadium and the WS goes on until November. ================ I first saw Nats' cold weather caps at an AJ Wright store last fall. Sized New Era "DC" caps with flaps, and they were selling them for about ten bucks, so I assumed they'd not been good sellers elsewhere, but maybe they were prototypes or something. It's a good idea, and yes, Minnesota would seem to be a spot where you'd want them early and late in the season.
The cold weather Elmer Fudd caps were worn by some players in the last two World series. Recall the controvery over Jimmy Rollins (IIRC)having the flaps down and missing the call on a fly ball during one of the early games, and then not wearing the winter cap for the rest of the series despite the cold. Also, Joe Maddon had his on all the time during the 2008 series, while I'm sure WVa boy Charlie Manuel would not have worn one if his life depended on it. So it would seem that on-field use of such caps is not new, just the marketing of them to the fans.