Hudson headed elsewhere
The Nationals, it appears, will have to move a spot down their list of middle infield options; Orlando Hudson isn't coming to Washington.
According to league sources, the free agent second baseman is either headed to the Twins or the Indians, with the Twins appearing to be the front-runner.
The Nationals had acknowledged interest in Hudson and had made an offer believed to be upwards of $3 million.
Several players, including first baseman Adam Dunn, said they believed Washington was Hudson's top choice. But the former Blue Jays, D-Backs and Dodgers infielder was unwilling to lower his price for the Nationals and will now likely land in the AL Central.
So what now? Well, the Nationals are interested in Adam Kennedy, and they could land him (although he's commanding interest from several other teams). But they could start the spring with Ian Desmond and Cristian Guzman as the starters, with Willie Harris and Alberto Gonzalez as backup options.
I'll keep my ear to the ground on the future options, but Hudson does not appear to be one of them.
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Categories (click for archive)Ben Goessling | Nationals News |
It makes no sense for the Nats to break the bank for Hudson. He is not a difference maker who will propel them into the pennant chance. They still need to develop their very young pitching. In 2011 Hudson will make sense. Not this year. Signing Kennedy for now makes sense.
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I think if it had been for one year, it wasn't going to be a terribly damaging thing financially. It just comes down to whether they wanted to spend the money for this one year. But I agree, it wasn't going to make them a contender this year. Kennedy would be a capable option. I wouldn't be surprised if he ends up elsewhere, though, and they start the year with what they have.
Ben
"But they could start the spring with Ian Desmond and Cristian Guzman as the starters, with Willie Harris and Alberto Gonzalez as backup options."
Ben do you have any idea how lame that is....Rizzo and the "new FO" said they needed to upgrade the MI and that was a top priority. Now it is not a priority.....Please stop reporting what we can read anywhere and get a point of view on this mess.
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Lame? I don't know. A possible scenario for how they start the year? Yes. Unless they make a move in the next two weeks, it's what they're going to have. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news. But if a mess is how you perceive it, it's very possible they're going to start the season with said mess.
Ben
Don't forget that they signed Eric Bruntlett to a minor league deal. He could challenge the AG in ST. Also, remember that there really is no deadline for improving the team. It's a constant process. The loss of Hudson is a setback, but it's not the end of the story. Remember that at this time last year there was a gaping hole in CF. No one had Nyjer Morgan on their radar screen. No one except Rizzo, that is. It took until July for him to make it happen, but he did. And now that problem is solved, Tony Plush is a key piece of the future, a fan favorite, and a bobblehead. No one saw that coming until it happened, even though Rizzo was working it all along.
My point is that if Plan A fails, you don't wail and gnash your teeth over it like JayB does. You move on to Plan B, and even Plan C or Plan D if you need to. That's where it helps to have Rizzo running things. You know he has other things he's working on, even if he doesn't tell you what they are. Sooner or later, something will pan out.
Looks like they have Kennedy, according to a Ladson item.
Ben,
That mess had 143 errors lat year and 103 losses up from 102 losses. How does that work with repeated FO statements about what is "acceptable". Sure they signed the last man standing for the least amount possible in Adam K but that is not a Plan for fixing this team now which is what Rizzo promised he was all about. Livo can not be far behind....great, just great work Nats.
"Sooner or later something will work out".....that is classic....how has that been working so far for this team? ABM, last year at this time you were saying how wrong we all were calling Jimbo Stan front office dysfunctional and you were saying how wrong we were about Milledge not being a CFer or lead off man....how did those "truths" work out for you?
JayB, produce a quote where I ever said any of those things. Because I didn't. But as for how did they work out, Bowden is gone and so is Milledge - replaced by a true solution in Nyjer Morgan. So I'd say they worked out fine. As it would seem the second base situation is working out too. And here's a thought: Kennedy isn't the ultimate solution anyway. That's still TBD, and you can bet Rizzo is working on it as we speak.
Can't understand your compulsion for rehashing problems of the past that everyone else has moved on from - including the team.
I will produce the quotes if you will admit to using about 5 different sign ons over the past 3 years...better yet why not just admit you were wrong about Jimbo/Kasten and Lerner betting an effective FO team. When Nats put a good product on the field I will be in the Stands and I will let you know, until then they are who their record says they are. The worst team in baseball with the second worst defense in ten years covering 300 independent seasons of baseball.
JayB, I certainly will not admit to using about 5 different sign ons over the past three years, because I haven't. And I have never argued for Bowden necessarily being an effective GM. I've maybe pointed out at times that he was there and people needed to get used to it, or that the FO was not dysfunctional. But there's a big difference between not being dysfunctional and being effective. Bad as he was, Bowden wasn't dysfunctional. He got the job done, even if he didn't do the best job of it.
And that's enough rehashing of past bad seasons. They were what they were, but they and their cast of characters are gone. Move on, why don't you?