Dan Kolko

What areas of the roster could still use some work?

What areas of the roster could still use some work?
In less than 48 hours, I'll be on a flight headed for Orlando, ready to leave behind this brutal weather and kick off spring training 2014. Word on the street is that the D.C. area is supposed to get more snow later this week. Guess I'll miss out on that. What awful luck. (Is my sarcasm coming through clearly enough?) Nationals pitchers and catchers are scheduled to report to camp by Thursday, Feb. 13, but I'll be getting down there a day early in order to get settled and check in with the...
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Dan Kolko

Expectations abound again

Expectations abound again
It's not too difficult to remember how we all felt this time last year. Nationals fans expected a stellar season following the team's division title in 2012. I expected the Nats to win over 100 games. Davey Johnson, well, he had such high expectations that he entered the season thinking, "World Series or bust." Things will probably be a little different this year, after the Nats delivered a surprisingly low 86 wins in 2013 and failed to make the postseason. Nats fans will likely be more...
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Dan Kolko

On the Burnett-to-D.C. rumors, plus Kimball note

On the Burnett-to-D.C. rumors, plus Kimball note
A couple of weeks ago, A.J. Burnett wasn't sure whether he wanted to pitch in 2014. Now, Burnett's decision on what uniform he'll be wearing this upcoming season has become one of the main storylines remaining as we work up toward spring training. And the Nationals are being mentioned as one potential landing spot for the 37-year-old right-hander. Burnett, who posted a 3.30 ERA and 209 strikeouts in 191 innings for the Pirates last season, has reportedly drawn interest from a few teams...
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Dan Kolko

Nats sign Luis Ayala to minor league deal

Nats sign Luis Ayala to minor league deal
Remember that list of players that the Nationals will have as part of their spring training roster? We can add another name to it. The Nationals have signed right-handed reliever Luis Ayala to a minor league deal with an invitation to big league spring training, a source confirmed late this morning. Ayala, 36, spent the 2013 season with the Orioles and Braves, posting a 3.27 ERA in 39 games. He struck out 22 and walked 13 over 33 innings of work. This marks Ayala's second stint with the...
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Dan Kolko

A look at the Nats' spring training roster

A look at the Nats' spring training roster
We're now less than a week away from the official start of Nationals spring training. Six days from now, the home clubhouse at Space Coast Stadium will be swarming with pitchers and catchers, as Feb. 13 is the deadline for battery members to report to camp, with their first official workout scheduled for Feb. 15. Position players will report by Feb. 18, the first full-team workout will be Feb. 20, and the first Grapefruit League game will be on Feb. 28 at Port St. Lucie against the...
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Dan Kolko

Span more comfortable, confident entering his second spring with Nats

Span more comfortable, confident entering his second spring with Nats
When Denard Span showed up to NatsFest last year, he says he walked into the Walter E. Washington Convention Center and immediately felt somewhat out of place. Span had just been acquired by the Nationals in a trade with the Twins - the only organization he had ever known - two months prior, and had yet to meet the vast majority of his teammates and coaches. The then-28-year-old was plenty friendly and accommodating to fans and reporters that day, but he says it wasn't too comfortable of an...
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Dan Kolko

Nats sign catcher Koyie Hill to minor league deal

Nats sign catcher Koyie Hill to minor league deal
The Nationals have increased the competition for their backup catcher job, signing veteran Koyie Hill to a minor league deal with an invitation to big league spring training. Hill, 34, has played in parts of 10 big league seasons, seeing time with the Dodgers, Diamondbacks, Cubs and Marlins. He appeared in 18 games with Miami last season, hitting .155 with a .373 OPS in 58 at-bats. A career .206 hitter, Hill had his best big league season in 2009, when he posted a .636 OPS in 83 games with...
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Dan Kolko

A quick check on what's left on the market

A quick check on what's left on the market
Even though we're around a week away from the start of spring training, there are still a handful of big names left out there on the free agent market, guys that can make a significant impact on a team. Starters A.J. Burnett, Ubaldo Jimenez, Ervin Santana and Bronson Arroyo are still without a team for the 2014 season. Closer Fernando Rodney will bolster the back of some team's bullpen and add some flair to the ninth inning. First baseman/DH Kendrys Morales, right fielder Nelson Cruz and...
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Dan Kolko

Now fully healthy, Solis open to whatever comes this year (Baker to Marlins)

Now fully healthy, Solis open to whatever comes this year (Baker to Marlins)
Scan the list of left-handed pitchers that the Nationals have invited to big league camp this spring and you see a wide variety of names. You have your established starter in Gio Gonzalez. You have your veteran reliever in Jerry Blevins. You have a possible swingman in Ross Detwiler. You have a number of guys with experience at Triple-A now competing for big league jobs in Xavier Cedeno, Tyler Robertson and Danny Rosenbaum. You have a former top prospect who has dropped in many evaluators'...
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Dan Kolko

Williams on what Espinosa must do in spring to reach his potential

Williams on what Espinosa must do in spring to reach his potential
Last night featured a lopsided, less-than-thrilling game, a mediocre batch of commercials and an overall boring night on Super Bowl Sunday. Bring on baseball season. We've talked a lot this offseason about Danny Espinosa and how he might fit into the Nationals' plans for 2014. General manager Mike Rizzo says that he feels Espinosa could be valuable to the Nats as a reserve middle infielder, given his defensive ability. Espinosa says he's been told he'll be given a chance to win his...
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Dan Kolko

Plenty of new faces competing for bench roles in 2014

Plenty of new faces competing for bench roles in 2014
Super Bowl Sunday might be the biggest day of the football calendar, but to me, it always serves as a reminder that baseball is just around the corner. There's just one more football game remaining this winter, one more major sporting event left before pitchers and catchers report to spring training and we start the transition towards the warmer-weather sports. That's not to say that I don't enjoy the heck out of Super Bowl Sunday and all that comes with it (except that the NFL forces...
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Dan Kolko

Nationals agree to terms with Doug Fister (Brown signs with Red Sox)

Nationals agree to terms with Doug Fister (Brown signs with Red Sox)
The Nationals announced this morning that they have agreed to terms with right-hander Doug Fister on a contract for 2014, avoiding arbitration. Update: The New York Post reports that the Nats and Fister agreed to a one-year, $7.2 million deal. The Nationals had offered Fister $5.5 million through the arbitration process and Fister had countered at $8.5 million. Fister, who went 14-9 with a 3.67 ERA in 2013, made $4 million last season. Fister was acquired by the Nats in a December trade...
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Dan Kolko

On Matt Williams' approach to spring training

On Matt Williams' approach to spring training
In many ways, Davey Johnson was a players' manager. One of those ways was that he ran a pretty laid-back spring training, in which early workouts usually were complete well before noon and veterans often weren't required to go on the long road trips. Things will probably be a bit different under new Nationals manager Matt Williams. Williams said at the Winter Meetings in December that he had the first 25 days of spring training totally mapped out. At NatsFest last weekend, Williams noted...
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Dan Kolko

Nats announce 2014 promotional schedule

Nats announce 2014 promotional schedule
The Nationals released their 2014 promotional schedule today, which is highlighted by seven (yes, seven) bobblehead giveaways, kids socks, a blanket and a garden gnome featuring the likeness of Jayson Werth. I'm still not quite sure what to make of the garden gnome idea, but I am impressed by the creative concept. You don't see too many garden gnomes handed out at ballparks these days. Of the seven bobblehead giveaways this season, at least five will be of Nats players. Jordan Zimmermann,...
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Dan Kolko

Strasburg sets his personal goals for 2014, plus minor league note

Strasburg sets his personal goals for 2014, plus minor league note
The 2013 season was a big one for Stephen Strasburg in a few ways. Obviously, it was the first time Strasburg had pitched a full season in the big leagues, a milestone that he had a right to be proud of. Despite a couple of injuries that caused him to miss a few starts along the way, Strasburg still hit the 30-start mark and finished with a career-high 183 innings pitched. He only won eight games on the season and finished with a losing record, but Strasburg posted an impressive 3.00 ERA,...
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Dan Kolko

One possible late addition to the bench (Tracy signs with Angels)

One possible late addition to the bench (Tracy signs with Angels)
When assessing the depth on the Nationals' roster at this point, there's one area where it seems that the team is lacking a proven backup option - the corner infield spots. Yes, Tyler Moore will enter spring competing for a spot on the 25-man roster, and he can back up Adam LaRoche at first base. Yes, Ryan Zimmerman will be asked to play a little bit of first base this year, as well. Yes, Jamey Carroll has experience playing third base, and both general manager Mike Rizzo and manager Matt...
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Dan Kolko

Detwiler's mindset: I've won a rotation spot before, I can do it again

Detwiler's mindset: I've won a rotation spot before, I can do it again
If Ross Detwiler had his choice, I'm sure he'd prefer to walk in on day one of spring training and know that a spot in the Nationals starting rotation was being set aside just for him. Detwiler isn't scared of a little competition, but if the options are having a starting spot with your name written on it or needing to battle for that spot, it would probably be nice to know that you had a little job security. That's only natural. That's not how things will go this spring,...
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Dan Kolko

Gio Gonzalez and Jorge Posada: An unlikely offseason tandem

Gio Gonzalez and Jorge Posada: An unlikely offseason tandem
Some pitchers use their old high school or college teammates as their catcher during offseason bullpen sessions. Some pitchers throw to their fathers during the winter. Others strap their personal trainers up in catching gear and have them on the receiving end of a few dozen fastballs. Gio Gonzalez has recruited someone with slightly better credentials to catch his offseason bullpen sessions: former Yankees catcher Jorge Posada. Gonzalez and Posada have met up each of the last two Tuesdays at...
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More from Espinosa on his struggles in 2013 and optimism for 2014

More from Espinosa on his struggles in 2013 and optimism for 2014
Of all the interviews that were conducted at NatsFest yesterday, if I was asked which was the most interesting, I'm pretty sure Danny Espinosa's 10-minute chat with reporters would take the cake. We got a lot of updates on throwing programs, a lot of offseason workout updates. But as always, Espinosa was brutally honest in his session with reporters, and provided some interesting information on his 2013 season and what he expects in 2014. Espinosa says that he's been told he'll be able to...
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Dan Kolko

Final notes and quotes from NatsFest

Final notes and quotes from NatsFest
The Nationals announced that more than 8,400 people showed up today at NatsFest. Hope everyone who did had a blast. Unfortunately, as is almost always the case with these events, I was pretty much stashed away in a media work room, making the walk from the interview area to my laptop and then back to the interview area. Wish I could've seen more of the sights and sounds around the Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center. Here are a handful of final notes and quotes from a jam-packed...
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