Mike Rizzo going all-in on Jonathan Papelbon

On Sept. 29, a day after Jonathan Papelbon and Bryce Harper tangled publicly in dugout, the eventual National League MVP attempted to sweep the mess underneath the rug.

"If Pap's gonna help us win a World Series next year, that's what I need," Harper said in front of his locker after serving a team-imposed one-game suspension for his role in the fracas.

During the same rap session, Harper indicated he planned to reach out to Papelbon at some point since the veteran closer had already been dismissed for the remainder of the season. The two reportedly connected in the following weeks when Harper phoned Papelbon and smoothed things over.

Yet heavy speculation on Papelbon's future continued with most expecting the Nationals to part ways with the former All-Star reliever. General manager Mike Rizzo acknowledged discussions early on during the offseason, but maintained the position that Papelbon would not just be dumped.

The separation seemed even more likely after a report surfaced on the eve of the Winter Meetings regarding a grievance filed against the Nationals by Papelbon over money lost during his suspension. But Rizzo just brushed it off as expected and procedural, claiming there was no new issue.

New manager Dusty Baker - no stranger to dealing with clubhouse disagreements - didn't seem bothered by potential distractions when he addressed the matter in Nashville in December.

"Right now, Papelbon is my closer," Baker said. "I'm not one to foresee problems before they become problems."

And days later, Danny Espinosa was among a number of veteran Nationals who claimed the whole thing was a non-issue with absolutely no carryover into 2016.

"If you took your 24 other best friends and put them in a clubhouse, you guys would fight each other," Espinosa said at Winterfest. "If you guys had siblings growing up, you love your siblings to death, but you guys fought. It happens. It's part of it. The unfortunate part of that is that it happened in front of the cameras. To me, that doesn't bother me. It's part of it. It's like if you work a regular job, you don't get along with every single person you work with. That doesn't mean that you don't work together.

"You're gonna have disagreements. Even the guys that you love, you're gonna have disagreements with. It doesn't bother me at all. You got the highest level of baseball player with huge egos throughout baseball. And we have guys that have separate opinions. Now clash those together - what are you gonna get? You're gonna get arguments. You're gonna get fights. We're grown men. It happens. I'm not worried. It actually doesn't bother me at all."

It all sort of seemed like lip service. How could the Nationals keep Papelbon around? Weren't they worried he could snap again? What about the fans' opinions?

But a day after trading Drew Storen for Ben Revere - a deal that cleared up the backend bullpen situation a bit more - Rizzo's position on Papelbon became clearer and more defensive.

"We see Papelbon as being one of our late-inning relievers," Rizzo said. "He's been very effective at it his entire career, including last year, except for the last portion of the season. This guy is a quality reliever, quality closer. He's been in the biggest stage that you can be in. He pitched the last out of a World Series game and has a World Series ring. He knows how to win. He brings a swagger to the bullpen and he's a guy that we're going to rely on to pitch late and leverage innings."

So with pitchers and catchers set to report in less than two weeks, it appears that swagger will be on full display for the Nationals. After speaking to a few close friends who attended Saturday's Hot Stove event at Nationals Park and also reading reports on some of the great Nats blogs out there, it seems like Rizzo attempted to convince the fans of his position on Papelbon.

Only time will tell how it all plays out. Papelbon is a fierce competitor, who by most accounts has been a leader in clubhouses throughout his career. If he performs without incident early on, then maybe all will be forgiven.

Like they say, winning cures everything.