We're off for San Diego

I'm just about off for the airport, ready to head out to San Diego for four days of Winter Meetings coverage. My cell phone battery and the soles of my shoes will be put to the test this week, as they are every Winter Meetings. Keeping up with all the rumors, speculation and legitimate news can be tough during this annual event, which includes long days and many trips from the lobby to the media workroom and then back to the lobby again. No, the Nationals don't need to make many moves out in San Diego. They could probably come home on Thursday having not made a single tweak to their roster and still be in good shape as we look toward 2015. Not many other teams out there could probably say the same. The Nats do, of course, need either a second baseman or a third baseman. Anthony Rendon can play one of those two positions, but he can't play both at the same time. He's a very talented young player, but he's not that talented. The free agent infielders that remain are limited, and none of those that are still out there seem to be great fits for the Nationals. Asdrubal Cabrera is familiar to Nats fans for sure, and he did nice work in his two months with the team after being acquired at the non-waiver trade deadline. Jed Lowrie is still on the market. Chase Headley and Mark Reynolds are two of the options at third base. It could certainly be argued, however, that all four of those players have already played their best ball. And with a number of teams still needing infield help, and money being thrown around at unprecedented levels for position players, the quality remaining free agents won't come cheap. But Nationals general manager Mike Rizzo has been looking around at possible trade targets, as well. And whatever infielder the Nats end up acquiring could come from that route. So what's left to do other than bring in another infielder? Well, the bench could use a boost, and so could the bullpen. Look for Rizzo to, at some point, acquire a left-handed-hitting bench option. And while the Nats have a number of right-handed relievers, you can never have enough quality bullpen depth. Still doesn't seem like a lot for Rizzo to do? Well, here's where things start to really get interesting. No, Rizzo doesn't have to make any big-splash moves to improve his club. No, there aren't many holes on the roster. But given the number of players the Nats have who are set to become free agents after the 2015 season, Rizzo could end up dealing any number of established, front-line guys. You know the list by now: Jordan Zimmermann, Doug Fister, Ian Desmond, Tyler Clippard, Denard Span. They're all set to hit free agency next year, and the Nats can't re-sign them all. So what does Rizzo do? Does he deal Zimmermann or Fister, looking to bring in some younger talent or an infielder that he could plug into the everyday lineup? Does that then open up a spot in the rotation for the Nats to target free agent right-hander Max Scherzer, a situation that many insiders around the game could see shaking out? Does Rizzo look to clear some money by shipping Clippard to another team? That's an option that FOXsports.com's Ken Rosenthal reported yesterday is "likely," according to a source. This could be a very quiet Winter Meetings for the Nationals. They could sit back, make a couple minor moves to bolster the back-end of their roster and come out of San Diego feeling like they will keep the core of their squad intact going into 2015, ready to take another full shot at a World Series title. Or, it could end up being a huge few days for this franchise, if Rizzo ends up dealing one or more of his established guys. Losing Zimmermann, Fister, Desmond, Span or Clippard would hurt in the short term, but it would open up the possibility for other moves. And it could potentially improve the Nats' chances in 2016 and beyond. We'll see how it plays out. This is a fun time of year, and as we've seen, anything can happen at the Winter Meetings.