Is it possible to see Jonathan Papelbon and Drew Storen back with the Nats?

With the Nationals finally deciding on Dusty Baker as skipper last week, general manager Mike Rizzo can now devote most of his offseason attention to reinforcing a roster believed still to be on the postseason doorstep. Chief among Rizzo's concerns is rebuilding the Nationals bullpen, which stumbled terribly down the stretch in 2015.

It's hard for Rizzo to design the assembly of his relievers until decisions are made regarding closer Jonathan Papelbon and former closer Drew Storen. Rizzo addressed whether both right-handers will return in 2016 while speaking with reporters, including those from the Washington Post and MLB.com, at the general managers meetings in Boca Raton, Fla. on Tuesday.

"As of today, they're both in the bullpen and both good relief pitchers," Rizzo said to reporters. "Unless somebody makes us a real baseball offer, they will be."

Rizzo indicated to reporters that he has received interest in both relievers.

In an attempt to strengthen the back half of the Nationals bullpen, Rizzo acquired Papelbon just before the trade deadline in July to take over as closer while shifting Storen back to handle the still important eighth-inning duties. Papelbon ended up in only nine save opportunities for the Nats over the final two months, completing seven of them. The 34-year-old posted a 3.04 ERA in 22 appearances and finished the year on a seven-game suspension.

The first three games of Papelbon's suspension resulted from beaning Orioles third baseman Manny Machado, while the final four games were team imposed after the closer choked Bryce Harper during a fight in the Nationals dugout.

Harper indicated he was open to playing with Papelbon in 2016 when speaking the day after the altercation and reached out to him early in the offseason for a conversation first reported by the Post.

"I don't see any lingering problems with Papelbon and Harper," Rizzo said to reporters yesterday. "They're both competitive guys and they both want to win. Having both of those guys on the team will help us win. They've spoken, and I think we've made a bigger deal out of it than they ever did. I think they're going to be fine."

We'll see whether the Nationals are just playing nice for the public to keep Papelbon's trade value afloat. He is due to make $11 million in his final year under contract with the Nats in 2016.

Storen's season also ended prematurely when he broke his right thumb slamming his locker shut in frustration after surrendering a go-ahead two-run homer to Yoenis Cespedes in the eighth inning of a 5-3 loss to the Mets on Sept. 9 at Nationals Park.

Storen had been lights out through the first four months of the season, saving 29 of his 31 chances with a 1.73 ERA. But the Cespedes bomb was the culmination of a horrid stretch where Storen allowed 14 earned runs on 17 hits with six walks over 13 2/3 innings in 15 appearances (9.22).

Storen, 28, is entering the final year of his contract with the Nationals and will be due a bump this offseason from $5.7 million through arbitration.

"I also think Storen is going to pitch much closer to the guy before the last month of the season than he will the guy in the last month," Rizzo told reporters yesterday. "It's important for him to pitch well personally and important for us. He's got good stuff and there's no reason he should not pitch well."

If the Nationals opt to move Papelbon and Storen, they could make a run at Reds closer Aroldis Chapman. Rizzo has flirted with the Reds about Chapman before and Ken Rosenthal of FOXSports.com reports Cincinnati is now ready to trade the intimidating fireballer.

"With the depth we have, we think the trade market might be a good market for us," Rizzo said to reporters. "But with that, you always have to balance what you're giving up for the future with what you're getting for the present."