Tracking down former Nats position players

Baseball rosters are a constantly changing entity. Teams make moves throughout a season and offseason, calling up this player, sending another player down, trading this one away, signing this one off the open market.

In the process, a lot of players who become well-known and popular among fans, teammates and media alike disappear, never to be heard from again in these parts.

The Nationals, like every other team in baseball, have parted ways with plenty of once-popular players over the years. You may have kept tabs on some of them, but many get lost in the shuffle, their names coming to mind a year or two later as you wonder: "Whatever happened to him?"

Well, we're going to use this weekend as an opportunity to track down some of those very players who used to wear the curly W on their caps. This isn't going to be a comprehensive list of every former Nat - with all due respect, how many of you are dying to know what Atahualpa Severino is up to these days? (He made 59 relief appearances in the Mexican League last year.) - but perhaps some of these blasts from the past will bring a smile to your face.

We'll do position players today, then pitchers tomorrow ...

ROGER BERNADINA
"The Shark" was a mainstay on the Nationals roster from 2010-13, popular for his acrobatic catches in the outfield, offensive contributions off the bench and quirky personality. Released by the Nationals in August 2013 to make room for David DeJesus (who lasted all of four days with the team), Bernadina bounced around the league in the ensuing three years, signed at different times by the Phillies, Reds, Dodgers, Rockies and Mets. He last played in a big league game in 2014 for Los Angeles. He spent all of 2016 with the Mets' Triple-A club in Las Vegas, hitting .292 with 10 homers, 55 RBIs and an .841 OPS. A free agent at season's end, he signed in November with the Kia Tigers of the Korean Baseball Organization, so he'll be taking his talents to Asia in 2017.

MATT DEN DEKKER
Acquired from the Mets for Jerry Blevins at the end of spring training 2015, den Dekker seemed poised to become (at worst) a solid reserve outfielder for years to come. But after a strong close to his 2015 season, den Dekker was mostly a nonfactor in 2016. He famously arrived in Atlanta in mid-game during the season's opening series and then clubbed a game-winning double, but that was his lone highlight of the year. And after hitting .207 with a .607 OPS at Triple-A Syracuse, he became a free agent. den Dekker has since signed a minor league deal with the Marlins, so the Nats probably will see plenty of him in spring training as he tries to crack Miami's opening day roster.

STEVE LOMBARDOZZI
A particular fan favorite, the Columbia native was a key contributor to the Nationals' 2012 division championship team. The negative reaction from many upon learning he was part of the trade that brought Doug Fister to D.C. in December 2013 remains tangible. Lombo's career, though, has stagnated since then. The Tigers traded him to the Orioles before he ever played a game for them. He hit .288 in 20 games with Baltimore in 2014, then he was sold to the Pirates in 2015, appearing in only 15 big league games. After signing with and getting released by the White Sox last spring, Lombardozzi was left to try a comeback with the independent Southern Maryland Blue Crabs. The Nats took notice and brought him back last summer on a minor league contract. He hit .253 in 62 games at Syracuse, then became a free agent again after the season. He has yet to sign with anyone this winter.

TYLER MOORE
Another key member of the Nationals' 2012 bench - do you sense a recurring theme here? - Moore ran out of chances and minor league options last spring. The Nats traded him to the Braves at the end of March for first baseman Nate Freiman. Freiman was released less than a month later. Moore played in only 29 games in the Braves' system, spending considerable time on the disabled list with what as far as I can tell was a never-disclosed injury. He became a free agent at season's end and has since signed a minor league contract with the Marlins. So he's another familiar face the Nationals are likely to see this spring as he tries to play his way back onto a big league roster.

NYJER MORGAN
Immensely popular when he first arrived in D.C. during the 2009 season, "Tony Plush" had worn out his welcome by the time he was traded to the Brewers in the spring of 2011 for Cutter Dykstra. It's been a winding path for the charismatic outfielder ever since. He helped lead Milwaukee to the playoffs in 2011 but was gone after the 2012 season. He went to Japan in 2013, returned to the United States to play for the Indians in 2014, went back to Asia to play in Korea in 2015, then resurfaced in Mexico last season. Despite all his foibles, Morgan actually has been a pretty productive player throughout his career. In 598 big league games, he owns a .282 batting average, .343 on-base percentage and .708 OPS. In 532 career minor league games, he has hit .290 with a .366 on-base percentage and .729 OPS. And in three seasons playing in foreign leagues, he has hit .299 with a .383 on-base percentage and an .832 OPS.

MICHAEL MORSE
Ah, perhaps the most-popular former National on the list. There's a certain segment of fans that to this day continue to insist it was a mistake to trade Morse to Seattle in January 2013, and that this franchise's fortunes might have been dramatically different had Morse simply remained in D.C. That's debatable, but what isn't debatable is this: Morse has bounced around a lot since then, enjoying small pockets of success (helping the Giants win the 2014 World Series) but missing plenty of time with injuries and often struggling at the plate when healthy. In 323 games since leaving the Nats, he has batted .245 with 34 homers, 107 RBIs, a .307 on-base percentage and .717 OPS. He's now back with the Giants after signing a minor league deal late last month.

STEVEN SOUZA JR.
Responsible for one of the greatest moments in club history - his diving catch in left field for the final out of Jordan Zimmermann's no-hitter - Souza seemed to have a bright future with the Nationals. But given their logjam in the outfield, he became expendable. And when the opportunity arose to acquire Trea Turner and Joe Ross from the Padres in a three-team trade, Mike Rizzo didn't hesitate to send Souza to the Rays. He's been a fairly productive player for Tampa Bay the last two years, though he remains pretty rough around the edges. In 230 games with the Rays, he has hit .237 with 33 homers, 89 RBIs, a .308 on-base percentage and .712 OPS.