The Nationals Enquirer

THE ALL-STAR BREAK BEGAN A DAY EARLY IN WASHINGTON

"I'm gonna be the guy on the couch."
(Dmitri Young, via Nationals dot com, 7/13/2008)

Astros 5, NAAAAts 0: No one told the Nationals they had to play a game! A perfectly fitting, lazy Sunday leading up to the Break.

Another sign that Manny Acta might need a little rest more than anyone else: Paul Lo Duca batted second yesterday.

Meanwhile...

• Boswell chimes in on the nasty week that was last week, and asks for sympathy for the Lerners, then reminds you once again that Nationals fans should just shut up and take it when things get bad:

  Relax. A week of bad baseball news beats 33 years without it.

• Mark Zuckerman reminds us that as bad as last week went, it might not have even been the worst week of the season for the Nationals. Scary thought.
• We've chosen to simply ignore the Matt Holliday chatter from Ken Rosenthal (via MLB Trade Rumors dot com). Just seems too far fetched. Sure, the Nats probably have the pieces available to make the trade, and plenty of Ted Lerner's money to sign him to a long term deal (it's a wonder what not paying rent will do for you), but WOULD they commit the resources to sign him long term (especially given Mark Lerner's comments earlier yesterday on Nationals Journal echoing something Stan Kasten told him once)? Hey, I wonder how those Zimmerman negotiations are going?
• Wily Mo will have  a super special MRI done his left shoulder to figure out why he's been sucking.
• If the words of one NL scout quoted by Chico (not Matt) is any indication, Odalis Perez will be a National to the bitter end of the season (via Washington Post dot com):

"For me, I don't think he's even in the rotation. ... But if a team is looking for a tail-end starter, I wouldn't recommend that would be the guy."

• And still more good news.
• Wait, here's some good news, seriously! Even FireJimBowden dot org would have to give Jimbo a little credit, right?

(AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)

IT'S JUST LIKE RIDING A BIKE.

He's back!!!??

Capitol Punishment. 5:14PM, Sunday July 13: Back from exile with a friendly message for The Lerner Family!

*********Update. Not so fast! On Sun, Jul 13, 2008 at 8:07 PM, in exchange for an undisclosed amount of cash and a giant Nationals #1 foam finger, Chris Needham went on the record with The Nationals Enquirer to put to bed any rumors that Capitol Punishment is back in business. Needham wrote via email:

one time thing!  after getting heat stroke watching the columbus clippers face the astros and discovering the chili nachos are MORE EXPENSIVE and coming home to read that, i had to do something to lower the blood pressure!

So there you have it. Just a one time thing.

Just good business? Or just cheapness?

Here at The Nationals Enquirer, we're not too concerned that the Nationals haven't signed any of their top five 2008 draft picks yet. After all, these things take time, and they've still got a month (Aug. 15) to wrap 'em up. But the second item in Washington Times' Ben Goessling's Notebook this morning raises some serious red flags:

...And according to a source close to one of those picks, the team could have trouble signing several of them.

The source said the Nationals front office has been given a directive by ownership not to give any of the picks a larger signing bonus than MLB's slot system recommends. All of those picks are believed to be looking for above-slot signing bonuses.

"I spoke with [scouting director] Dana Brown recently, and he sounded absolutely devastated," the source said. "I'm actually kind of stunned they're doing this."

Hold a second, let's dust off our copy of "The Plan", so we can look up the organization's philosophy on using the draft to stock the farm system with top prospects... Hmm...well...this 'below-slot-or-bye-bye' posturing certainly doesn't seem to match up with what we've been hearing all along from ownership. I don't get it. Surely the Nationals' farm system isn't so fully stocked yet that they'd be in the position to draw a line in the sand like this with its latest crop of top picks, right? Maybe it's all just a negotiation tactic, just posturing?

HUNTER, HOUSTON, ROCK ROOK

"Even the guys that were grounding out, the pitches were above the [waist], and I was getting lucky they weren't hitting it out. Instead of driving to the plate, I was opening up a little too early and leaving the ball up."
(Collin Balester, via Washington Times, 7/13/2008)

Astros 6, Nationals 4: Balester bad (4.2 IP, 11H, 6 R (4ER) Defense, too!

Meanwhile...

• Stan Kasten supports the investigation into scouting practices, but didn't exactly come out and support his two guys in the middle of it.
• Rauch to Rays, Red Sox, or Diamondbacks (via MLB Trade Rumors dot com)?
• Zim's on a fast track to returning. Not sure that's a good thing.

(AP Photo/Nick Wass)

IN HOT WATER?

   

"There's no wrongdoing. I met with FBI investigators. I think there are many people throughout baseball who are going to be talking with the FBI and Major League Baseball, trying to help get all the information out there on all the problems that exist over there... At no time when I met with the FBI investigators were questions revolving around myself or Jose Rijo."
(Jim Bowden, via Associated Press, 7/11/2008)

DR PR Nightmare Brewing...

Uh-oh. Trouble... ESPN dot com reported Friday that Jim Bowden and Jose Rijo are being investigated in a pair of probes around scouting practices in the Domincan Republic (one involving skimming money off the top of signing bonuses).

In an AP follow-up story, Jimbo denies any involvement; says the ESPN dot com story is all wrong.

Of course, this was all reported in dribs and drabs by Chico (not Matt) on Washington Post dot com a little over a week ago; that the Nationals were involved in a federal investigation into baseball's scouting practices in Latin America.

It's interesting, though, to note how Rijo's tone changed over time in a handful of quotes pulled from the newspapers (and, in fairness, ripped out of context - but who cares about being fair?) since August 2006...

"We already sent a message in the Dominican to all the players, the scouts and the buscones [talent scouts] that we can compete with anybody in any way possible by signing the shortstop. Right now we have some players we haven't seen in the past because we did that. They know we got money, they know we want to get better, so now they bring us more players, so that's what we are going to do." (Jose Rijo, via Fredericksburg Free-Lance Star, 8/31/2006)

"Stan told me to get aggressive. Don't do anything illegal. Do everything by the book. But get aggressive -- and get us players." (Jose Rijo, via Washington Post, 1/19/2007)

"I think it's a great idea. That's the only way you are going to clean the system out. You are going to protect those kids more now. I think it's something that needed to be done a long time ago. I'm on board with that. It's a great thing for baseball." (Jose Rijo,via Nationals dot com, 7/03/2008)

Given all of this, Barry Svrluga's Jan. 2007 piece on Rijo's baseball academy deserves another read...

(Photo of TV, Jim Bowden and Jose Rijo enjoying a game in Florida recently, by The Nationals Enquirer staff)

HANG TEN

“I think we were just due for one of those easy ones, where we didn't have to burn every brain cell just to win the ballgame. The guys just exploded."
(Manny Acta, via Washington Times, 7/12/2008)

Nats 10, Astros 0: Pathetic 'Stros no match for Nats' big bats.

HRs #99, 100, for Belliard (+5 RBI). #99 for Kearns. Our sources tell us that as of this morning, Belliard is still standing at home plate watching his second HR of the night.

More importantly, The Tim Redding Trade Value Meter keeps going up; less importantly, he finally got win #7 (was that 9 straight no-decisions?)! Funny what a little run support will do (just ask Lannan).

Meanwhile...

• 10 teams interested in Rauch?
• Cards scouting Redding or Perez?
• Mayor Fenty says: Rent payments are overrated. No worries!
• Uh-oh! Better call Da Meathook's Special Masseuse (*wink* *wink*)

Finally, it only took ~3 1/2 months to find an excuse for WiMP: Nats claim his shoulder is hurting. But Wily Mo says it's not. Ok: on a related note, you've gotta love this little tidbit from Nationals dot com:

The Nationals are trying to trade players such as Felipe Lopez, Dmitri Young and Wily Mo Pena, but there are no takers right now because they are having off seasons....Lopez and Pena each were hitting below .250...

"Hitting below .250" might be the most generous assessment of a .209 AVG ever...

(Grainy photo of  TV: Belliard watching HR #2 by The Nationals Enquirer staff)

Langerhans. Again.

NAAAAts swap out 24 yr. old who can't hit for 28 yr. old who can hit a little better.

Farewell, Rogearvin Bernadina, we hardly knew ya. Welcome back, Ryan Langerhans.

Certainly a rough go of it for poor, overmatched Rogearvin. Now, we've got nothing against Langerhans personally, but...

Langerhans? Seriously?! Can't they just call up Alex Escobar, for the love of Jesus (not Colome)? With the understanding that he's by no means The Answer, but instead simply to watch him go off on one of those two week tears where he looks like the greatest player in history, only to blow out his toenail in a freak injury in the clubhouse during a card game or something?

WOW, MAYBE THEY REALLY ARE CHEAPSKATES!

"They are playing games there; the fans are paying the money to see the games; and no one I know of has asked for a refund. The city is banking on this revenue...It seems unreasonable at this stage that the team would not fulfill its obligation."
(D.C. Council Chairman Vincent C. Gray, via Washington Post, 7/10/2008)

Deadbeat Ted says: Pay rent? Hell no!

Rocky romance continues: Lerner Family vs. The District: Round 11. Washington Nationals Public Relations Machine Working overtime this summer!

According to the Washington Post, the Nationals are refusing to pay rent at Nationals Park, claiming that the Stadium is incomplete (via Washington Post):

More than midway through the baseball season, the Washington Nationals' owners have failed to pay $3.5 million in rent for the District's new ballpark, contending that the state-of-the-art stadium is still incomplete.

...

A "punch list" of hundreds of items remains incomplete, according to team officials.

We have to ask: Is "Major League Baseball team" on the Lerner's "punch list" of incomplete items at Nationals Park?

(AP Photo by Jacquelyn Martin)

AYALOSS

"He just had a bad day. He hasn't been as sharp as we'd like him to be. But that wasn't the way we had it mapped out, having our top two guys give up five runs in the last two innings."
(Manny Acta, via Washington Times, 7/11/2008)

D-backs 7, NAAAAts 5: Rollercoaster. Rally in the 9th. Rally in the 10th. Ayala in the 11th.

Meanwhile...

• Injury shocker! Boone to DL.
• Maxwell won't be the answer for at least another month.
• Zim back this month...? No way.

(AP Photo/Nick Wass)

SLUMP BUSTER!

"It's great to end the losing streak."
(John Lannan, via Washington Times, 7/10/2008)

NAAAAts 5, D-backs 0. No, seriously! Who needs Bonds? We got Jesus!

A little run support goes a long way: It's about time for Lannan (first win in 51 starts).

More good news: Zimmerman keeps swinging, pain free.

Elsewhere...

• Dan Steinberg starts a fight with sensitive Nats fans, then promptly goes on vacation yet keeps posting while on vacation.
• After speculation, AZ "unlikely" to get Bonds: D-back fans are divided.
• BalkGate continues.
• "Bowden not worried about Bernadina"; but Bernadina might be worried about Bowden.
• Stan Kasten talking to Boz about MASN like Unfrozen Caveman Lawyer?
• MissChatter offers several theories about why the Nats/MASN ratings might be flawed, which may very well raise the average number of households to 9002.
• Most definitely worth noting.

(Photo by Greg Fiume/Getty Images)