JAKE SNUB FIRST OF MANY?

Offseason shocker! 

Washington is not on Jake Peavy's no-trade clause wish-list.

Right, so the news that the Nats aren't one of maybe six teams Peavy would approve a trade to this offesason isn't all that surprising. But here's something to think about: even if by some miracle Tightfisted Ted Lerner becomes Freespending Ted Lerner and gives Jim Bowden the OK to pursue some of the bigger names on the FA market, would any of said big names ever consider signing with the Nationals? How bad is the perception out there about the "situation" in Washington?

In this morning's Boston Globe Baseball Notes column (sort of sad that we have to look outside the Beltway for interesting tidbits about the baseball team that plays inside the Beltway, isn't it?) there's this little snippet suggesting the Nationals are now having trouble replacing the coaching staff they shit-canned at the end of the season:

A couple of coaches the Nationals had set their sights on have rebuffed them, feeling there's an unsettled situation there with management. One was Al Pedrique, who elected to become the Astros' minor league field coordinator.

Ok, so who the hell cares, it's freaking Al Pedrique, right? Well, yeah, but it makes you us wonder how bad the perception is about the Nationals organization inside baseball; including the perception among players they'd be hoping to coax into playing here. Unless, of course, the plan is still The Plan; in that case, who cares how poorly they're perceived?

(AP Photo by Lenny Ignelzi)