Spring Training Blog: Monday

Greetings from Fort Lauderdale, Florida!!

We were able to catch the Nats vs. Marlins today in Jupiter on yet another hot, sunny day. The Nationals won 3-1 behind a dominating pitching performance by five different pitchers.

The two pitchers that I was excited to see - Shawn Hill and Jordan Zimmermann - did not disappoint. Hill only pitched one inning, but had 2 strikeouts and looked good. I know he is unreliable when it comes to staying healthy, but man what a boost it would be to have a healthy and productive Shawn Hill.

Jordan Zimmermann was...well, nasty. There's really no other terms to describe him. He was ahead of just about every hitter, had six strikeouts (all of which involved at least one pitch that made the hitter look foolish), and only gave up two hits. He was confident and challenged every hitter. If he isn't in the rotation to start the season, I will be pissed.

Some other notes:

• Anderson Hernandez with another solid day. No mistakes on defense and was 2-3 at the plate. One of his hits was a textbook bunt; it rolled up the first base side and ended up in no-mans land next to first.
• Austin Kearns was great. 1 hit in 2 ABs and 2 walks. He's got great discipline and whatever Rick Eckstein did with his stance has worked so far. He's hitting .357 in spring and is making his case for starting RF - though I don't think he deserves to make it over a guy like Elijah Dukes, who is the future (and someone I hope to see Wednesday). Though the better he plays, the better his trade value is.
• Lastings Milledge is making his case for leadoff hitter. He was 3-4 today with a double, and his only out was on a hard-hit ball that hit the pitcher and bounced right to the second baseman. He could be great at leadoff or at the second slot, behind Guzman.
• It was nice to see the bullpen step up, especially Hinckley and Mock (who earned the save). The Marlins had a lineup with a lot of major league players, and the pitching staff was fantastic (no ER, 12 K, no BB, 3 H). Hinckley gave up the lone run after a throwing error by Willie Harris at 3rd. Hopefully both Hinckley and Mock keep it up, because the team needs some reliable middle relievers.
• Wily Mo Pena is terrible. Swings at everything, no defense...no worth. The team should just cut him and take the hit.

Tomorrow the Nats are off but we have tickets to Caps-Panthers at night. Don't expect any blog posts tomorrow simply because we'll be back late from the Caps game and I probably won't have any pictures. Here is the link to the facebook photo album (flickr is too annoying) that everyone can view.

Bowden Resigns

As a Nationals fan, I felt weird when I read that general manager Jim Bowden resigned early today. He was the only general manager the Nationals have had and despite his questionable moves over the last four years, he's still the man who has been in charge as long as I have been a fan. Bowden claimed that he had become a"distraction" to the team and was disappointed in the media reports that criticized him for the FBI investigation into possible bonus money skimming (an investigation that has yet to file any charges).

I really don't think Bowden began to feel that he was a distraction. I think this was more of the Lerners and Stan Kasten telling him to resign to save face. Now, Bowden wasn't fired, the Lerners/Kasten can't say they fired him just because of allegations, the the team can now promote assistant general manager Mike Rizzo or find someone outside the organization. Either way, both sides come out looking fine. Most media opinions believe this is a giant step forward for the franchise, and I agree with them, mostly because Bowden's reputation had begun to preceed him in baseball circles (at least according to quotes and rumors from around the league over the last year).

Still, Bowden did do a lot of good for the franchise. It's not like he was an awful general manager. He acquired Alfonso Soriano for next to nothing, and then used the compensatory draft picks to add to the solid farm system that he helped build in fewer than 3 seasons. His acquisitions of Elijah Dukes and Lastings Milledge look like robberies and the trade that brought the team Josh Willingham and Scott Olsen this past offseason also looks like it will benefit the Nationals greatly. He also traded for Alberto Gonzalez, who should be a backup this year, and Anderson Hernandez, who may very well breakout this season at second base. If not for some unlucky breaks and injuries, the team could be in much better shape and possibly could have competed last season. Oh, and he signed Adam Dunn this offseason. Say what you want about Dunn, but 40 home runs do not lie.

His drafts have been more than solid. Ross Detwiler and Chris Marrero both had setbacks last year, but Detwiler came on strong in the Carolina League playoffs and Marrero looks extremely good in spring training, especially considering he was injured for half the season in single-A Potomac. Jordan Zimmermann (pictured, left), a 2007 second-round pick, may start the season on the major league roster after skyrocketing through the minors in 2008. His manager in double-A Harrisburg said he could dominate the majors for the next ten years. Bowden also signed thought-to-be-unsignable Jack McGeary in 2007, who had first-round talent but was a second-round pick. Michael Burgess won the 2008 single-A home run derby. The farm system took a step back this past year after 9th overall pick Aaron Crow refused to sign with the franchise, but a strong year from Detwiler and Marrero puts them back on the map. And with two top 10 picks (1st and 9th), they should land two blue-chippers.

Bowden may or may not be found guilty of bonus skimming. But I am in the belief that he did not deserve all the hatred he received over the last two seasons. Sure, he made some poor moves and decisions, but the team still has a bright future, in my opinion. One injury-plagued season caused many in the media to think this team was built poorly. Bowden wasn't a great GM by any means, but he wasn't the worst in history. Either way, Bowden is gone, and Mike Rizzo may be the next Washington GM. If he is, it will be interesting to see what he does with the outfield situation and how he improves the team.