ORSP: Washington Nationals

Ah, Washington D.C.  The home of overpaid, promise-making liars.  Oh, and then there’s the politicians…

Biggest Additions: Jayson Werth, Adam LaRoche, Tom Gorzelanny, Rick Ankiel, Henry Rodriguez, Todd Coffey, Jerry Hairston Jr., Jayson Werth’s magnificent beard

Biggest Subtractions: Adam Dunn, Josh Willingham, Joel Peralta, Miguel Batista, Adam Kennedy, Scott Olsen

Offseason Review: When the Nationals signed free agent outfielder Jayson Werth, they showed what it was going to take to win in Washington D.C. – severely overpaying players.  While Werth is a nice player, he isn’t worth $126 million over seven years, and he won’t completely replace the power numbers that the team is losing in Adam Dunn.  It also says a lot that while the team was rumored to be involved in talks with/for Cliff Lee, Zack Greinke, Brandon Webb, Matt Garza and Carl Pavano, the top pitching name they came away with this offseason was Tom Gorzelanny.  It’s a giant mountain that sits in front of them, and the Nationals need to be planning for 2014.

Season Preview: On the bright side, the Nationals won’t be as bad as the Mets this season.  That’s not much of a bright side, but it is some consolation to know that they will stay out of the cellar of the NL East.  Remember, the Savior – aka, Strasburg – probably isn’t going to pitch this season, and Bryce Harper is at least two years away from making his big league debut.  It’s a brighter future, but they still have to deal with the present.

Final Record: 73-89, 4th place in the NL East