Chat Details

Nationals Chat 06-18-08

This chat will begin at 1 p.m. on Wednesday, June 18, 2008.

Nationals beat writer Mark Zuckerman answers all of your Nationals questions this Wednesday at 1 p.m.

Hi everyone and welcome to another weekly Nats live chat. I'm not in Minnesota with the team right now, but I was on the first two legs of the road trip (in Pittsburgh and Seattle) and am up to date on everything going on. So send me your questions by clicking on the link at the bottom left corner and I'll do my best to answer it. Let's get started...

Transcript

1. • What is the contract status of Cristian Guzman? What are the chances he will be with the Nats next year? by
   • Answer: This is actually a leftover question from last week that came in late, but I wanted to answer it because I'm sure others are interested, too. ... This is the final year of that 4-year, $16.8 million contract Guzman signed way back before the 2005 season. So he's due to become a free agent. Will the Nats re-sign him? Given the lack of 1) many viable free agent alternatives out there, unless you want to pay a lot for Rafael Furcal, and 2) any big-league-ready shortstops within the farm system, I believe the Nats will at least give strong consideration to re-signing Guzman. I wouldn't expect a comparable deal to the last one, maybe something more in the 2-year range. Then it's up to Guzman if he wants to stay. by Mark Zuckerman
2. • The Nationals have signed 18 players so far, but the highest draft pick was a sixth rounder. Is there any progress to report with their top five selections? by
   • Answer: The Nats have indeed signed 18 of their 50 draft picks to date, but the highest pick among the bunch is 6th rounder Paul Demny. Nothing concrete to report on the top five picks yet, but I think if you look around baseball, you see that few early round guys have signed already. As we get closer to the Aug. 15 signing deadline (a new date that was bumped way up last year) you'll start to see these guys start coming into the fold. It would be nice if No. 1 pick Aaron Crow signed quickly and headed straight to the Gulf Coast League (and then maybe short-season Vermont) but remember not everyone is like Ryan Zimmerman and Ross Detwiler and wants to sign immediately. by Mark Zuckerman
3. • Who is the most likely candidate to take Odalis Perez' turn in the rotation? Who gets sent down to open up that spot? by
   • Answer: Good question. I saw where Odalis said yesterday in Minnesota that he thinks he could return to make his start Saturday, but he's not eligible. Because he was placed on the 15-day DL retroactive to June 11, he can't come off until the 26th. So it's going to have to be someone from Columbus. Garrett Mock would be my first guess. He last pitched on Saturday, so he'd have to be bumped back a couple days. Watch to see if he doesn't start Thursday for the Clippers, that will be a sign. The other possibility, I suppose, would be Mike O'Connor, who last pitched Monday and thus is on schedule to start Saturday again. But after what we saw of him earlier this year, I don't think the Nats are itching to bring him back. by Mark Zuckerman
4. • Mark, do the Nationals expect Paul LoDuca to have any value on the trade market or is his trade value too diminished to deal him? by
   • Answer: At this very moment, I don't see Lo Duca having any trade value. He's been on the DL twice already, and when he's been healthy, he's hit .200. So don't look for any blockbuster deals in the immediate future. However, if Lo Duca can stay healthy, get some at-bats and start hitting the way he has through most of his career (say, a .280 average), then I think there's a reasonable chance someone will be interested. It also will help if Lo Duca is able to play a bit in left field and/or first base. Better versatility means more trade value. by Mark Zuckerman
5. • Hey Mark. On the MASN broadcast last night when Brendan Harris was at bat, the whole Kearns/Lopez/Majewski deal was brought up. If my memory serves me correctly the Reds filed a grievance over that due to Majewski being hurt. Did anything ever come of that? by
   • Answer: For those who may not remember, the big July 2006 trade that brought Austin Kearns, Felipe Lopez and Ryan Wagner to D.C. sent Gary Majewski, Bill Bray, Brendan Harris, Royce Clayton and Daryl Thompson to Cincinnati. Majewski (along with Bray the "premier" players acquired by the Reds) almost immediately went on the DL with shoulder trouble and Reds GM Wayne Krivsky filed a grievance with MLB claiming he was damaged goods. The thing never really went anywhere, even though Krivsky tried to insist every few months it was still pending. The problem was that the Nats had made public earlier that year that Majewski had shoulder tendinitis, so the Reds couldn't really claim they were duped. Gary still hasn't amounted much since the deal, though Bray has been pitching in Cincy and doing a decent job. Harris is now the Twins' shortstop. by Mark Zuckerman
6. • What's going on with Nick Johnson? I feel like I haven't heard about him in awhile. Any update on Austin Kearns? by
   • Answer: Nick Johnson just had the hard cast removed from his injured right wrist on Monday, four weeks after it was first placed on there. He's now in a splint and beginning a rehab program. We're looking at at least a few more weeks before he's swinging a bat and going on a minor-league rehab assignment. Kearns, who had surgery in late May to remove loose bone fragments in his right elbow, is closer to returning. He began swinging in the cage over the weekend in Seattle and I suppose will be ready to go on a rehab assignment in the next week or two. by Mark Zuckerman
7. • The P-Nats are on fire and the W-Nats are a sinking ship. Any chance of seeing some of the boys from Woodbridge at Nationals Park this season? I know it's a stretch, but... by
   • Answer: Believe it or not, it's not a total stretch ... if you're talking about players who began the season in Potomac but have already been promoted. The three guys who stand out immediately are a trio of right-handers: Jordan Zimmermann, Cory Van Allen and Adrian Alaniz. All three dominated at Potomac and have since been promoted to Class AA Harrisburg. I wouldn't be stunned if any of them made it to Washington by August/September. Remember, John Lannan started at Potomac last year and was debuting in Philly in late-July and facing Barry Bonds in San Fran by mid-August. It's not unheard of. by Mark Zuckerman
8. • Please tell me there's no chance Manny Acta winds up leaving the Nats to manage the Mets. I can't bear the thought! by
   • Answer: I can't tell to there is absolutely, 100 percent no chance Acta doesn't wind up managing the Mets, because you just never know in this business. But I think it's a very, very remote chance, and here's why: Acta is already under contract with the Nats through 2009, and the club has another option on him for 2010 (which they will almost certainly pick up). So either the Mets have to wait until 2011 to hire Acta, or the Nats have to be willing to come to some sort of trade-like agreement with the Mets. Knowing Jim Bowden, Stan Kasten and Mark Lerner and how they feel about Manny, I would be absolutely stunned if they let him to go to New York for anything less than a blow-you-out-of-the-water offer from the Mets. Unlikely. by Mark Zuckerman
9. • Acta says he has no interest in the Mets job, but he's only making 500K now, if the Mets offer to double or triple his salary, would MLB allow him to opt out of his contract mid-year or at the end of the season? Would the Mets need to buy him out from the Nats? by
   • Answer: I'll refer you to the previous Q&A, but I'll add a bit to it... MLB can't decide to let Acta opt out of his contract. The Nationals would have to release him from the obligation. The best example of something like this happening involved Lou Piniella going from Seattle to Tampa Bay in 2002. The Mariners released Piniella from his contract in exchange for compensation from the Devil Rays. They got outfielder Randy Winn and I believe cash. Again, I think it's unlikely a similar deal happens with Acta and the Mets. by Mark Zuckerman
10. • Have the issues with Dukes that was a big part of your chat last week died down now or are things still sort of tense? by
    • Answer: Yes, things appear to have died down considerably since last Tuesday night in Pittsburgh. Dukes apologized for his actions, Acta has put it all behind him and the subject really hasn't come up since maybe Thursday. Does that mean there will never be another incident involving Dukes? You can't say that with any certainty. As I wrote about last week in the aftermath of this event, there are plenty of guys inside the Nats clubhouse who believe it's only a matter of time before Dukes' temper gets the best of him again. Some still believe he can put his past behind him and succeed. by Mark Zuckerman