The Washington Nationals could make a deal within the next two days that reverses the course interim manager Jim Riggleman believes they’re currently on, or it could be that Riggleman isn’t able to run the team and stay informed up to the minute on the Nationals’ discussions two days before the July 31 trade deadline.
But if Riggleman’s hunch is right, the Nationals’ roster won’t look much different after the deadline than it does now.
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Riggleman said on Wednesday afternoon that he does not expect the Nationals will trade any of their veterans before the Friday deadline. Washington has been fielding offers for several of its players, but the Nationals’ asking price for a veteran has been rumored to be high. The Nationals were scouting the Cubs’ minor-league system last week - believed to be in response to discussions about reliever Joe Beimel - and there were scouts from the Phillies and Royals at Tuesday’s Nationals-Brewers game.
“I personally don’t think we’re going to lose any of them. We’ve seen some trades made in the last few days that would probably lower the chances of our guys getting traded,” Riggleman said. “Some of our guys were mentioned in the same (rumors). I don’t really anticipate losing anybody. If we do, I hope it’s a good situation for our player to move on and play on a contending club. But my first priority is to keep this club together and see what we can do with it.”
