As we all expect, Alfonso Soriano will not be wearing a Washington Nationals uniform next year. Despite our biggest hopes that the Lerners will fufill our desires, and seats in the stadium, by signing one of the most dynamic players out there, the reality is that #12 for the Nationals will not be Alfonso Soriano. It appears that we will be able to see him play next year. MLB.com is reporting that Alfonso Soriano will be a Chicago Cub next year. An announcement is expected Monday that he has been inked to an 8 year, $135 million contract. This comes after the Cubs re-signed Aramis Ramirez, Kerry Wood, Henry Blanco, signed Mark DeRosa and traded for Neal Cotts. I know the African Queen will be greatly disappointed by this, however I hope to still see her at games nest season. As you all know the regulars of section 320 make the games as much fun as the Nats do (and sometimes more fun depending on how the team is playing).
6 comments:
SeyHey--It was good thing that NatsDelNegro and I were on the phone talking about this when you posted up the notice. I went ahead, proof read, corrected and republished your blog.
The bright spot is that I see few Nats fans---even those who felt the Lerners should have offered him $17 million or more per year---who believe we should have signed him for as LONG as the Cubs did. Best of luck Fonzie, but we can use the money to rebuild our farm system. I'm happy that if he HAD to go, he's not going to be a Yankee, Red Sock, Dodger, Oriole, or any one of our NL East rivals.
There is no way that Washington needs to pay anyone that amount of money right now. Granted, they still need to choose wisely on their 2007 Draft Picks. But, that's why the Nats have hired so many talented scouts. I agree with Eddie, that its great that Alfonso is not going to The O's, Yanks, Sox or Dodgers. It would be awful for a few seasons to see him play in our division games. Now, we only see him at home 3 times per season. Its not as bad as many my think. The Farm System has to come first. Lets find our own Soriano's.
Once we do develop our own Sorianos, we will have to sign and KEEP them. That's why this franchise (when they were the Expos) could not be a contender even when they were developing loads of talent---nobody was willing to sign a long term deal to remain Expos. That's why they called the team the "University of Montreal." (Players would "graduate" in four years.)
The acid test of this franchise will be whether we can sign long-term deals with the players we develop. This will go a long way toward turning around the perception of this franchise amongst fans and players. But acting stupid won't help. If the Cubs win the World Series in a few years with Fonzie, this will be a good deal, but if his skills start to deteriorate quickly and it turns out 2006 was a "career year", this could be a bonehead move on their part. For now, wave Fonzie good-bye and gut out the tough years until we get better.
BTW, I went to the White Flint store that you did and bought a souveneir Louisville Slugger. The place is small, but I like the looks of it. Thanks for profiling it on your blog!
The fact that the Nats only get a sandwich draft pick and a second round pick for Soriano because he signed with the lowly Cubs, makes Bowden's failure to trade him in July look even dumber.
If Kasten-Bowden made a 5 year, essentially $75 million, offer to keep him here (50% raise for five years), then they sent a message that they are rational bidders, not cheapskates, to other agents out there, recognizing that the Cubs or Angels had money in reserve to substantially better that baseline offer.
The Cubs are currentlyin a mode a bit like the Redskins - hiring Lou Pinella with the expectation of winning now!! It is likely that Pinella had the advantage over Girardi of having an association with Soriano previously, and that the club and Lou had a preconceived notion, which included #12.
Soriano shall always owe Bowden and the Nationals a debt of gratitude for forcing him to play left field, and making him a much more desirable player in free agency. Bowden's Folly actually worked out, and together with the drafting a Z-man, and the trade for Kearns-Lopez, secured his tenure with the Lerners-Kasten.
Wilkerson for one glorious year and two relatively high draft picks sure trumps deals like the Redskins make every off-season. The fact that the team has an "extra $10-15 million" to use to sign bonus babies and keep Z-man and others when their contracts come up, or to rip K's and secure them now, helps.
One aging star and no others in his range typically does not generate a championship, so a team is probably better off devoting those resources to infrastucture.
One wrinkle to this theme, however: I think they should enter the free agent market now and secure Jason Schmidt (or someone of his age, health, and caliber) for $5-6 million for three years - this is only fair to the new manager...And to lighten the burden on Z-man and the other hitters, night after night...And to save some of the young arms, too...
Trust in Kasten. All good. And let's compare statistics three years from now with the Cubs Wiggly Butt...And perhaps even a guy like Ryan Church, should the Mexican curve-ball diet this off-season cure his bad tendency! Extapolate his at-bats and production and he fares pretty darn well - not Soriano numbers, but potential All-Star production, believe it or not...
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