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Saturday Smorgasbord

Notable Nats News on an offseason Saturday

Too much to report before Monday, so it’s a weekend offseason special. Let’s dish on the Nats News…

RULE 5 DRAFT
As expected, the Nationals protected Chris Marrero. A little less expected, both Adam Carr and Cole Kimball were added to the 40-man. A mild shock: Brad Peacock was not. While the folks at NationalsArmRace overlooked Carr and favored Jeff Mandel and Brad Meyers, their rundown (linked) is still worth a look.

AFL CHAMPIONSHIP
This afternoon at 3 p.m. is the Arizona Fall League Championship. Michael Burgess is expected to start in RF, while Bryce Harper is slated to come off the bench — I’d expect Harper to pinch-hit for Burgess after he gets two at-bats, unless there’s a rally in the middle innings where Harper could come up and deliver a killshot. Sammy Solis will be the starting pitcher. Yours truly has set the DVR and will write up what he sees.

PROPS FROM MAYO
That would be from Jonathan Mayo from MLB.com, not the clinic. Harper, Derek Norris and Solis made the cut. And to shift away from the AFL momentarily, here’s a story about Danny Espinosa in case folks may have missed it.

17 Commments

  1. Hey there Sue, thanks for the shoutout for http://www.nationalsarmrace.com.

    I only considered NEW rule5 candidates for 2010, thus the main reason for overlooking or not considering Carr and Kimball. My mistake frankly. Both Cole and Kimball make more sense to me than Peacock or Meyers after the seasons they’ve had. Meyers *should* be safe after the season ending injury and Peacock’s numbers look mediocre enough not to merit selection. We’ll see. I really don’t want to lose Meyers, not after the promise he’s shown. I feel like he could slot into a #4/#5 starter for the big club in 2012.

    1. No worries, Todd… That was the approach that Zuckerman took, too. Like you put in your article, it’s tough following in Brian’s footsteps on matters like this; he was The Man.

  2. I’m also suprised that the Nationals FO left Peacock exposed; They still hold older, injured guys like JD Martin, Mattheus, & Mock in higher regard – Really?

    Reading that Jonathan Mayo puts three Nats in his AFL top-20 has a nice feel to it; It’s starting to look like the orginization’s prospect cup is being refilled.

    1. Peacock is a gamble, but I share your misery mystery for the likes of guys that are safer bets to not get taken.

  3. Hmmm… Mark Z (NatsInsider) is reporting that Brad Peacock is still protected, due to his late signing as a ‘draft-and-follow’, apparently. Sue_D, what did we miss?

    Also, it looks like Jaime was reclaimed from Arizona on waivers – Technically, that puts the Nationals 40-man roster at 41 total. I hope they get this sorted out by midnight tonight.

    1. Brian’s spreadsheet had him as R5 eligible, but I was also wondering if the DFE status was a loophole. Now we know.

  4. Swede reporting in with that photo posted!! Are YOu Swedish Sue??
    Now that Chase Lambin has taken his 4-A status to Minnesota, one can only wonder what
    collection of 4-Aers Rizzo/Harris will add to the SYR roster.
    Happy Thanksgiving!!

    1. Just be thankful I couldn’t find the image I wanted for the Mayo clinic 😉

      No, I’m not Swedish, but FWIW, I do have a Swedish last name and grew up eating hardtack. And listening to ABBA.

  5. Sue: could we perhaps see some returnees to the AAA/AA slots just to buy more time?
    AKA: Beaz, Lowrance, Daniel, Orr???

  7. Way to keep informed Jeff E., Mike Daniel was released and picked up by the Braves and was playing for AA Mississippi

  8. Sue , I see that you mentioned about 5 players on your under the radar list or should I say sleeper list, can you shed soem light on each of the players,I am especially interested in pitching, but I would love if you could give me a brief description of each player, sorry to be a pain

    Walter

    1. I think you may be referring to this list that I posted on Sickels’s discussion board:

      Tom Milone – LHSP, turns 24 in February. Throws mid-to-upper-80s, featuring a fastball, curve, change, and a cutter. Outstanding control. Expected to start at AAA in ’11
      Steve Lombardozzi – 2B, turned 22 in September. Steady fielder, can hit leadoff, but not likely to be a SB threat at the upper levels.
      Daniel Rosenbaum – LHSP, turned 23 in October. Throws a little harder than Milone but control not as good. Also features a cutter.
      Rob Wort – RHRP, turns 22 in February. Just gets guys out without especially flashy stuff. Pitches better under pressure than with bases empty.
      Randolph Oduber – OF, turns 22 in March. Yet to see in person, but put up Harper-like numbers in the GCL with .359/.428/.562 line.
      Christopher Manno – LHP, turned 22 three weeks ago. A Nats redraft that struck out 29 in 18 GCL innings. Said to have plus changeup and a funky (deceptive) delivery.
      Wirkin Estevez – RHSP, turns 19 in March. Likely to pitch in the GCL in ’11 but posted a 2.61ERA and struck out more than a batter per inning over 14 starts in the DSL.

  9. Sue, your putting the players ages really does illuminate how much better things have gotten in the last few years. Lots of young talent coming through the pipeline. Good news.

  10. uick note , I did see our guys in Arizona, and boys and girls I am happy to report the future is a bit brighter. Harper can play the game, hard nose , pete rose type of player. Love it old school
    Just a bit of info. I want to chime in about The LHP Manno. Watched him as at the Cape in a allstar game , and he comes in with the bases loaded and no outs , yes he strikes out the side. His next inning he strikes out 2 of 3 . Now he is not 95 plus but if you look at his stats online with Duke university, you will see that he strikes out a bunch of guys . In fact he was 3rd in the nation his sophomore year in 16 strike out per nine inn. So as a old time scout I have to dig deeper and see why, and ask the batters that I have faced him, and the answer I got on more then several occasions was , I do not like facing him. He is smart and deceptive and throws a heavy ball, with crazy movement. Listen in this day of radar guns , Manno is not a first round pick, but he is the type of pitcher you want on your staff.

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