The Washington Nationals

Washington Post staff writer Barry Svrluga was online Wednesday, May 23, at 1 p.m. ET to take your questions and comments about the 2007 Nationals.

The transcript follows.

Svrluga covers the Nationals beat for The Post and writes the Nationals Journal blog for washingtonpost.com. He's also the author of "National Pastime: Sports, Politics, and the Return of Baseball to Washington, D.C."

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Discussion Archive

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Barry Svrluga: Hey folks. Thanks for stopping by. Hope you enjoyed the Felipe Lopez show last night. But what's up with Austin Kearns? He's 2 for his last 39. Ugh.

Check out Nationals Journal for some thoughts on the bullpen, which won another game for Washington last night.

Lots of questions. Let's get going.

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Washington, D.C.: Barry, any plans on exploring the Baltimore-centric nature of MASN in a future article? I, for one, am sick of the Baltimore tinges to the Nationals broadcasts, such as referring to the teams as "Orioles" and "Washington" in last weekend's interleague series, or the pop-up graphics to remind us that Baltimore is playing on the other MASN channel.

Barry Svrluga: I do plan to do a story on MASN, perhaps pegged to the next time the Nats and O's play in June. I think it's a fascinating topic. Can one station cater to two fan bases? The Mets and Yankees each have their own networks. But Peter Angelos pays big bucks for the Nationals' rights. It'll be an interesting network to watch develop.

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Manassas, Va.: When was the last time Ryan Zimmerman was charged with an error? Given that he is batting .284 in May and .310 in the last seven games, could we safely say that he's got it together now and we can expect great things the rest of the year?

Barry Svrluga: This is a good point, and particularly apt after Zimmerman made several difficult, yet probably not SportsCenter-worthy, plays last night. His last error was on May 4, so he's played 17 straight without an error. Better stat: After committing a worrisome six errors in April, he has just one in May.

As much potential as this guy has as a hitter, it's his glove that is his best tool, so when that was shaky as he got off to a slow start, it looked like a sophomore slump might be ready to happen. One thing I've noticed is now, particularly on the plays he makes to his backhand side toward the line, he is getting back up and taking his time to throw. A couple of the errors he had early on were on rushed throws when he wasn't really aware of who the runner was. He seems to have taken more care in that regard recently.

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Errors, Errors: Barry,

I distinctly remember back before spring training that Manny Acta stated that this team was going to improve defensively and cut down on errors. Hasn't really happened. Why? What do the Nats do during the season during practice that focuses on defense?

Barry Svrluga: This is a good point, and you're right -- Acta was emphatic about not being the worst defensive team in baseball this season. Now, the Nationals are tied with the Dodgers for the most errors in the NL with 37.

One reason Acta would say such things have happened is the team didn't have its regular lineup for so long. Take first base, a position that should be manned by Nick Johnson (a really good fielder in 2005, a shaky one in 2006). Eight of the errors have come from guys playing first -- five from Dmitri Young, two from Robert Fick and one from Ronnie Belliard.

Take Felipe Lopez. He led the National League in errors for a shortstop last year, and that's part of the reason he moved to second base this season. But when Guzman went down, he moved back to short -- and he made five errors there. Throw in five more from Josh Wilson (since departed), and that's 10 errors there from people who aren't supposed to be there.

That said, I think Guzman has been shaky there as well. We'll see if the defense improves over the rest of the season. I believe the team gave up 14 unearned runs in April and has only given up two in May.

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Frederick, Md.: So what do you think about the second half, with Nick Johnson back, Zimmerman and Kearns finding their grooves, Patterson and Mike O'Connor back in the rotation, the Amazing Anonymous Starters getting more experience with each outing, the bullpen stays strong, the team creeps back toward .500, nobody else in the NL running away with it, and suddenly someone, somewhere speaks the words "Wild Card" and "Nats" in the same sentence.

Optimism is free. But have I gone too far?

Barry Svrluga: You have gone too far. You have gone way, way too far. Please come back.

I will say this: Here is a list that, say (conservatively) by the all-star break, could be returning to the Nationals:

Nick Johnson

John Patterson

Shawn Hill

Jason Bergmann

Luis Ayala

Mike O'Connor

Brandon Claussen

Jerome Williams

Alex Escobar

Not all of those guys will be on the roster, but it's certainly a better team with, say, five of them.

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Checking O, UT: Barry,

I know it's still early but can you give us some thoughts on the relative trade value (if any) of guys like Young, Belliard and Colome?

Love the podcasts, you've got a voice for newspaper.

Barry Svrluga: Another good question. (Podcasts: Yes, there's a reason I went into newspapers. Similar to the reason that my photo is not on the Nationals Journal site.)

Young, it seems to me, would be a valuable pinch hitter from both sides of the plate for an NL team (last year's version of Daryle Ward, who the Nationals traded to Atlanta (though Ward wasn't a switch-hitter) or could be an occasional DH/PH for an AL club. Belliard might make sense for someone like Boston, because he has playoff experience, plays a better-than-expected second base, and the Red Sox might not be able to hide Pedroia all year. Colome is another good choice to move because he seems to have control of his slider now, and he still hits 94-95.

That said, these guys will bring similar returns that Mike Stanton, Ward and Marlon Anderson brought last year -- low-level minor league pitchers that might or might not develop into something. But keep in mind, too, that when Jim Bowden (who got his 1,000th win as a GM last night) signed Belliard in the spring, he described him as an "asset." Read: He's mine to trade.

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Alex Escobar : HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

stop it Barry, you're killing me

HAHAHAHA

Barry Svrluga: Love it.

Was standing with Bowden in the dugout yesterday when he got the report about Escobar from Viera, where he's playing in extended spring training. Went 1 for 3 playing DH, and continued a throwing program to rehabilitate his shoulder.

He'll be here, I'm convinced. How long he'll stay? Go to Vegas for those odds.

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Long Island, New York: Hi Barry,

Do you think Chad Cordero's struggles are behind him now?

Barry Svrluga: It's hard to say, but this is a really important issue for the franchise as a whole -- whether they want to trade Cordero or keep him for the future. He was one bad pitch away last night from bringing the tying run to the plate in a ballpark that invites homers from even slap hitters, so that was a bit more anxiety than necessary. But I can report that, since he returned from dealing with the death of his grandmother, he has seemed more upbeat and focused. He has saved his only chance since he returned, and hasn't allowed a run since. So we'll see.

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Vienna, Va.: I read speculation about Rauch going to the Red Sox and Chad going to the Indians. Possible? Probable?

Barry Svrluga: I saw that speculation as well, and I think both things make sense. Since spring training, other clubs have been under the impression that Rauch and Cordero are both available for the right price. The Indians have a nice club in a very tough division, and the closer spot has been their problem since trading Wickman. I do wonder how either of those guys would do in the A.L., though.

Any deal involving either of those players -- or any National, really -- is going to come down to asking price. Bowden needs to maximize the return for those guys because they're not going to be free agents, and either or both could be useful in the future, too. For right now, I wouldn't expect him to accept anything that didn't bowl him over.

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Tony Batista: Why am I still on the roster? What do I bring to the team?

Barry Svrluga: I am a veteran right-handed hitter who, if I came up and got really really hot in a really unexpected way, might be dealt for some hot dog cooking equipment and a bag of baseballs. But if I do what I'm doing now, which is not much except a key RBI single against the Orioles over the weekend, I'm not much use, and Escobar (assuming he ever gets healthy) is a much more dangerous right-handed bat off the bench than me.

But in the meantime, I do provide some chuckles with my post-first pitch routine when I'm in the field. If you haven't seen me do that, pay attention next time.

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Silver Spring, Md.: Hi Barry,

A few days ago a friend send me an e-mail with a link to a Web site, and it really captured my imagination. Here's the URL: www.thiscouldbetheyear.net.

It's an open letter to Nationals owner Ted Lerner, and it outlines a way to turn the Nats' losing baseball season into a winning one - for the team, the fans, and the city. Specifically: The proposal calls on Mr. Lerner to take all the revenue from all tickets sales for 2007 that exceed the average of last season's attendance (roughly 24,000) and put the money into a trust fund dedicated to rebuilding the infrastructure of the D.C. public schools.

In other words: Revenue from tickets 24,000 to 47,000 (approx the capacity of RFK) would be used to renovate DC's school buildings, which are mostly a mess. (The city is spending $610 million on the Nats new stadium, so the idea is that Lerner - at no cost to himself - can give something back to the city.)

At the bottom of the proposal is a list of DC media and government officials who received a copy of the proposal, and your name was on the list.

What do you think of the proposal? Why wouldn't the Lerners embrace this idea? It seems to me they have nothing to lose, and everything to gain.

Thanks for your thoughts on this

Barry Svrluga: Yes, I saw this, and I probably didn't give it the time it deserves. It's a very interesting concept. I would say, though, that the Lerners are businesspeople first and philanthropists down the list, and while the Nationals Foundation has taken huge steps toward establishing a wing of a local hospital to care for children's diabetes (giving $2 million) I don't exactly think that the D.C. government is going to be the recipient of their generosity.

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Washington, D.C.: Do you think Lopez will ever hit a homer at RFK? And is his power outage bothering him or management?

Barry Svrluga: Power outage certainly not bothering management. When he hit 23 homers in 2005 for the Reds, 16 of them came at Great American Ball Park, which is a hitter's haven. He has never hit more than 11 homers in another season. He's not a power guy, he's a top-of-the-order guy if he's hot and getting on base. The Nationals would rather see those doubles he hit last night. That's more realistic.

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Ijamsville, Md.: Barry, "Washington, DC" needs to remember the past two years when he couldn't watch every game. He should take a deep breathe, put up with the Baltimore promos and enjoy. I know I do.

Barry Svrluga: That's another vantage point, no doubt. But again, I find the topic of MASN very interesting in general, and I'd like to explore it in the paper when I get a chance.

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" some hot dog cooking equipment and a bag of baseballs": That would improve the fan experience at RFK.

Barry Svrluga: Kinda what I was getting at.

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Re: MASN: The graphic showing the score in the upper part of the screen read "O's and WSH" on MASN's Nats broadcast. It might seem like a small thing but it seems to be emblematic of a larger problem with MASN's telecast of the Nationals. Can you imagine the YES Network with a scoreboard logo that said "Sox and NY". The Yankee fans would burn down the studio.

Barry Svrluga: I think that's really interesting, and it's the kind of little thing that I'm not sure the people there understand. Nationals fans want that graphic, on their home broadcast, to be "NATS" and "BAL" I'm sure.

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Rauch vs Ayala?: Ayala was an excellent set-up for Cordero when the Nats first came to town and we owned the late innings. If he returns to health and stays in that good form, is there room on the Nats for both a Rauch and an Ayala? If not, who disappears?

Barry Svrluga: Yes, there is room for both Rauch and Ayala in the pen. You can't have too many good arms.

But a word of caution on Ayala. I wouldn't expect the 2005 performance out of him right when he returns. I was talking with Randy St. Claire about him the other day, and St. Claire made the point that his experience with guys coming back from ligament replacement surgery ("Tommy John surgery") is that it takes them a full year of pitching to fully recover. Ayala has only been pitching for a couple months. St. Claire said that guys feel great one day, and then they just wake up on some days and the life in their arm -- and therefore on their fastballs -- isn't there. It's a long process, and even when Ayala gets back to the majors, people should understand the state of his recovery.

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Falls Church, Va..: Stan Kasten wants us to have faith in his plan, but while the Braves made the playoffs for 14 straight years (like the Capitals between 1983 and 1996), they only won one World Series. Furthermore, his Atlanta Hawks never won an NBA title, nor did they ever make it to the NBA Finals or even the Eastern Conference Finals. Should we have confidence in The Plan? Do you?

Barry Svrluga: It is not my job to have faith in the plan or not. It is my job to report what the franchise says to you folks, and for you to decide whether you have faith in them. I have used the phrase "leap of faith" a lot when it comes to what the Nationals are asking fans to do.

I would point out that comparing a run of NHL playoff appearances to a run of MLB playoff appearances is ridiculous, and the Braves won 14 straight division titles, something the Caps did not do. The Hawks? Some very good teams with Dominique and Kevin Willis, but I don't think building an NBA team is the same as a baseball team. This plan for the Nationals calls for minor league overhaul and player development stuff, which aren't part of building an NBA squad.

Speaking of which: Man, are the Celtics ever going to have luck in the lottery?

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D.C.: Regarding MASN -- the other night our very own broadcasters commented during a shot of fans jumping up and down in the 3rd baseline seats, saying "they must be from Duke." Can you please tell them those people aren't "from Duke". They are Redskins fans who know those seats bounce! Gosh, I wanted to throw up on my TV when I heard that ignorant comment.

Barry Svrluga: As someone who is "from Duke," I have no idea what they're trying to say. And keep in mind: Neither Bob Carpenter nor Don Sutton was around during those magic moments in 2005, when the seats bounced on a regular basis.

Wouldn't that be something?

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D.C.: Barry - This is a dated question. On Friday, May 11 when the Nats were hosting the Marlins. It was Armed Forces Day and they had the U.S. Coast Guard perform before the game. They was some jerk Marlin stretching in center field who would not move when the Guard tried to march onto the field. Do you recall you this guy was? I'd never seen anything like it.

Barry Svrluga: Sorry, don't recall. Didn't notice it. Seems an odd thing to do, though.

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Elisabeth Shue: Why didn't you talk to me on the set? I would have dumped that hippy husband of mine in a heartbeat for a dreamy sportswriter like you.

Barry Svrluga: Alas, like ships in the night, we have passed, never again to have a chance to speak.

(Note to people who don't read Nationals Journal: Move along swiftly. There's nothing to see here.)

(Further note to people who don't read Nationals Journal: Why on earth not?)

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20120: Barry,

I am looking forward to the first draft under the Lerner regime. Is there any indication that ownership is willing to go over slot money to bring in players that may slip in the draft due to their suspected asking price?

Barry Svrluga: A couple of draft questions, so I'll handle them here.

The draft is June 7-8. For the first time, it will be shown on ESPN2. I'm pretty sure Mel Kiper won't be there.

The Nationals have the sixth pick, the 31st pick and three more picks in the top 71. Club officials believe it to be a deep draft, and they could get five really good players there. There has been a lot of speculation that the Nationals will take one of two high school pitchers -- Rick Porcello of New Jersey or Philippe Aumont of Quebec. My educated guess is that neither of those players will be taken with the sixth pick. I think some of the top execs would like to go with a hitter there, and maybe come with pitching at two of the next three.

This is a very important draft for the organization, no doubt.

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re: duke: ugh, Barry, the Duke kids jump up and down during their basketball games. That must have been what they were referencing.

But to my question. I love the chatter above who mentioned "wild card." I want a job where I can drink during the day too! I am going to far when my goal is to climb out of last place? I think we can pull it off!

Barry Svrluga: Oh, duh. Yeah, I used to be one of those dorks. (Never painted my face. Seriously.)

Wild card: I loved it too.

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Section 219: What happened to Pedro Astacio? He doesn't seem to be on any minor league roster. Any updates?

Barry Svrluga: Astacio was in Viera trying to work himself into shape, but the Nationals decided that he wasn't likely to help them, so they released him on May 4.

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Alexandria, Va.: Nook Logan's real name is Exavier Prente Logan. How did he get the nickname Nook? Is it a reference to Bull Durham? He pronounces it differently than Nook Laloosh. Can baseball players choose their official names? I assume so, as some have changed their nom d'guerre, like Joey/Albert Belle.

Barry Svrluga: What are MLB officials going to say: "Um, look, Exavier, we can't call you 'Nook'"?

My understanding is Nook is one of those grandmother-gave-it-to-me-before-I-could-talk nicknames that stuck. I'd like him to go by Prente, myself.

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Olney, Md.: Hi, Barry -- thanks for the chats and the great coverage of the Nats.

Justin Maxwell's family lives around the corner from me, and the Minor League column today leads to the following question: A lot of ink has been spilled about the pitchers in the minors; are any position players likely to come up for a cup of coffee (or more) before the end of the season? Thanks -- go Nats!

Barry Svrluga: I don't think so, Olney. Chris Marrero is completely tearing up the South Atlantic League (first-round pick from last year), and the other outfielders for Hagerstown -- Maxwell and Mike Daniel -- are off to superb starts as well. But there's a dearth of position-playing prospects at the higher levels of the minors. First baseman Josh Whitesell is hitting better than .300 for Class AA Harrisburg, but there's lots of concerns about his defense. Brandon Watson has a 20-game hitting streak for Columbus, but we know what he truly is -- kind of a slap guy who probably doesn't have a long-term big league future. Kory Casto is now struggling at Columbus.

I would expect one or more of the pitchers to get a look-see in September, Collin Balester and maybe even John Lannan (who had his first start for Harrisburg after a promotion from Class A Potomac the other night).

Another reason why this draft is so important.

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Washington, D.C.: Barry - re:MASN when you do your research it would be interesting to know what the ratings are for both teams, and while we are on the subject how in the heck did this MASN thing ever happen, I mean in LA/Anaheim and SF/Oakland there are two team and each team retains it's own TV rights without any apparent problems (Chi and NY as well).

It will be interesting to monitor how Angelos's control over the TV content affects the growth of the Nats fanbase.

Barry Svrluga: Remember, Angelos did not want another team coming into what he considered his territory, so MLB cut a deal to appease him. He had broadcast rights from Pennsylvania to North Carolina before the Nationals came in. Now, he's got another team between him and the Braves. So as part of the compensation deal, MLB granted Angelos the right to pay more than $20 million annually for the Nationals' TV rights. The Nationals have a stake in the network, too, and it grows annually, but they never get full control.

New York and LA and Bay Area markets didn't develop that way.

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Cheapskate, USA: Barry:

When talking about the attendance problem, I keep hearing people say that tickets are too expensive, but the $5 and $7 yellow seat sections in the outfield are virtually empty every night. Movie tickets cost more than that! If I didn't already have season tickets, I would buy a pair of those cheap tickets, then move down to better seats after the first inning. There are plenty of empty seats to move to almost every night. I just wanted to pass that thought along. I'd like to see more people at the games, and price should not be an issue. Thanks.

Barry Svrluga: People have told me that moving is discouraged/prevented by lots of the ushers, but I will say that I sometimes move from my seats in Section 309 (yes, I go to games on my off days sometimes, and yes, I am a sick man) down to the 200 level quite a bit. Just don't tell Stan.

Cost to get in: Couldn't ask for much better. That's cheaper than a movie.

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Centreville, Va.: One way the new ownership group could get the "fans" who whine about how much they are spending on payroll this year off their backs is to draft the guy with the most talent who falls due to contract demands (i.e. is represented by Scott Boras) Any hint that the Nats are thinking this way or is there a player like that in this draft?

Barry Svrluga: Yes, I think the Nats will draft the best player available, regardless of whether it's a Boras client or not, and they will be willing to pay. Will they overpay? No. But they won't fear someone's price tag. Part of the whole not-paying-for-mediocre-free agents plan was to have money to spend in the draft. They have to sign those top five picks, no question.

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Nooknames: I'd like to see him be known as a .270 hitter.

Barry Svrluga: You're not alone.

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RE: This could be the year: The "this could be the year" idea is ridiculous. D.C. schools get more money per pupil than any other school system in the country. Here's an idea...maybe the founder of this movement can take all of the money he or she makes above the federal poverty line and give it to a wasteful and unorganized charity!

Barry Svrluga: Another take.

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D.C. -- "Home of the Plan": That Nats didn't sign Austin Kearns to big money in the offseason to hit 40-foot dribblers with runners in scoring position.

Ugh. What's been his attitude during his slump? The radio broadcasters think he needs a day off. Is there a chance of that happening?

Barry Svrluga: I'm going to talk to him about this today. He is really struggling, no question. Three grounders back to the pitcher last night in five at-bats. Yikes.

His attitude is very good. I really believe this guy wants to win. He is very frank about the offensive struggles, saying things like "This doesn't cut it," and shouldering blame. But his average is down to .239, I think. They can't have that from the fifth-place hitter, and he knows it.

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Silver Spring, Md.: It's stunning to me that a starting rotation that, in spring training, was labeled as perhaps historically bad and loses 4 of its 5 members to the DL is doing so well. Having said that, I hope Speigner and Bowie get back to the bullpen soon. How do you evaluate Hill and Bergmann's future as starters based on what you've seen?

Barry Svrluga: I am now a full and unabashed believer that if Shawn Hill's elbow and arm are healthy, he is absolutely a major league starting pitcher. The two-seam fastball he throws (also known as his sinker) is just ridiculously good when he's on. Hitters have compared it to what is widely regarded to the best sinker in the game, that of Brandon Webb, the NL Cy Young award winner from Arizona.

Bergmann is tougher to figure. His confidence, before he went down with the fluid in his elbow, was sky high, and that directly helped his pitching. But I'd like to see him take a few more turns in the rotation before I really have a good feel for him.

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Lansing, Mich.: How do you think things would be different if Frank Robinson were the manager? Better? Worse? Would the team be sullen, depressed and at each other's throats?

Barry Svrluga: Wow. Fascinating question. I would say that Acta appears to have a better sense of juggling/handling the bullpen than Frank did. That's a very demanding job, and as I said in the Journal post today, Acta says he wants to manage to win each night, but I've also noticed times when the way he handles the bullpen indicates he's thinking ahead. I don't think Robinson did that as much.

Team attitude: Acta is relentlessly positive. Frank was ... um, he wasn't relentlessly positive. But I would say that some players don't love so much positivity in down times, either. Acta's response to that kind of thing is he can't change, that's just who he is.

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Capitol Hill: Have the Nationals given any thought to the idea that, like other rookie sensations, Zimmerman may not be as good as he initially appeared? Todd Hollandsworth and Joe Charboneau, for instance, won Rookie of the Year awards but never accomplished much after that.

Barry Svrluga: No, they haven't, because they don't think he's one of those guys. He didn't win the Rookie of the Year award last year, as Hanley Ramirez of Florida barely beat him out. The Nationals believe in Zimmerman's long-term potential. I don't think they believe he'll be a superstar -- an A-Rod or Pujols or anything like that. I think they believe he'll be a key part of their team for many years to come, with consistent 40-double, 100-RBI seasons.

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state of confusion: Since you "simply won't make predictions on Patterson" would you at least condescend to tell us what is being done for his biceps/elbow problem and how he is coming with his throwing program? Some of us seriously hope that he will soon be back pitching for the Nats.

Barry Svrluga: Patterson is throwing in the outfield basically every other day, and in talking with St. Claire about it the other day, the pitching coach said, "He really got after it," meaning he threw from 90 feet and then 105 feet with some fire, not just lobbing the ball.

Patterson is also receiving massages regularly on his biceps and elbow, and he believes they are helping.

The plan for both he and Shawn Hill is to throw bullpen sessions sometime over the weekend in St. Louis. How they respond to those sessions will go a long way toward determining when they'll be able to come back.

Hope that helps.

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McCovey Cove: So who will LaRussa select to represent the Nats at the All-Star game? I know it's early but since ushers have been handing out ballots for at least a month now, we can start making predictions. My guess would be Zimmerman, especially if he keeps up his slugging. Thanks

Barry Svrluga: I'm going to deal with this in Nationals Journal quite soon, but I think it's a bit early to tell. They have to choose someone, right? If one of the starters -- Hill or Bergmann -- comes back quickly and pitches well, then they'd have a good shot, I think.

Zimm: He's got to have more nights like Monday to get consideration (though his pace is back up to more than 40 doubles).

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Barry Svrluga: Wow, many questions left over, but I've got to change and get over to the Mediocre American Ball Park. Thanks again for stopping by. I'll talk to you next week from back home at RFK. Until then, keep reading the Post and Nationals Journal for all your Nats news.

Thanks.

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