It's been a while. Many, many, days since we last checked in on the sorry state of the Nationals. But fear not: Back by popular demand, The Nationals Enquirer answers the latest installment of the Nationals.com mailbag! The correct answers are available on Nationals dot com; now we'll give it a shot.
While there is no doubt that the Nationals need to rebuild the farm system and essentially start from scratch, don't you agree that they need to retain at least some of the good players on the Major League roster? -- Kyle D., Washington, DC.
Kyle, I'll give you a crisp one dollar bill if you can name more than two good players on this team.
Rebuilding the farm system is good, but will the Lerner group spend money on free agents? -- David W., Richmond, Va.
Hopefully Lerner and Co. don't try to make a big splash in the off season for the sake of making a big splash (re: your current left fielder -- although I still like the Soriano-for-Wilkerson-+-spare parts deal) Let's hope that Silent Ted and his people proceed with caution. Speaking of long term deals, anyone else happy that Bowden never got to pull the trigger on signing Guillen to a ridiculous deal?
With new ownership almost in place, how safe is Frank Robinson's job if the Nationals continue to lose? After all, they have been losing regularly since the second half of last season. -- Vince I., Raleigh, North Carolina
Frank is safe for this year. Let's face it, the 2006 season is a lost cause.
With the new ownership, what are the chances of signing Alfonso Soriano to a long-term contract? -- John D., Staten Island, N.Y.
You mean the guy playing left who's been auditioning for a spot with the Yankees for the last week? Zero chance the Nats sign him to a long term deal.
You seem to give Robinson too much credit. He can do no wrong. Please defend your actions. -- Mike Z., Utica, N.Y.
Mike, I think you've got me confused with someone else.
Have you noticed that Jamey Carroll is hitting over .300 and is seeing his share of playing time with the Rockies? Meanwhile, the Nationals' utility infielders are not exactly burning up the league. -- Andrew D., Gettysburg, Pa.
Oh please, Andrew, give me a break with that crap.
Why do some Nationals players -- Jose Guillen in particular -- continue to complain about playing at RFK? Is it really that bad playing in RFK? Other teams don't seem to mind, and they are able to hit balls over the fence. -- Arden L., Cheverly, Md.
Dunno.
It seems like the media and the Nationals push the trio of Ryan Zimmerman, Nick Johnson and Brian Schneider as the face of the franchise. Why not Jose Vidro? He has been with the organization the longest, and I feel he is usually left out of conversations relating to the "cornerstones" of the franchise. -- Jerry G., Madison, Wis.
Jerry, I've gotta be honest with you, buddy - I have no idea what you're talking about. Has there been ANY marketing push behind ANY player by either the media or the Nationals this season? You're a jerk. Plus, you're writing in from Wisconsin - you've got your own team up there in Canada to worry about, don't you?
Why is Robinson insisting on using Mike Stanton in a setup role? He should only be used as a lefty specialist at this point in his career. -- Keith, Binghamton, N.Y.
In case you haven't noticed, pitching is something of a problem for this team. Are we really talking about this? Give me a better option than Stanton: I'm all ears.
With the loss of Hideki Matsui, the Yankees need an outfielder. Would the Nats be willing to give them Guillen or Soriano? -- Rich R., Slingerlands, N.Y.
*shrug* Probably.