The big news out of NatsTown last night concerned a trade the Washington Nationals didn't end up making. Before that it was the news about Jayson Werth undergoing "successful" surgery on his shoulder. Catch up on a weekend's worth of Nats news...
It's not often that a non-trade involving the Washington Nationals makes it into print, but that's just what happened last night. FOXSports.com's Ken Rosenthal reported on what his sources told him about a three-team deal that didn't go down. If it had, Ian Desmond might have ended up playing short for the New York Mets, the Tampa Bay Rays would have added even more high-end prospects and the Nats would have added a new double play combination. It didn't happen, of course, and the players who were rumored to be on the way to D.C. in the discussed exchange, Ben Zobrist and Yunel Escobar, ended up going to the Oakland A's. The Nationals still have Ian Desmond. They still have Danny Espinosa at the top of the heap amongst second base candidates. Will Rizzo find another deal before the 2015 campaign begins? Did his rumored willingness to deal Desmond in-division surprise you?
Here's the Rosenthal story that started all the chatter...
The Nats/Mets/Rays trade that wasn't:
From last night: Zobrist! Desmond! More! A blockbuster that was discussed but failed to materialize. Story: http://t.co/EGjQItNWIU
— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) January 12, 2015• "The Nationals would have sent Desmond to the Rays for Zobrist and Escobar, the two players the Rays traded to the Athletics on Saturday. The Rays then would have flipped Desmond to the Mets." - "Ian Desmond, Ben Zobrist were part of Nationals-Mets-Rays trade discussion" - Ken Rosenthal, FOX Sports
Non-Trade Reactions:
• "According to baseball officials with knowledge of the discussions, the Mets talked about a three-team deal late last week that would have included Dillon Gee and other players." - "Mets came close to trading for SS Ian Desmond: report" - Anthony McCarron, Andy Martino, NY Daily News
• "Another significant trade rumor was reported Sunday night, and though this one can no longer happen in reality, it did raise an interesting question from the Nationals’ standpoint." - "Would Zobrist and Escobar have been better than Desmond and Espinosa?" - Mark Zuckerman, Nats Insider
• "The Rays' demands of Noah Syndergaard along with two other prospects were very steep for a single year of Ian Desmond..." - "Mets trade rumors: Mets turned down Ian Desmond, Ben Zobrist in trade talks" - Colby Connetta, Amazin' Avenue
If the best trades are the ones you don't make, the Mets are having a great offseason http://t.co/zQGmiFqW6opic.twitter.com/Ok07H7F8JP
— Eric Simon (@AmazinAvenue) January 12, 2015Nationals' rotation the best in baseball?:
• "Four of the top 16 qualified NL pitchers in terms of ERA in 2014 were in the Washington rotation, and the one guy who wasn't, Gio Gonzalez, had a respectable 3.57 ERA." - "Washington Nationals top Buster's top 10 ranks of MLB rotations" - Buster Olney, ESPN
Ranking the Top 10 rotations in the big leagues, based on input from evaluators. http://t.co/n6Qt5wMobJ News, notes and links.
— Buster Olney (@Buster_ESPN) January 12, 2015NATS BEAT:
• "It may seem obvious that the broadcast team would return, but the network generally operates in one-year deals." - "F.P. Santangelo, Bob Carpenter, Dan Kolko expected to return to MASN’s broadcast" - James Wagner, The Washington Post
Not all details have been finalized, but MASN’s Nationals broadcast team is expected back for 2015 season. http://t.co/YJ5hns5hSa
— James Wagner (@JamesWagnerWP) January 9, 2015• "If the Nats want to throw another veteran into the second baseman mix, then [Kelly] Johnson could be an option." - "Who’s left? The best remaining MLB free agents for Nats and others" - Chase Hughes, Nats Insider
• "They only stole 101 bases as a team, but were successful in their stolen base attempts a whopping 81.5 percent of the time, best in the majors." - "Nationals Pastime: An underrated area of strength" - Dan Kolko, MASNSports.com
• "We know it sounds crazy. Difo is a long shot, but he has made an impression on the organization." - "Nationals still sorting out second-base logjam" - Bill Ladson, nationals.com
#Nationals still sorting out second-base logjam http://t.co/M1Uwl5aPLh#MLB#Nats
— William Ladson (@washingnats) January 11, 2015• "The Nationals had looked into Zobrist, but found what the Rays were asking in exchange to be too substantial." - "Nationals Pastime: One less middle infield option" - Dan Kolko, MASNSports.com
Before the non-trade, Werth's surgery was the big story:
• "According to an email from Werth after the procedure, the surgery revealed no surprises and his joint is stable." - "Jayson Werth undergoes successful AC Joint surgery (Updated)" - Chelsea Janes, The Washington Post
Mike Rizzo gives @JimBowden_ESPN&@Jim_Duquette the details of Jayson Werth's shoulder surgery on #FrontOfficehttps://t.co/FAjmZKdsKb
— MLB Network Radio (@MLBNetworkRadio) January 11, 2015• "But after giving the rest and treatment strategy a try, it became clear surgery would be the only way Werth's shoulder would return to full strength." - "Nationals Pastime: More on Werth's surgery and its impact on the Nationals (surgery a success)" - Dan Kolko, MASNSports.com
• "Werth said there weren't any surprises during the surgery. The recovery time is two to three months." -"Werth expects to be fully recovered by Opening Day" - Bill Ladson, nationals.com
Rizzo on Jayson Werth's shoulder surgery, #Nats' OF depth on @MLBNetworkRadio#Nationalshttp://t.co/UL1D07uzUqpic.twitter.com/MvfAxFRR1Z
— federalbaseball (@federalbaseball) January 11, 2015So... No RSOD?:
• "When the much-maligned infielder hits the batting cages, he does so still as a switch-hitter, as he has his entire life." - "Danny Espinosa prepares for season as switch hitter, wants to be everyday second baseman" - James Wagner, The Washington Post
Danny Espinosa talks about his winter, how he's still preparing as a switch hitter & wants to be Nats' everyday 2B. http://t.co/z3greMtWJn
— James Wagner (@JamesWagnerWP) January 9, 2015More Random Nats-related stories:
• "Now that Mark and I are done presenting the nuts and bolts, I wanted to share some leftovers from that day that perhaps got overlooked." - "Unique offseasons for Nats’ Craig Stammen, Kevin Frandsen" - Chase Hughes, Nats Insider
• "As an 18-year-old in the Gulf Coast League in 2013, the left-handed hitting Ward had a .402 on-base percentage in 199 plate appearances, hitting .292 and walking 25 times." - "Five Things To Know About Nationals Prospect Drew Ward" - Luke Jackson, DC Pressbox
• "1. Steven Souza Jr., RF, Rays: The Rays acquired the 25-year-old in the three-team Wil Myers trade and hope he'll be a middle-of-the-order presence from day one. In 96 games at Triple-A for the Nationals last season, he had 25 doubles, 18 home runs and a 1.022 OPS." - "10 players who could be poised to break out in 2015" - Richard Justice, MLB.com
10 players who could be poised to break out in 2015 http://t.co/d6fREPZUSB via @mlb
— Richard Justice (@richardjustice) January 10, 2015NL EAST UPDATES: Braves' HOF history; Marlins' WAR; Phils' rebuild
• Phillies: "With a minor league system devoid of much talent at its highest levels, the Phillies entered the offseason in rebuild mode after three years of failing to contend with a core of veteran talent." -"Organizational report: Phillies slow on rebuilding" - Michael Radano, USA TODAY Sports
Oopps you missed me! Walked right by me! Hope he gets to see his pic with me on Twitter, he doesn't know we took this pic.twitter.com/CHgFlVfafm
— Roy Halladay (@RoyHalladay) January 11, 2015• Marlins: "Below are the top-five prospects in the Marlins system by projected WAR." - "The Top-Five Marlins Prospects by Projected WAR" - Carson Cistulli, FanGraphs Baseball
• Braves: "As Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine and John Smoltz have been elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame over the past year, there has once again been reason to opine that the Braves rotations this trio inhabited during the 1990s were some of the greatest the game has ever seen." - "Braves' 300-starts club tops for Hall of Famers" - Mark Bowman, braves.com