The offseason plan

So, the season's over. Players have dispersed around the world, from Northern California (Drew Storen) to the Netherlands (Roger Bernadina). Mike Rizzo is preparing to go to Viera, Fla., to watch some instructional league games. Stan Kasten is preparing to vacate his office and move back to Atlanta before embarking on whatever is next in his professional career.

Everyone has plans for the offseason, including yours truly.

Before I get to that, let me just say one last time how much I enjoyed covering this season. The interesting storylines on the field helped make that possible, but not nearly as much as all of you did. The daily interaction I had with you loyal readers, whether through comments on the site, email, Twitter or face-to-face at the ballpark, was the real highlight of the season. It made for an experience I'd never had before in 12 years as a professional sportswriter, and it's what kept me going every day for the last eight months through all the highs and lows of a baseball season.

And there were plenty of highs and lows for the Nationals over the course of 162 games. I'm proud to say I witnessed 129 of those games in person (69 at home, 60 on the road) plus another 25 at spring training, and I'm humbled to say that wouldn't have been possible without your generous support.

I've gotten plenty of questions over the last few weeks, with everyone wanting to know what I'm planning to do during the offseason. The answer: The same thing I've been doing every day for the last eight months, and the same thing I've done the last five offseasons. Covering the Nationals.

There will be plenty of stuff to report, address and analyze over the winter. Trade talks. Free agent talks. Arbitration decisions. The instructional and Arizona Fall Leagues. Front-office changes. Player profiles. Press conferences. The winter meetings. Not to mention the postseason, which begins Wednesday. I'll definitely be sharing some thoughts on that along the way.

Yes, the Hot Stove League will be alive and well here at the Insider, as well as at CSNwashington.com. There may be some down periods along the way when there's not much to update, and I'll be taking some actual vacation at various times. But the baseball beat is a 12-month endeavor, and there really is no offseason anymore.

So please make a point to check back around here often as I do my best to keep you loyal readers on top of anything and everything there is to know about your favorite franchise.

As always, it will be my pleasure to keep you informed.