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US Presswire photo Bryce Harper tops the Nationals' highly ranked farm system. |
-- Do the Nationals have the best farm system in baseball? Or, to be more precise, did they have the best farm system in baseball as of one month ago? Yes, according to the industry leader in such matters.
Baseball America's annual Prospect Handbook came out last week. And lo and behold, look which organization took the top ranking: Your Washington Nationals.
There is, however, a caveat. The book went to print prior to the Gio Gonzalez trade. You know, the one that sent four of the Nats' top 13 prospects to the A's: Brad Peacock (No. 3), A.J. Cole (No. 4), Derek Norris (No. 9) and Tommy Milone (No. 13).
Had Baseball America waited until after the trade went down, it seems clear the Nationals would have ceded the top ranking to the Royals (who checked in at No. 2). How far would the Nats have fallen? Probably not more than a couple of spots. So it's still an impressive reflection of how far the organization has come in recent years.
-- The Nationals have added a game to their spring training slate. They'll host Georgetown University on March 2 in Viera, a tune-up of sorts before they officially open Grapefruit League play.
Proceeds from the game against the Hoyas, scheduled to start at noon, will go to the Washington Nationals Dream Foundation.
This marks the second time Georgetown has made the trek to Space Coast Stadium. The Nats hosted their local college counterparts in 2008. The final score that afternoon: Nationals 16, Hoyas 0.
So don't expect an especially competitive ballgame when the two meet again this spring.
-- Speaking of spring training, both the TV and radio broadcast schedules have been released. Here you go...
DATE OPP TIME TV RADIO
3/3 @Hou 1:05 None 106.7 FM
3/4 HOU 1:05 MASN 106.7 FM
3/5 @NYM 6:10 None 106.7 FM
3/13 DET 6:05 MASN None
3/14 @Atl 6:05 None 106.7 FM
3/15 NYY 1:05 MASN 1580 AM
3/17 MIA 1:05 None 106.7 FM
3/18 DET 1:05 None 106.7 FM
3/21 ATL 1:05 MASN None
3/24 @Bal 1:05 MASN* 106.7 FM
3/25 NYM 1:05 None 106.7 FM
3/30 MIA 6:05 MASN None
4/3 BOS 3:05 MASN 106.7 FM
*Game called by Orioles broadcasters
64 comments:
Thanks for the tidbits, Mark. We're on the home stretch to ST now.
Speaking of broadcasts, noticed an ad in the Examiner while I was riding Metro to the SABR program the other day. It was a schedule for "Caps on Tap" viewing parties. Those listed took place at various venues in DC and Virginia.
It would be pretty cool for the Nats to do that, too, imho. Maybe we should have a Nats Insider ST viewing party somewhere...
We really are aproaching the home stretch, to the point that some players will end up in Viera early soon. It is a bit of a jolt to the system for the many free agents who have still not latched on with a team, I am sure. MLBTR will be an active site, I imagine.
I have almost given up on the Nats' marketing department. I wonder sometimes if lame promotion of the team was part of the deal with Angelos. I mean c'mon, he might stifle the Nats on MASN, but there surely must be other ways to build interest. One lingering indication is the name of Nationals Park. I don't want it to change, but I just get the feeling that it still is Nats Park because nobody thinks the brand is compelling enough to associate their company with the team.
+1/2St.
http://www.cleveland.com/tribe/index.ssf/2012/01/the_big_picture_is_tv_rights_m.html
Good read on how much the Nats are being ripped off in TV rights given the size of the Washington DC market.
Interesting piece, Gonat, and I believe that the media consultant quoted (Bavilacqua) is the one who is working for the Nats as regards MASN. hmmm...
Make that "Bevilacqua."
Natsfan1a has a great idea. A ST viewing party would be a blast. Let me also suggest an Opening Day viewing party on April 5 when the Nats are in the windy city. Go Nats!
Did you read the article on MLB about the Mariner's fanfest? Seems like a great event even though the PETCO roof didn't close all the way. Oh well, at least we had the Nats Winter Caravan - oh, that's right, the Nats p.r. gurus didn't schedule one of those either. Come on Nats front office, it would be nice to treat your loyal fans like you care about us!
Thanks for the new post Mark:
Still have warm memories of sitting in our new seats, in the snow, during fanfest or whatever it was called. Not a big fan of the long lines to say hi or get an autograph of the few players who showed up but it was fun to come to the park in the winter and think about what was to come.
Just finished reading a nice article by Richard Justice (who I really like now & when he was with the Post) on Brad Lidge and what a quality person he is. It did not guarantee a lights out reliever but he wrote about the ability of Lidge to fight through difficulties. I think he can only add to our team.
Also just finished reading Nats Prospects and I am excited about what is still in our minor league system. Interesting comments on Davey and his work with the young Mets back in the day and comparing that to Bryce Harper.
We have 37 on our 40 man roster. Do we have to have 40 when we break spring training?, or can that stay flexible during the season. I honestly don't know who else is out there except for Ankiel but I have to think that Cameron is not the answer for this season. Like have said many times, my hope is that Corey Brown breaks out and solves the CF dilema. The funny thing is he could be seated next to me on metro and I would have no idea who he is.
Go Nats!!
Thanks for the updated broadcast schedule. These dates are closer than they appear. I hope. Short as it is, February is my least favorite month because it feels interminable. Interesting read on the broadcast deal, too, 1a.
I would be so in favor of a ST Insider gathering. Or an April 5 gathering. Or both. They should let us do it at NatsPark, but they won't. But I'd even go to Virginia for this!
SM13,
Thats Safeco not Petco. Petco is San Diego.
I have no idea what a 38 year old Cameron is capable of contributing this year offensively, but the short one liner evaluations you here from the press and experts seems to be that he can still play the field exceptionally well. He's always tended toward low average, high strikeout, moderate power, solid base running.
More Nats need to hit over .270. Last year that list was Morse and Zimmerman. Ankiel wasn't on that list and Cameron isn't likely to be either. There are not a lot of current Nats who can be expected to surpass that number. Maybe Werth and LaRoche bounce back. Maybe Ramos or Desmond approach it.
I was thinking about the 40 man also. Cole Kimball is a candidate for the 60 day DL, so we could have a 4th slot available by the time the season starts if we needed it. Since I am of the mind that Harper is not making the club out of ST, then there are 2 spots needed for outfielders to go along with Werth, Bernadina and Morse (2 of Mike Cameron, Corey Brown, Jason Michaels, Xavier Nady, Rick Ankiel?). And if Lombardozzi makes the club, then the infield is set, but they could let Lombardozzi play everyday in AAA and bring along Chad Tracy instead, and he would need a spot. If Chad Tracy has a good spring, I think he'll make the club and Lombo would be odd man out, even if Lombo also has a good spring.
They do not need all 40 spots filled.
...Going out today to Prince William Forest... will be looking for more signs of spring!
1A.. Viewing party would be great! Too Bad there are no Bars by the stadium to make that happen!
Just saw the link to the article "Buerhle signs with Marlins"... seems so long ago and so unimportant now.
Yesterday on Nats Talk on MASN Phil Wood said the team was planning a big Natsfest NEXT offseason at the Washington Convention Center. Do you know anything about this Mark?
Picking up on 1a and sm13's suggestions, I would be all in for a Nats Insiders viewing party on Opening Day, Thursday April 5 at 2 PM. (Of course, NatsLady just might be at Wrigley).
Does anyone know when single game regular season tickets go on sale? I'm making plans for opening day.
Make that the home opener.
Go Hoyas!
Gonat,
Thanks for the link to Cleveland Plain Dealer piece on media rights. We can only hope that Mr. Bevilacqua is able to work his magic on the 'reset' of the MASN contract. Am I correct that such a reset is now supposed to take place every five years? I ask because I have to wonder how good those 20-year deals (e.g., Angels, Rangers) are going to look 10-15 years down the road. While the numbers seem huge in 2012 terms (because they are), the combination of ever-increasing media contracts, inflation, and changes in technology could well make the second halves of those deals much less attractive. The Braves are currently feeling the pinch of being in the second half of a 20-year contract; according to a recent Atlanta Journal piece they're getting very little (in today's terms) for their local media rights. As much as I think the Nats were unfairly stuck with the MASN arrangement, if they can really do a reset every five years (or so) to some sort of an honestly applied 'top ten media market average' (or whatever the precise language is) they may end up doing better than a team signing a fixed-price long-term deal.
Thanks natsguy. At least I didn't say Kingdome!
I love JaneB's idea except they would probably charge stadium prices for the beer and that would put a damper on it.
Michele: there is a bar nearby - Justin's Cafe is about two blocks at most. Its in ground floor of one of the condo's that opened last year. Great draft beers and decent food. Its usually packed before and after games.
Another idea would be the bullpen opening with a big screen tv but it might be colder than hell and might not work.
Sunderland: thanks for the answer. I did not think it needed to be at 40 but wanted clarification. I agree about Lombardozzi. He probably will benefit more from lots of play rather then just a couple days a week.
Go Nats
The Great Unwashed said...
"Does anyone know when single game regular season tickets go on sale? I'm making plans for opening day."
I have not heard a date yet. The target for STH pre-sale is mid-Feb. Last year, the STH pre-sale began on Feb 15th and single game tickets went on sale March 3rd.
HRod kicks and delivers.....SWING AND A MISS! and down goes Rameriz! Pitch clocked at 102mph! PUT ANOTHER CURLY W IN THE BOOKS!!!
Yesterday on Nats Talk on MASN Phil Wood said the team was planning a big Natsfest NEXT offseason at the Washington Convention Center. Do you know anything about this Mark?
That could very well be possible. The Convention Center is typically heavily booked in January by large events like the Auto Show, and those dates are typically booked over a year in advance, or are under multi-year deals. It may be possible that the Nats could not have booked time at the Convention Center last year or this year even if they wanted to, and next January there finally is an opening on the schedule they could reserve. BTW, the same is likely true for other large venues in the area like hotels or the Dulles Expo Center. The two January NatsFests that they held at the ballpark were probably there because they had no other option. They also served to show that the ballpark is not a good place for large winter events.
Any chance next year's FanFest (if there is one and it goes on the road) swings by Northern New Jersey?? Nah, didn't think so...
Yeah, must take at least 5 years in advance to book a big venue for the Natsfest as the Lerners have not done it to date. It being hard to find a good rom being the only possible reason the team has stunk it up on marketing.
I would love to get together with other Nats Insiders for a viewing party.
Yeah, must take at least 5 years in advance to book a big venue for the Natsfest as the Lerners have not done it to date.
You clearly have never tried to book a venue for a large event in DC. No, it doesn't take five years in advance, but two or even three is not entirely out of the question.
Nats fan in NJ --- I'm down with holding on in Jersey City or Hoboken... :P
How man years have the Lerners owned the club? When do you think that they should have gotten around to planning something close to a legit MLB marketing scheme? They could make events in their control this year great, but they won't. They'll put into the pile of thing to do next year (along with really trying to win, according to Makr Z) the aggressive marketing and fan outreach. I mean what's the rush, right?
Single game tickets in Boston went on sale this week, and I picked up tickets to two of the Nats games here at Fenway! Officially. Ready. For. The. Season.
Whatsanattau said...
"More Nats need to hit over .270. Last year that list was Morse and Zimmerman. Ankiel wasn't on that list and Cameron isn't likely to be either. There are not a lot of current Nats who can be expected to surpass that number. Maybe Werth and LaRoche bounce back. Maybe Ramos or Desmond approach it...."
Agree totally with whatsanattau. And they need to strike out LESS. At least one impact or high OBP bat is badly needed. Its way too hopeful to expect the required across-the-board improvements to go from bottom-feeding batters to mid-pack contenders.
Whats in Rizzo's crackerjack surprise box?
I might be able to make a viewing party if there are others who might not be able to manage DC - NOVA anyone? I would love to watch with some other people who actually think it's a bigger day than Christmas. No one understands me since my grown children moved away :( Well -- they try to understand and tolerate but they just really don't get it.
And the captcha was --- beliving -- I do believe! - can I get a witness?
Won't be in Chi for the opener. People, it's still WINTER there in April!
As for viewing party--would love to join any that's offered, either in DC or Northern VA. Am limited only by my work schedule... (yeah, there is that)...
Thanks, N. Cognito. I don't understand why the date the single game tickets go on sale is such a state secret. It's pretty sad that NatinBeantown can already buy tickets in Boston but the local fanbase can't. It's sadly reminiscent of the Stan regime. Meet the new boss. Same as the old boss.
Since I am of the mind that Harper is not making the club out of ST, then there are 2 spots needed for outfielders to go along with Werth, Bernadina and Morse (2 of Mike Cameron, Corey Brown, Jason Michaels, Xavier Nady, Rick Ankiel?). And if Lombardozzi makes the club, then the infield is set, but they could let Lombardozzi play everyday in AAA and bring along Chad Tracy instead, and he would need a spot.
I suspect Lombardozzi ends up in AAA to work on his switch hitting some more. And its likely he will get plenty of practice as a lead-off hitter. This only makes sense as Johnson has clearly stated that if Lombo makes the roster he would have to use him a lot. There's a great deal one can interpret from that. My take is he the a lead-off hitter in AAA barring a trade of Desmond with Espinosa moving to shortstop
AAA will be interesting with Tyler Moore, Jesus Valdez, and Stephen Lombardozzi at second, Josh Johnson at shortstop with Carlos Rivero at third base. The Nats must be keeping their fingers crossed about getting Bradley Meyers back because they will need him in that rotation.
Having all of those 40-man slots open leaves the wide open possibility for additional signings, trades, and waiver wire pickups.
Davey Johnson is going to look hard at what he already has in the organization before looking outside. That means left-handed bats like Roger Bernadina and Corey Brown.
They may still make a run at BJ Upton. It makes a lot of baseball sense to grab him up now and sign him to an extension. Signing Fielder would have made this a lot easier. And Upton is not a left-handed bat albeit his platoon stats aren't bad. But, I think it highly unlikely for the Nats to be willing to give up much for a 1 year rental of Upton if they held the line with Fielder.
Without Fielder the Nats are still in an advanced rebuilding stage. More good draft picks needed. Propitious trades hopefully still in the offing. With Fielder they might have been a lock to get Oswalt. Now, that's going to be a lot tougher.
My wife's Christmas present to me: tickets to opening day at Wrigley. Something I never could even picture as a possibility years ago. Thank you stubhub. And thank you even more awesome-wife.
Bundle up then, Ernie. I went to a game at Wrigley in April once. ONCE. It was COLD.
We're hoping Strasburg's fastball will keep the place warm for 5-6 innings...
There's actually some logic and business sense why Boston is selling single game tickets now and DC is not. Boston has already sold their allotment of season tickets. They have no need to hold back. Washington, and a lot of other clubs, are still hoping to sell more season tickets. And so they delay single ticket sales while they market the benefits of season tickets (Opening Day, best seats, yada yada). Or at least, that's what they should be doing....
I suspect that the Nats will realize that it is not a safe bet to go with Desmond (Nats pitchers can't like his glove or his bat) and will start the season with Lombo starting at 2B and Espi at SS. Desmond is the weak link on the club and they have options to play 2012 without the guy as it stands, no need to make an external move.
What is it that some people can't understand that Ian Desmond's biggest backer is one Davey Johnson?
Same goes for Rick Ekstein.
It matters not one bit what posters on this or any other Nats site think of those guys. Davey likes them and that's all that mattees.
That NatsJack and I also don't get some people's obsession with Lombardozzi. He's a nice player who could carve out a decent career as a utility infielder, but that's about it. Watching him play in his cup of coffee last year, I saw a guy getting the bat knocked out of his hand by MLB pitching. People should remember that in their last year of the minors, Desi hit .330 with a .401 OBA while Lombo was .309/.360. I'm not saying Desi's the answer, but I'm sure Lombo isn't.
On another note, how about signing Matsui to be a bat off the bench? They need a LH power bat badly.
Washington, and a lot of other clubs, are still hoping to sell more season tickets. And so they delay single ticket sales while they market the benefits of season tickets (Opening Day, best seats, yada yada). Or at least, that's what they should be doing....
The Nats are also now selling mini-plans (15 games) and flex plans (4-5 games) andd have been doing so since before Christmas. Single game tickets will come soon enough. It's a progression. And yes, there has been marketing. Print ads, radio ads, what more do you want, a personal knock on your door?
Per the team site, the flex plans will go on sale January 31. Usually I get a mailer about that, but haven't seen it yet.
Re. a game viewing event, I'd be on board with a NoVa locale but could do DC, too, depending when the game was.
Print ads, radio ads, what more do you want, a personal knock on your door?
I still get emails and the odd phone call from the Phillies, and all I ever bought was one game in April 2005. Nats? Not so much. Yeah, personal contact would be a good way to start.
for a group watch, Duffy's in DC (green line metro) always has the game on, and a back room area to watch it.
I hate to tell you this -- but opening day in DC was also extremely cold here last year.
"The Great Unwashed said...
Thanks, N. Cognito. I don't understand why the date the single game tickets go on sale is such a state secret."
I've known the projected date of the STH pre-sale for at least a couple weeks, but it's not for release. I suspect the reason is they don't want to give outa date and then have to change it for some reason. The Nats are apgrading their ticketing system and they might still be working out any kinks in it. It should be a lot more user friendly than the previous system.
"It's pretty sad that NatinBeantown can already buy tickets in Boston but the local fanbase can't. It's sadly reminiscent of the Stan regime. Meet the new boss. Same as the old boss."
A lot of teams still aren't selling single game tickets - Pirates, Red Sox, Orioles and Rockies are the only teams on the Nats schedule currently selling single game tickets. Put your disdain in more appropriate places.
I had this girlfriend back in college, she was smart, pretty, from a great family; she had it all. For awhile she said to me and to everyone who would listen to her how much she liked me, how nice and fun I was, etc., she was smitten, but a funny thing happened. After she really got to know me and after she started to realize that I was not going to mature into anything of real interest any time very soon, she changed her mind and dumped me for some pre-med kid who made it more classes and less happy hours than I did, she had better things to do with her time than wait for me to grow-up seemingly.
Davey's gonna get over his Desmond man-crush in a hurry too, if Ian does not perform like a champ in Spring Training. Davey's not going to keep stepping out with a guy who plays Davey's record into a loser.
dfh21
dfh21-
I hope you found someone worthy to makeup for the loss of someone under those circumstances. I also hope that the Nats look at Desmond in a similar way, but that he reaches his potential right away. This is not to say he will imporve- if he reaches his potential and is great, excellent; if he reaches his potential and is no better, Rizzo will know to find the "pre-med" equivalent.
It is a great point you raise - the rest of us can mature and find many avenues by which to prove ourselves. These guys have all their eggs in a very public baseball basket, and a great number of them have only insanely less glamorous alternatives to fall back on. If any of them give less than a desperate best they can, they are delusional fools.
+1/2St.
You know, I think that words "delusional fool" were employed in the dumping speach I got back in 1986.
dfh21
I still get emails and the odd phone call from the Phillies, and all I ever bought was one game in April 2005. Nats? Not so much. Yeah, personal contact would be a good way to start.
I get e-mails almost to the point of annoyance from the Nats. Perhaps you have never given them your correct e-mail address and/or phone number when you've bought tickets in the past. Assuming you've ever even bought tickets in the past, given your obstinate pride in being sofa-bound. Would you like them to contact you with upholstery deals?
The comments section for this blog is awesome.
I hit "like" once each for the M's and Cleveland on MLB.com. Get LOTS of e-mails from both teams. Still waiting for Nats e-mails. However, the Nats are very active on Facebook, lots of posts and interesting stuff, plus comments from other Nats fans...
I'm sorry they're annoying you, Woody, but of course they have my email--that's where the tickets come to. And that was uncalled for.
I have never bought season tickets and I don't really buy that many tickets in a season.When I do , they are the cheapest ones. Someone in the nats organization has called me once a week for about the last six weeks - always during the day when I am at work, always leaving a message. They would love to sell me a ticket plan but my schedule is way too chaotic. I know at some point it will become harder to get single game tickets, but we are not there yet. I probably don't pay enough in any season to pay for one swing of a player's bat. It's kind of cool to see "Washington Nationals" on my caller ID, though.
Come on, Mark! By now you should have a Google Calendar merge option for this schedule! Get with the times!
All kidding aside...I'm so freaking psyched about this year it's making me itchy.
Well, it seems that everyone else gets e-mails and phone calls out the wazoo from the Nats. I guess they just don't like this sofa guy for some reason.
Or maybe, since all the e-mails come from mlb.com no matter what the team is, you guys with multiple teams don't have any way to tell them which is the team you really want e-mails from. Seems strange to keep blaming the Nats for things they probably have no control over. Have you ever contacted anyone from the Nats and said "Hey, I want to get e-mails from you"? Somehow, I doubt it. They may not automatically send spam e-mail to people they know are already buying tickets from them. Perhaps they figure that since you've previously bought tickets you already know the schedule and you already know the drill.
Well, it seems that everyone else gets e-mails and phone calls out the wazoo from the Nats. I guess they just don't like this sofa guy for some reason.
Maybe I should tell them I am a Phillies fan.
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