Nats agree to deal with Jackson (updated)

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Edwin Jackson went 12-9 with a 3.79 ERA in 32 games last season.

Updated at 5:18 p.m.

The Nationals already had a five-man starting rotation. Actually, they had a seven-man rotation before adding Edwin Jackson to the puzzle today.

So why give Jackson a one-year, $10 million contract and create an even bigger pitching logjam?

"We saw an opportunity here to acquire a young, hard-throwing, power-pitching, innings-eating-type of starting pitcher, and we thought it was a good value at a good term," general manager Mike Rizzo said in announcing the deal. "You can never have enough good, quality starting pitching, and we felt it was a good enough value to make him a National."

Expected to command a much-larger deal when the offseason began -- perhaps getting as many as five guaranteed years -- Jackson instead saw his price come down, especially over the last two weeks when he

Beltway Baseball Live - 2/2/12

Thanks to everyone who tuned in for our on-the-fly live episode of Beltway Baseball at 3 p.m. Chase Hughes, Amanda Comak and I discussed the breaking Edwin Jackson news, the effect it has on the rest of the rotation and touched on last week's Brad Lidge signing.

We also took your questions on Rick Ankiel and Ian Desmond. If you missed the show live, here's Part I for your viewing pleasure. You can access Part II (featuring reader questions) by clicking on the "Read More" link below...

Lannan loses arbitration case

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Even in loss, John Lannan nearly doubled his $2.75 million salary from last year.

A three-judge panel ruled against John Lannan today in his salary arbitration case against the Nationals, determining the left-hander deserves to earn $5 million this season.

One day after appearing before the panel in a hearing in St. Petersburg, Fla., Lannan learned he had lost his case. He had been seeking a $5.7 million salary.

That would have represented a 107 percent raise for Lannan, who made $2.75 million last season. In the end, the judges still awarded the 27-year-old an 82 percent raise based on his stats over several seasons and how comparable pitchers were paid themselves.

Lannan went 10-13 with a 3.70 ERA in 2011, setting or matching career-bests in wins, ERA and starts (33). Over four-plus seasons with

Lannan's case heard, Durbin signs minor deal

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John Lannan is seeking $5.7 million; the Nats countered with a $5 million offer.

The Nationals and John Lannan went to arbitration today, the two sides arguing their cases before a three-judge panel in St. Petersburg, Fla., a source present at the hearing confirmed.

This was the first of potentially 24 arbitration cases to be heard this spring, though most teams and players tend to come to terms on their own before reaching the courtroom.

Lannan is seeking a $5.7 million salary this season; the Nationals countered with an offer of $5 million. He made $2.75 million in 2011. A ruling is expected tomorrow.

The 27-year-old left-hander went 10-13 with a 3.70 ERA in 33 starts last season, setting career highs in wins and ERA. Over a four-plus year

Celebrating Nats Insider's 2nd anniversary

Two years may not seem like much amid the grandiose scope of the universe, but on the internet it's the equivalent of an ice age.

Just look at the above screenshot from Feb. 1, 2010, the day Nats Insider launched. Who could have imagined then what would transpire over the next 730 days?

That morning, in my first post on the site, I speculated what the Nationals' Opening Day lineup might look like: Nyjer Morgan, Orlando Hudson, Ryan Zimmerman, Adam Dunn, Josh Willingham, Elijah Dukes, Ivan Rodriguez, Cristian Guzman. My projected Opening Day rotation: John Lannan, Jason Marquis, Scott Olsen, Miguel Batista and either Ross Detwiler or Craig Stammen.

(Uh, will anyone grant me a mulligan for that?)

The Nationals have certainly come a long way since then, and so has Nats Insider. What began as an independent blog seeking to offer some