Can Washington Nationals' Left-Hander Gio Gonzalez Duplicate Or Possibly Improve On His First Year In D.C.?

As soon as the Washington Nationals acquired Gio Gonzalez from the Oakland A's last winter they set about signing the then-26-year-old lefty to an extension, giving the starter a 5-year/$42 million dollar deal which bought out all four years of his arbitration eligibility and locked him up as part of the Nats' rotation through 2016 with a club option for 2017 and a player option for 2018. As far as Nationals' GM Mike Rizzo was concerned, Gonzalez was just a few adjustments away from becoming an elite arm. The free passes were one obvious issue. The A's lefty led the league in walks with 91 (4.05 K/9) in 202.2 innings of work in 2011, which was actually an improvement for the fourth straight season over his 6.62 BB/9 in 2008, 5.11 BB/9 in '09 and 4.13 BB/9 in his third year in Oakland in 2010.

"He's got swing and miss stuff and we see his walks turning in the right direction," Rizzo told reporters after sending four prospects (two major-league ready arms, a young, highly-regarded arm and a highly-regarded catcher) to the A's for Gonzalez and minor league right-hander Robert Gilliam. "We see him having general command and we think as he progresses into his career," the Nationals' general manager said, "each and every year he's going to improve on his command." Nationals ' manager Davey Johnson was impressed with the early returns in Spring Training and the start of the season in D.C.

A rough and brief outing in his Nationals' debut in Chicago was followed by back-to-back starts in which he threw 7.0 scoreless, walking two and allowing just four hits while striking out 15 in 14.0 IP against the Cincinnati Reds and Houston Astros. "The curve ball is unhittable," Johnson told reporters, "Fastball is live. I heard that he was a little wild, well I haven't seen indications of that. He's been around the plate, even his misses are close." At the All-Star Break, Gonzalez was (12-3) with a 2.92 ERA, 42 walks (3.71 BB/9) and 118 Ks (10.45 K/9) in 17 starts and 101.2 IP in which he held opposing hitters to a .192/.275/.290 line.

In the second-half, Gonzalez was (9-5) in 15 starts with a 2.86 ERA, 34 walks (3.13 BB/9) and 89 Ks (8.20 K/9) in 97.2 IP, holding opponents to a .219/.291/.309 line. Left-handed hitters had a .231/.307/.353 line against the Nationals' lefty in 2012, an improvement over his .253/.333/.379 line against lefties in 2011, and Gonzalez once again dominated right-handed hitters, holding those he faced to a .199/.276/.285 line in his first season in the National League, leaving him with a .228/.317/.341 line against right-handed hitters in his five-year career. Gonzalez finished his first NL campaign with a (21-8) record, a 2.89 ERA, 2.82 FIP, 76 walks (3.43 BB/9) and 207 Ks (9.35 K/9) in 32 stars and 199.1 IP for the division champion Nationals.

Fangraphs.com's Michael Barr examined the changes Gonzalez made to his approach against right-handers in an article this past November:

"In 2011, his strikeout rate was 21.7% and his walk rate was 10.8% vs. RHB and in 2012 that improved to 23.9% and 9.2%. Interestingly, it was relying less on the curve against right handers that fueled this. He threw almost 30% curve balls against righties in 2011 and that dropped to 19% in 2012. With two strikes, he used to throw the curve almost 50% of the time, and that dropped to 35%. But as the saying goes, less is more."

He threw the curve fewer times in two strike counts against righties, but increased his whiff rate by actually throwing it outside the strike zone more often."

Effectively, as Mr. Barr explained, against both left and right-handers, Gonzalez used the curve ball later in counts as more of an out-pitch than he had in previous seasons it was a much more effective weapon, "... with opposing batters losing about 100 point(s) off their batting average in 2012, hitting just .124 and slugging just .160 off his curve in 2012.

His dominance against righties had Davey Johnson confident as he sent his 21-game winner up against the right-hand-heavy St. Louis Cardinals' lineup in the NLDS. Asked if he had any concerens about Gio going out against the Cards in Game 1, Johnson told reporters, "Well, if you look at the records, right handers have just as much trouble hitting Gio as left handers. When he's locating his fastball, and he's hitting the low side of the plate, he's got a devastating curveball, I don't care if they have all right handers out there. He's tough."

"Gio had one heck of a year," Johnson continued, "I think he was lowest hits per inning and most clubs stack their clubs with right handers. I admit, St. Louis has some awfully good right handers in the middle of the lineup, but you have to make good pitches." Gonzalez faced 644 right-handers in 2012, just 178 left-handers. He finished second in H/9 (Hits/9IP) in the majors, at 6.27 H/9, behind only the Dodgers' Clayton Kershaw (6.720 H/9). The Nats' lefty had the lowest HR/9 at 0.41 HR/9, ahead of the Mariners' Felix Hernandez (0.54 HR/9 over 232.0 IP) and the A's Jarrod Parker (0.55 HR/9 in 181.1 IP), the highest K/9 in the NL (9.35 K/9) which was good for 3rd overall in the majors, behind the Rangers' Yu Darvish (10.40 K/9) and the Tigers' Max Scherzer (11.08 K/9) and Gonzalez had the league's lowest OPS-against (.582) ahead of Kershaw's .593.

Gonzalez struggled to throw strikes in his Game 1 start in the NLDS, however, walking seven in 5.0 IP in which he allowed just one run on two hits but threw 110 pitches. In Game 5 it was five hits, four walks and three runs allowed in 5.0 IP in which he threw 99. Though Drew Storen's struggles with the strike zone were obvious in Game 5, Johnson told reporters after the loss that he wasn't the only one. "He wasn't alone. It seemed like Gio had the problem," Johnson said, "You just can't win big ballgames by giving free passes. You've got to trust your defense behind you, go after 'em."

"We've been really good all year," the disappointed Nats' skipper said, "Just having a little hiccup here at the end." Gonzalez walked 34 batters (9.00 BB/9) in his last six starts and 34.0 IP over his last four outings of the regular season and first two postseason appearances.

The left-hander used his fastball more than he ever had before in 2012, throwing it 70.8% of the time, up from 62.1% in 2010 and 64.7% in 2011, threw it harded than he had before (93.3 mph over 92.2 mph in his career) and threw his devastating curve less (21.0%) down from 30.3% in 2010 and 27.8% in 2011. Before the last few weeks of the season, Gonzalez had developed into the sort of pitcher the Nationals expected him to be when they acquired him from the A's last winter. Like many of his teammates, Gonzalez experienced his first postseason run this past September/October and was able to at least keep his team in the game in spite of his struggles in both of his postseason starts.

Another year of the same for the Nationals will probably make Washington very happy, with maybe a few more strikes and less walks towards the end of the year. Bill James' projections have the left-hander posting a 3.21 ERA, a 3.43 FIP, 3.70 BB/9 and 9.09 K/9 in 2013 when the Nationals will have a full season of Stephen Strasburg, Jordan Zimmermann, Ross Detwiler and Dan Haren in the rotation barring any injuries, setbacks, etc. before the season begins. ESPN.com's Buster Olney ranked the Nationals as the second-best rotation in baseball behind only the Detroit Tigers' starters and ahead of the LA Dodgers' collection of arms. Gonzalez will likely be slotted in second, behind Strasburg and in front of Zimmermann again in 2013, breaking up the Nats' power right-handers with a power lefty who was exactly the pitcher the Nationals were looking for when they acquired him last winter in his first run through the National League.

                                                                                                                                                                                                               

Rumored Washington Nationals' Target J.P. Howell Signs With Los Angeles Dodgers

J.P. Howell told MLB.com writer Bill Ladson that he was interested in playing for the Washington Nationals. Multiple reports said the Nats had interest in the veteran left-hander as a potential replacement for late-inning lefty Sean Burnett, who signed a 2-year/$8M dollar deal with the LA Angels that included an option for a third year at $4.5M. Howell told MLB.com's Mr. Ladson in early December that he liked what he's seen from Washington in recent years. "'I love [the Nationals'] style, and they are absolutely loaded,' Howell said via telephone. 'They have so much talent. They are championship contenders. ... They are truly a heavyweight.'" Howell said he thought he would be a good fit in the Nats' bullpen. Davey Johnson wanted another lefty. Seemed like a match.

Howell signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers tonight, however, potentially ending the Nationals' pursuit of another left-handed reliever on the free agent market.

CBSSports.com's Jon Heyman (@JonHeymanCBS) wrote that the deal Howell received is a 1-year deal worth $2.85M with a potential $1.2M available in possible performance bonuses. The Nats lost Burnett, Tom Gorzelanny and Michael Gonzalez to free agency this winter.

Washington has already added Bill Bray and Fernando Abad on minor league deals and they signed veteran lefty Zach Duke after he had a strong season at Triple-A in the Nats' system and a nice run in the major league bullpen when he was called up at the end of the year. MLB.com's Mr. Ladson wrote on Twitter (@washingnats) tonight that Bray could end up being the Nationals' second left-hander in the bullpen. The Nationals were believed to be interested in adding another left-hander, though D.C. GM Mike Rizzo had recently talked up his right-handers' ability to get both left and right-handed hitters out in an article with the Washington Post's James Wagner:

"'We'd like to get a second left-hander,' Rizzo said, 'It's not a necessity because our right-handed relievers get out left-handers well, but in a perfect world we'd like to get a second.'"

Craig Stammen has a .266/.310/.407 line against lefties in his career. As a reliever last year, the right-hander had a .198/.274/.331 line against left-handed hitters. Henry Rodriguez held lefties to a .208/.356/.354 line before he was injured last year. Ryan Mattheus has held lefties to a .214/.294/.393 line over two years as a Nationals' reliever, and in 2012 the righty held lefties to a .241/.313/.471 line. Tyler Clippard has a .186/.268/.325 line against lefties in his career, and left-handers hit for a .170/.260/.259 line against the Nats' reliever in 2012.

Washington Post writer Thomas Boswell wrote in a chat this past Monday that the Nationals should act quickly and, "... go with the wisdom of the last 100+ years that it's a real good idea to have a tough late-inning lefty who can [dominate] key sluggers on other teams, not just 'have good splits." The Nats might have to look to the trade market if they're going to find the lefty they're believed to be after since Howell was the last one on the free agent market this winter.

                                                                                                                                                                                                               

Is the Washington Nationals' Bullpen Still One Lefty Short? Are Zach Duke And Bill Bray Enough?

The Washington Nationals are showing a lot of faith in veteran lefty Zach Duke. The 29-year-old '01 Pirates' 20th Round pick signed with the Nats last March, joining his third major league team after a 2011 season with the Arizona D-Backs in which he had a 4.93 ERA, 3.99 FIP, 19 walks (2.23 BB/9) and 32 Ks (3.76 K/9) in 21 games, nine starts and 76.2 IP. In his eighth major league season, Duke made 26 starts at Triple-A Syracuse in the Nationals' system in 2012, leading the International League in wins (15-5) and posting a 3.51 ERA with a 4.09 FIP in 164.1 IP over which he walked 39 (2.14 BB/9) and K'd 91 (4.98 K/9).

In eight games and 13.2 IP with Washington after he was called up in September, Duke put up a 1.32 ERA and a 2.51 FIP. Of his 1054.2 career innings pitched, only 42.1 IP have come in a relief role.

In those 42.1 innings as a major league reliever, Duke has a 2.98 ERA, 4.08 FIP, 12 walks (2.55 BB/9) and 16 Ks (3.40 K/9) in an admittedly small sample size. Asked about the role the left-hander would play in 2013 after he signed on to return to D.C. this winter, Nationals' GM Mike Rizzo told reporters, including MLB.com's Bill Ladson, (before Washington added Dan Haren to the rotation) that Duke would, "... be in the mix for a fifth starting job or at least starting depth. If not, he will [be the long reliever manager] Davey [Johnson] likes in the bullpen."

Rizzo said at the time that he would like to add another left-hander since the Nationals were expected to and have since lost not only long-man Tom Gorzelanny, but also late-inning lefty Sean Burnett and Michael Gonzalez to free agency this winter. The Nationals added Bill Bray on a minor league deal, signing the former Montreal Expos' draft pick after a 2012 season in Cincinnati in which he struggled with groin and lumbar issues which limited him to just 8.2 innings of work in the majors. In 2011, Bray posted a 2.98 ERA, a 3.19 FIP, 17 walks (3.17 BB/9) and 44 Ks (8.19 K/9) in 79 games and 48.1 IP. That season, the Reds' reliever held left-handers to a .176/.255/.292 line and over the course of his six major league seasons, Bray has a .213/.312/.331 line with 45 walks (4.62 BB/9) and 84 Ks (8.62 K/9) in 87.2 IP against lefties.

If Bray's not the answer, and they can't find the lefty they're still believed to be after, the General Manager told the Washington Post's James Wagner that he was confident that the right-handed relievers they have can get lefties out. Mr. Wagner's colleague at the Washington Post, Thomas Boswell, told readers in a chat earlier this week that he thought the Nationals might be, "... a litte too confident that the 'splits' of their RHed relievers say that they get LHed hitters out well." The WaPost's reporter suggests in the chat that the Nationals might want to consider the historical record in making their decision on their bullpen needs:

"I prefer to go with the wisdom of the last 100+ years that it's a real good idea to have a tough late-inning lefty who can [dominate] key sluggers on other teams, not just 'have good splits.'"

J.P. Howell, the left-hander mentioned most-often this winter as Washington's target, has a .238/.323/.351 line against left-handed hitters in 129.2 innings pitched in his career. Last year, in his sixth season with the Tampa Bay Rays, Howell held lefties to a .198/.306/.306 line with 13 walks (4.81 BB/9) and 20 Ks (7.40 K/9) in 24.1 IP.

"The Nats BETTER add Howell or trade for a quality LHer, imo," the Washington Post's Mr. Boswell wrote in Monday's chat. To borrow a non-word from the Nationals' GM, Howell is the only "impactful" left-hander left on the market this winter. Is the Adam LaRoche decision delaying the Nationals' decision on their bullpen needs? Would the Nationals rather trade for a young left-hander in a potential deal if they have to move Michael Morse rather than sign a soon-to-turn-30-year-old lefty to a free agent deal? Davey Johnson joked earlier this winter that he wanted another left-handed option in the bullpen so that he actually has some decisions to make. The Nationals have to decide if there's someone out there who is a better option than what they already have available? It's a new year, but the same two questions about the Nats' roster that have been unanswered all winter remain so as 2013 gets underway...

                                                                                                                                                                                                               

Washington Nationals Still Looking For Starting Depth; Scout Javier Vazquez According To Washington Post

When the Washington Nationals added veteran right-hander Dan Haren on a 1-year/$13M dollar deal earlier this winter, Nats' GM Mike Rizzo told reporters he was comfortable with the options available for the major league rotation and the depth at the top of the organization though they've traded away some of their best pitching prospects over the last two years. "We feel really good about our five starters in the rotation," the 52-year-old Executive Vice President of Baseball Ops and General Manager said. "We feel that we have options below that. I think what I've always said [is] we're never satisfied with what we have. If we can do better, we'll certainly attempt to do better and I'm always after depth."

"We feel very comfortable and confident with the five current rotation guys that we've got," Rizzo explained, "And the current guys that we feel that could be that sixth, seventh or eighth major league starters if need be, but again, with that said, we're always on the lookout to [improve] our ballclub." Assistant GM Bryan Minniti stayed behind at the Winter Meetings after the GM and many of the team's executives left early feeling they'd accomplished all they could at the annual event. When Mr. Minniti spoke to reporters, including the Washington Times' Amanda Comak, he admitted that finding depth for the major league rotation is difficult for one fairly obvious reason:

"I think the challenging thing with the major league rotation that we have is recruiting guys who know that they're going to probably end up in Triple-A, barring an injury," said assistant general manager Bryan Minniti. "So I don't know that we'll sign those guys anytime soon. We've had negotiations with those guys and conversations in the last six weeks, since the World Series ended, and we'll continue to try and sign guys to be depth for us."

Washington Post reporter Adam Kilgore wrote this afternoon that the Nationals sent a "top scout" to watch veteran righty Javier Vazquez pitch in the Liga de Beisbol Profesional Roberto Clemente where the 36-year-old veteran of 14 MLB seasons who "retired" after pitching for the Florida/Miami Marlins in 2011 is currently pitching for the Leones de Ponce. In five starts and 23.0 IP this winter, the former Montreal Expos' starter is (1-3) with a 3.52 ERA, six walks (2.35 BB/9) and 30 Ks (11.74 K/9). In his last season in the majors in 2011, Vazquez had a 3.69 ERA, a 3.57 FIP, 50 walks (2.34 BB/9) and 162 Ks (7.57 K/9) in 32 starts and 192.2 IP, but in the last two months of the season, before he decided to stick with his decision to call it a career, the right-hander was dominant, holding opponents to a .179/.213/.288 line over the final 78.0 IP in which he walked 10 (1.15 BB/9) and K'd 76 (8.77 K/9).

The WaPost's Mr. Kilgore wrote that the Nationals would, according to a team official, prefer to sign the right-hander to a minor league deal, though he noted that it's unclear whether or not Vazquez would take anything but a major league deal. Mr. Kilgore's colleague at the Washington Post, James Wagner, wrote today about another pitcher who was willing to accept a minor league deal from the Nats, potentially adding depth to the organization. 26-year-old right-hander Tyler Herron, an '05 1st Round pick by the St. Louis Cardinals, actually signed with the Nationals back on December 7th (the same day Haren officially signed), agreeing to a minor league deal after pitching with the Fargo-Moorehead Redhawks of the independent American Association last year.

The Redhawks' official site announced the signing as well, noting that Herron had a (12-3) record with a 3.24 ERA, 30 walks (2.20 BB/9) and 105 Ks (7.68 K/9) in 123.0 innings pitched in 2012 after an arm injury sidelined him in 2011. Herron topped out at Double-A in 2009, playing in both the Cardinals and Pittsburgh Pirates' organizations and posting a 4.40 ERA over 17 games, 13 starts and 71.2 IP. Herron is currently pitching in Puerto Rico as well, where he has a (3-3) record, a 3.72 ERA five walks (1.24 K/9) and 27 Ks (6.69 K/9) in 36.1 IP for the Atenienses de Manati.

                                                                                                                                                                                                               

Out-Of-Character Season: National League East - Surprising Washington Nationals

Can you think of a player in the Washington Nationals' short history in the nation's capital who had an out-of-character season, "... like Brady Anderson's 1996 or Javy Lopez's 2003?" That was the question we were asked for the latest collaborative post amongst the SB Nation's NL East authors. I had a hard time with this... went more with "unexpected" because I couldn't think of anyone with a stand-out season similar to either of those player's respective anomolous campaigns, but admittedly we're limited with seven seasons from which to choose since I didn't want to reach back into the Montreal past of the franchise and didn't actually witness any of the Senators' players doing something out of the ordinary... Anyway, here's my response and HERE's a link to the full post with examples from the Mets, Phillies, Braves and Fish which I'll link to below as well...

"The Washington Nationals played their first game in 2005 so there isn't a long franchise history to sort through, and to go back into the Expos years tends to anger fans from the nation's capital who have no connection to the franchise that relocated from Montreal, Quebec, Canada following the 2004 season. In the Nats' short time in Washington, D.C. there are a few seasons that stand out as out-of-character for one reason or another, however. Dmitri Young was released by the Detroit Tigers during a .250/.293/.407 2006 campaign filled with on- and off-field issues which derailed the career of the hard-hitting 32-year-old first baseman.

"Given an opportunity by Nats' GM Jim Bowden, Young bounced back with a .320/.378/.491 line, 38 doubles, and 13 home runs in 2007, a season in which he was an All-Star, had career highs in doubles, AVG, OBP and BABIP (.356), won MLB's Comeback Player of the Year Award, and earned himself a two-year/$10 million extension. Young would lose the starting job at first to Nick Johnson the next spring and have his season end early after just 50 games when issues with diabetes forced him from the lineup. A torn quadriceps in 2008 ended an attempt at another comeback and he never returned to the majors again. Young could always hit, but just when it looked like his career might end prematurely he had one more solid season in D.C. in 2006.

"Nyjer Morgan impressed in 157 games over three seasons following his major league debut in 2007, but for a 49-game stretch following a trade from Pittsburgh in 2009, Morgan made Nationals' GM Mike Rizzo look like a genius. Though he came from the Pirates' organization with a .286/.351/.376 line over three seasons in the majors, Morgan reached another level for a stretch upon relocating to the NL East, with a .351/.396/.435 line over 212 plate appearances with the Nationals before a broken wrist ended his 2009 campaign in late August. Morgan would play a career-high 136 games and make a career-high 577 plate appearances in 2010, but he put up a .253/.319/.314 line and played his way out of Washington before the 2011 season started.

"Perhaps the most out-of-character season of all from a National, however, came this past year from a player who finally settled in to what is probably the right role for him after several years and several opportunities to lay claim to a starting spot in Washington's outfield. Roger Bernadina entered the 2012 season with a .242/.304/.364 line over 254 games and 889 plate appearances in four seasons in the majors with the Nationals.

"With Michael Morse and Jayson Werth missing significant time last year, Bernadina played an important role in the Nats' outfield thoughout the season, filling in where necessary and often entering the game late as a pinch-hitter or defensive replacement. In 129 games and 261 plate appearances in 2012, the 28-year-old outfielder signed by the Montreal Expos as an amateur free agent out of Curacao in 2001 had a .291/.372/.405 line. In the last two months of the year, Bernadina, affectionately known as "The Shark," had a .308/.384/.431 line as the Nationals locked down the NL East. At times, he also played amazing defense in what ended up being a breakout season which all-but-guaranteed he'll be a fourth outfielder behind Bryce Harper, Denard Span, and Jayson Werth in 2013..."

' Read the Full Post at SB Nation's Baseball Nation...

Out-Of-Character seasons from Bernard Gilkey, John Denny, Tommy Hanson, Mark Redman, and Roger Bernadina. sbn.to/Uan8fj

' Baseball Nation (@sbnbaseball) January 2, 2013

                                                                                                                                                                                                               

Washington Nationals And GM Mike Rizzo Have Confidence In Their Ability To Rehab Prospects With Health Issues

"After hitting the jackpot with [Stephen] Strasburg and [Bryce] Harper as back-to-back No. 1 overall picks in 2009-10," Baseball America's Aaron Fitt writes in discussing this year's list of Washington's Top 10 Prospects, "the Nationals pounced on elite prospects who slipped because of health questions with their next two top choices." Washington's next two top picks landed 1-2 in the latest organizational rankings.

In 2011, the Nats' took Rice 3B Anthony Rendon after a junior year in which the infielder struggled with ankle and shoulder injuries that limited him to a DH role. (Though he still managed to post a .327/.520/.523 line with two doubles and six home runs in 63 games and 214 at bats.)

Washington was familiar with Rendon, however. Assistant GM (and former Braves' Scouting Director) Roy Clark was with Atlanta when the Braves selected the now 22-year-old Rendon in the 27th Round of the '08 Draft, so the Nationals knew the infielder well, and as D.C. GM Mike Rizzo explained on the night of the 2011 Draft they did their homework on the medical records of the player considered by many the top hitting prospect in the draft. "We did all our due diligence on the medicals," Rizzo said, "We've gotten all the medical reports and films that our doctors have gone over painstakingly and we feel good about it."

Rendon suffered an unrelated ankle injury early in his first pro season but returned late last summer and was quickly moved from Class-A Potomac to Double-A Harrisburg where he finished the year. Rendon then went to the AFL where he was named one of the top players in the so-called finishing school for the game's best prospects and topped the list of the Nationals' best prospects when Baseball America released it last month.

No. 2 on Baseball America's list is the Nats' top pitching prospect, Lucas Giolito, the 18-year-old right-hander selected out of Harvard Westlake High School with the 16th overall pick this past season. Giolito was considered one of the top pitchers available until a strain of the ulnar collateral ligament caused his stock to drop.

The Nationals drafted the pitcher in spite of the injury concerns, with the Nats' general manager explaining that, "We weighed the risk against the reward. We felt that to get a 6'6'', 220lb right-handed pitcher with a great body and plus velocity and good stuff, great character and great makeup... we just felt that the reward outweighed the risk and we did our homework and our due diligence on his health and his makeup and decided this is the type of player, the type of stuff and the type of ceiling that we want here in the Washington Nationals' organization." Giolito made just one start before he suffered a not-unexpected tear of the UCL which required Tommy John surgery.

As the Nats' GM explained after the injury but before the surgery in an interview with CSNWashington.com's Mark Zuckerman, the worst-case scenario for Giolito didn't frighten the Nationals. "'We knew when we drafted him this was an issue,' Rizzo said. 'And, you know, we were comfortable with the fact that [the] worst-case scenario was Tommy John surgery, and we'll see where that's headed." In an interview with 106.7 the FAN in D.C.'s Holden Kushner and Danny Rouhier, Rizzo said Giolito would enter into a process that has thus far produced good results.

"We'll have a rehabilitation schedule in place the same as we've had with Jordan Zimmermann and [Stephen Strasburg] and [2010 2nd Round pick] Sammy Solis," Rizzo said, "and... in a year he'll be a young 19-year-old guy that's come off Tommy John surgery and will begin his ascent up the minor league system." Solis, 24, suffered a torn UCL and had Tommy John surgery last winter. In an interview with the Washington Times' Amanda Comak, the Nationals' GM said he still felt confident Solis could return to the path that had him described as a quick-to-the-majors pitcher when he was taken in the 2nd Round of the 2011 Draft. Solis remained in 8th spot on BA's Top 10 List this winter for the second straight year.

No.9 on Baseball America's Top 10 Prospect list for 2013 is Matt Purke, the former 1st Round pick (by the Texas Rangers in 2009) that the Nationals selected in the 3rd Round of the 2011 Draft. The Nats offered Purke a well-above slot major league deal so that he'd sign after they reviewed his medical records and decided that it was worth the risk. Purke had surgery this winter on the shoulder that caused teams to pass on him and led to the lefty being available for the Nationals to select in the 3rd Round. If Purke can return to the form he displayed in his first year of college in 2010, Washington will be rewarded for taking a big risk.

No.6 on BA's top prospects list is 27-year-old right-hander Christian Garcia, who's a little old-ish for the prospect label, but coming off a big year in the organization. Garcia, who had two Tommy John surgeries (and a separate procedure on the elbow), had a strong campaign at Triple-A Syracuse and dominated in a relief role with the Nationals after making his MLB debut in September.

The Nationals are considering stretching Garcia out as a starter this Spring after he worked as a reliever all of last season. In a mid-September edition of 106.7 the FAN in D.C.'s The Mike Rizzo Show with Holden Kushner and Danny Rouhier, Rizzo recounted the process of pursuing and rehabbing the right-handed former New York Yankees' prospect. "We sold him on the fact that we are as good or better than any baseball team at rehabbing young pitchers and maximizing their ability levels," the Nats' GM said. "We did a lot of work on him as an amateur player. Our amateur scouts just loved the make-up and the size, the delivery and the skill-set and our front office, we did the sabermetrics on him and combined it with the scouting metrics and the human eye."

The Nationals' reputation for rehabbing pitchers helped convince Garcia to join the organization. After two seasons of helping the pitcher work his way back the team finally saw the benefits of their work in 2012. "[Garcia] is a true scouting and player development success story," Rizzo said, "Kind of a scrap-heap guy that our scouts discovered, our front office went after very, very hard, our rehab guys rehabbed him and our player development guys developed him."

In a Baseball Prospectus' interview this past summer, Lucas Giolito's father Rick told the show's hosts that the Nationals' willingness to discuss their plans should injury issues arise helped convince him and his son that signing with Washington was the right decision. "[The Nationals] were prepared to talk to us about how they handle guys with elbow problems," the elder Giolito said, "because they have a tremendous amount of experience doing that and, you know, I was convinced that if he went to the Nationals he would be well taken care of."

Two of the five starters the Nationals expect to be in the major league rotation and three of the four pitchers (Giolito, Garcia and Solis) on Baseball America's Top 10 Prospect list have undergone Tommy John surgery and the fourth (Purke) had shoulder surgery. The top prospect in the system (Rendon) was enough of a concern that five teams passed on the top hitting prospect available in 2011. So the risk Washington took in trusting their own ability to rehab players successfully could go a long way in determining just how well they're able to rebuild the system they weakened by trading for what they needed at the major league level over the last two seasons.

#whowillbethefirstonetousethetermnewmarketinefficiency?

                                                                                                                                                                                                               

Washington Nationals; Top 5 Of 2012 Lists; Movies, Music And Other Things Not Related To Adam LaRoche Non-Updates

Top 5's: I've only done this once before, last January 31st and I apologize in advance for doing it again, especially when it comes to the music that's on My Top 5 Albums of 2012. We already did our Top 5 Storylines of 2012. So what else is there to do at this list-filled stage of the offseason... But who doesn't like a post full of arbitrary rankings of things? Put your hand down. Year-end best-of lists are great! How about the Top 5 Movies we watched when we weren't watching baseball this year? (Though I still haven't seen the controversial Zero Dark Thirty). The Top 5 things we listened to this year when we were writing about the Nats? The Top 5 Davey Johnson Quotes? Top 5 Top 5 Lists Of 2012? You asked for it... OK, I admit you didn't ask for it. But you're getting it. Top 5 Lists And Lots Of Them...

' FBb's Top 5 Movies Of 2012 (w/ one-or-two-line reviews):

5. Life of Pi - Directed by Ang Lee - There was no way I was going to miss the director of "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" and the underrated (techically/visually at least, though I hated the poodle) "Hulk" making his first 3-D movie. Ang Lee, with help from James (Titanic) Cameron's 3-D production company, creates a mesmerizing adaptation of Yann Martel's novel about a boy trapped on a lifeboat for 227 days with a bengal tiger named Richard Parker. Bonus points for the best use of electric jelly fish since The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou. (ed. note - "What? They're not electric jelly-fish?")

4. Moonrise Kingdom - Directed by Wes Anderson - Speaking of Wes Anderson, the director of The Life Aquatic, Bottle Rocket, Rushmore, The Royal Tenenbaums, The Darjeeling Limited and The Fantastic Mr. Fox returned this year with Moonrise Kindgom. The plot? Sam and Suzy, two 12-year-olds in 1965 New England, meet, fall in love, run away together and set up a new home for themselves on a remote beach on the island of New Penzance. Edward Norton's Scout Master Ward tells Sam after the two have finally been [SPOILER ALERT] "rescued" that it's one of the best-pitched camp sites he's ever seen.

3. Lincoln - Directed by Steven Spielberg - Bill "The Butcher" Cutting. Daniel Plainview. Now Abraham Lincoln? Even if it wasn't directed by Steven Spielberg and written by Tony Kushner, the return to the screen of Daniel Day-Lewis is worth the price of admission. Buzzard's guts, man. This was one enjoyable, dialogue-driven examination of the passing of the 13th Amendment to the Constitution.

2. Silver Linings Playbook - Directed by David O. Russell - As someone who is, well, obsessed is a nice way of putting it, with the movie I Heart Huckabees and has seen all of its director's films, the return of David O. Russell was the second most exciting thing in theaters this year. That he returned with a well-written and acted love story/romantic comedy that deals seriously with bipolar issues, dysfunctional families and the at-times disturbing actions of its characters and somehow makes it all work shouldn't have been a surprise.

1. The Master - Directed by Paul Thomas Anderson - I'm still not sure whether it was Philip Seymour Hoffman's Lancaster Dodd seducing Joaquin Phoenix's Freddie Quell with the promise of answers to a lifetime of problems through his philosophical movement called "The Cause" (reportedly based on L. Ron Hubbard/Scientology) or the other way around with Mr. Quell's home-made intoxicants luring Mr. Dodd into unwittingly helping a veteran of World War II dealing with post-traumatic stress stay afloat in a world he can no longer seem to make sense of or deal with. In fact, at the end, I'm really not sure what I'd just watched, but it was enthralling.

' Top 5 Pictures We Instagram'd:

5. Center Field Gate - Opening Day 4/12/12:

4. Band In Front Of CF Gate On Opening Day- 4/12/12:

3. CF Gate From Red Loft Before Game 3 of the NLDS:

2. Center Field Gate Before Game 5 of the NLDS:

1. TIE: I Cheated, These are GIFs of Strasburg making the Braves' Martin Prado flinch with a curve and then another of Stras buckling Hunter Pence's knees (with a cinematic city scape intro):

' Top 5 Odd Davey Johnson Quotes:

5. "Their bench coach was yelling all kinds of things," Davey Johnson told reporters after the game, "Swinging 3-0, oh, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, really loud. Everybody [heard]." - Davey Johnson on what set off a bench clearing altercation with the Chicago Cubs

4. "It's real easy for the bloggers and the Tweeters and all those people to say, 'Why don't you do this? Why don't you do that? Bring him out of the bullpen, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah.' I've heard it all and I said, 'Well it's a good thing you guys aren't managing and I'm the one that's managing.'" - Davey Johnson on Strasburg advice.

3. "Davey on Maddon: 'I don't know him that well, but I thought he was a weird wuss anyways.'" - via @MarkZuckerman on Twitter.

2. "'I can't really tell you what the problem was, but some Hot Stuff got misplaced," - Davey Johnson to the Washington Post on Strasburg having "Hot Stuff" issues on the mound.

1. "World Series or bust." - Davey Johnson on goal in 2013.

' Top 5 Albums Of 2012: (Warning, some NSFW material below and some not-safe-for-ears sounds, as it was a big year for noisy pop music in the offices at FBb and in the car as we drove to D.C. and back to N.J. repeatedly all summer.)

5. Mouse On Mars - Parastrophics - Dusseldorf, Germany-based purveyors of what they describe as, "... a unique blend of sound annihilation, fragmented melodies and an impassioned hatred of conformity," return with their 10th studio album of ever-evolving electronic music that's best described as meticulously crafted and produced noise/pop.

Sample Track: "Polaroyced":

4. Liars - WIXI - The three members of Liars, an LA-based trio (via Brooklyn, NY and for a time Berlin), retreated to a remote cabin in California to write their sixth studio album which features synth-heavy, introverted, introspective electronic pop with disjointed, meandering song structures and trance-like rhythms... uh, yeah, it's an odd pop record. Sample Track: Brats live via pitchfork tv on Youtube.

3. Fiona Apple - The Idler Wheel Is Wiser Than the Driver of the Screw and Whipping Cords Will Serve You More Than Ropes Will Ever Do - If you don't like Fiona Apple, well, that's your problem. This one's a stripped down mix of piano and vocals with percussive elements provided by drummer Charley Drayton, but the draw here is Apple's voice, phrasing and song writing. Sample Track: Every Single Night (official video)

2. Of Montreal - Paralytic Stalks - Of Montreal's chief architect and songwriter Kevin Barnes described the band's 11th studio album, "Paralytic Stalks," as a document of the dark state he was in when he recorded the nine shape-shifting, angry, aggressive, constantly-evolving, string-heavy, horn-filled, orchestral noise pop songs. "I spend my waking hours, haunting my own life, I made the one I love start crying tonight. And it felt good." - lyrics from Same Track: Spiteful Intervention (NSFW) Official video.

1. The Brian Jonestown Massacre - Aufheben - The mastermind behind the 13 albums recorded by the ever-changing lineups and personnel of the Brian Jonestown Massacre, Anton Newcombe, recorded "Aufheben" in Berlin, Germany adding Middle Eastern rhythms and percussion to the droning, exquisitely produced, psychedelic 60's pop he and his band have been mining and producing since he released the BJTM's first album in 1995.

Sample Track: Panic in Babylon:

' Top 5 Games of 2012:

5. Bryce Harper's debut in LA - Link To Game Story

"Bryce Harper's Faux-Hawk = Awesome: The Washington Nationals' 19-year-old 2010 no.1 overall pick Bryce Harper's first at bat in the majors took place in the top of the second inning in front of 54,242 fans in Dodger Stadium against LA Dodgers' right-hander Chad Billingsley."

4. John Lannan Beats Braves: Game Story: 7/21/12 - With the Braves within 2.5 games of first following wins in the first two games of a four-game set in the nation's capital, the Nationals turn to veteran lefty John Lannan, who'd been sent to Triple-A Syracuse to start the season and the Nats' starter gives Washington 7.0 innings in which he allows 5 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 3 K's, 2 HBP and throws 98 pitches, 65 for strikes in start no.1 of 2012. The Nationals beat the Braves that day and the next to split the series and give themselves a 3.5 game lead when the Braves had been threatening.

3. Nats Clinch NL East: We just covered this one in the Top 5 Stories Of 2012.

2. Nats Wait Out Rain Delay Rally To Beat Marlins: 9/8/12 - Game Story: Heath Bell came out to close it out for the Marlins... when a violent storm hit Nats Park. Rain Delay...Over two hours later, [2:33 to be exact] they retook the field to play the bottom of the ninth. Jayson Werth vs Heath Bell. Full count... and WERTH GOES YARD!! Into the Red Porch Seats and two and a half hours later it's a tie game 6-6 in the ninth. Werth's 5th HR of the year. Bryce Harper K'd swinging for out no.1. Zim K'd swinging for out no.2. Tyler Moore K'd swinging. On to the tenth...

1. Werth-Quake: Happy New Year, everyone. No better way to end the year than watching this at bat again...

Happy New Year, and thanks to everyone for another great year talking and covering the Nats. - Patrick.