Kearns to start over Dukes in RF?

[PebbleBall]

Dukes aside, does anybody have any idea what the Nats lineup would look like tomorrow if it were actually determined by Spring stats?  The move is about Kearns and his trade value, the reason Milledge gets a pass and Dukes doesn't is simply because there isn't a vet they are desperate to trade behind him. 

[PANatsFan]

Willingham could very well play his way onto the field a bunch as well. Again, why is this a problem unless you are Duke's agent?

[hammondsnats]

Willingham could very well play his way onto the field a bunch as well. Again, why is this a problem unless you are Duke's agent?

i'm of the mind whoever is the hot hand play him.  kearns is the hot hand.  but i can see the logic of where the complaining is coming from.  with kearns we know what we have.  with dukes playing everyday, you can find out what you have and if he can really get 30-30 and if he can live up to the lofty expectations.

[sportsfan882]

Dukes - .212 / 1 HR / 6 RBI / 22 K
Milledge - .205 / 1 HR / 1 RBI / 14 K

both have been complete albatrosses this Spring.

[UMDNats]

Dukes aside, does anybody have any idea what the Nats lineup would look like tomorrow if it were actually determined by Spring stats?  The move is about Kearns and his trade value, the reason Milledge gets a pass and Dukes doesn't is simply because there isn't a vet they are desperate to trade behind him. 

The thing is, that's irrelevant because there wasn't competition at most positions. The only open competition was RF.

[MrMadison]

it's funny what 4 ST home runs will do for your standing in the eyes of the fans.

3 months ago, Kearns wasn't even in consideration for anything important by anyone on this forum.

now all of a sudden we are back to predicting a magical "breakout "season" just like we were in 2007 and 2008. NOTLD is ranting in all caps about how he's the second coming, and everyone is teasing AZ/Pebbleball because Dukes isn't starting and blah blah blah whatever.

Kearns will be gone in a month and a half. either traded, or benched. book it.

Manny is playing favorites, and that is all there is to it. That much is evident. otherwise, Milledge would not be the Cfer, and Cabrera would not be in our rotation.

Kearns can play Center Field.  He's done it before for us, and he's better than Milledge at it. If Manny is not playing favorites and simply PLAYING WHO IS HOT RIGHT NOW, as NOTLD says, then Kearns plays Center, Willingham plays RF,  Dukes and Milledge rot on the bench.

eagleskins' racist attitude notwithstanding, that's how it SHOULD be, *if* we are GOING WITH WHO IS HOT RIGHT NOW (period.). but it isn't.

so enjoy your jokes at Pebbleball and AZ's expense, because that is really the only quality enjoyment that you are going to get out of this. let's talk about this again at the end of May when Kearns is batting .240 and grounding out in clutch situations and all of you hate him again.

I'll gladly eat my words if Kearns manages to actually become something more than Austin Kearns, and indeed has that magical breakout season that we've been predicting for like 500 years running.  That would mean that we have one of the best Hitting Coaches in baseball.

But I'm not holding my breath on it.  and neither should you.

but for now, all hail Kearns, I guess.  I'd prefer to have the best and most talented players on the field as much as possible, but it is what it is I suppose.

[Nat of the Living Dead]

NOTLD is ranting in all caps about how he's the second coming, and everyone is teasing AZ/Pebbleball because Dukes isn't starting and blah blah blah whatever.

Uh oh, Mr. Madison is on the warpath with another exaggerated rant.

Now please, show me where I even said such a thing. Let me save you some time: you can't because I never did. Stop being ridiculous.

[MrMadison]

Uh oh, Mr. Madison is on the warpath

not exactly. I'm not the one who has been on the warpath in this thread. 

I just find it amusing how quickly everyone has turned on dukes in favor of Kearns, when we all hated Kearns and were anticipating seeing what Dukes could do over a full season, just like 2 months ago.

I'm for playing the best players that give us the best chance of winning. I don't believe that this is what is happening here.

[Nat of the Living Dead]

calm your crap down.

I'm sorry, who has to "calm their crap down?"

[MrMadison]

I'm sorry, who has to "calm their crap down?"

placeholder statement. I'm at the library and I had to run and take my daughter to the potty. lol

[DieselTurtle]

I hope we can find a taker for Kearns by Tuesday. Don't want to take away too many valuable ABs from Dukes.

[MrMadison]

I hope we can find a taker for Kearns by Tuesday. Don't want to take away too many valuable ABs from Dukes.

Kearns will be gone by the end of May. either traded or benched. book it.

it would be a colossal mistake to keep him past the AS break.

[PANatsFan]

Kearns, Willingham, and Dunn is a very intriguing arrangement - I guess you put Dunn in right and hold your breath. Milledge I think is out of options, I think.

Are we going for win now, win later, or walking the line in between? I think offensively, as of Opening Day, the outfield above is best, but it wouldn't stay healthy.

[Nat of the Living Dead]

Kearns, Willingham, and Dunn is a very intriguing arrangement - I guess you put Dunn in right and hold your breath. Milledge I think is out of options, I think.

Are we going for win now, win later, or walking the line in between? I think offensively, as of Opening Day, the outfield above is best, but it wouldn't stay healthy.

Whatever puts us back to respectability. Throwing out a guy who is ice cold isn't going to get us there. Throwing out whoever is hot at the moment will better those chances.

If Dukes wants to keep in shape and get at bats, I don't think anyone would fault him for some extra batting cage work. He looks like he needs it. RICK ECKSTEIN!!!!!

[Obed_Marsh]

it's funny what 4 ST home runs will do for your standing in the eyes of the fans.

3 months ago, Kearns wasn't even in consideration for anything important by anyone on this forum.

now all of a sudden we are back to predicting a magical "breakout "season" just like we were in 2007 and 2008.

This sounds like a straw man. I haven't seen anyone here on the Austin Kearns bandwagon. I suspect he'll do a little better this year with Dunn around to help him out but I doubt he holds onto right field for long. I seriously doubt he'll play well enough that anyone will take on his $8 million contract.

Dukes played himself out of a job this Spring. Milledge survived IMHO because his overall offensive numbers for the season last year.

So now Dukes and Willingham need to prove they can come off the bench and hit. Whoever does it better gets the next shot when Kearns or Milledge stumbles unless they all suck.

The thing that continues to escape me is that Milledge is having a bad spring too, but they never hesitated in taking the right approach with him.  This competition really must come down to Kearns's trade value.

Depth on the team is a good thing but you player fanboys might be in for a rough year as your favorites are jilted and benched when they under perform. Depth, go with the hot hand, and competition are the new bywords. On a team, with so many "when healthy" players I say about damn time.

[MrMadison]

Depth on the team is a good thing but you player fanboys might be in for a rough year as your favorites are jilted and benched when they under perform.

hi. aim your "you player fanboys" comments at people who are actually player fanboys. 

thanks.

[Obed_Marsh]

hi. aim your "you player fanboys" comments at people who are actually player fanboys. 

thanks.

Not directed at you dude. I was thinking of AZ and PebbleBall.

[MrMadison]

Not directed at you dude. I was thinking of AZ and PebbleBall.

ah. my bad then.

[PebbleBall]

Not directed at you dude. I was thinking of AZ and PebbleBall.

Look I'm only arguing a point.  I like Dukes, obviously, but it comes down to the fact that the future is only brighter for the Nats if he fulfills his potential.  Peak Dukes is better than peak Kearns, and I think there is a lot more in it for the team in the long run to play Dukes regularly.  I think it's a bad decision, regardless of what it is motivated by, so I'm going to say it. 

And if I'm going to be tagged a fanboy, then a few other people need to step out from behind the "play the hot hand" defense and explain why they aren't railing for Brad Eldred to start over Nick Johnson, or just admit they don't like Dukes.

[DCFan]

Hopefully kearns gets well enough to get traded for something decent

Take off the blinders. In order to get something decent you have to trade something decent and Kearns ain't it. 

Willingham is the most tradeable because he's consistently put up the numbers and his salary isn't that exorbitant. His only question mark is the herniated disk situation and whether he misses substantial starts like he did last year because of it.

[Air Zimmerman]

instead of sulking, I'm going to have a positive outlook on this situation. Dukes will turn this negative into a positive. this injustice will just make THE BEAST even hungrier for a breakout season- THE BEAST WILL STILL FEAST IN 2009! he'll still get some starts, get ample at bats, and be the permanent starter soon enough once Manny and co. realize the massive mistake they've made.

[Obed_Marsh]

And if I'm going to be tagged a fanboy, then a few other people need to step out from behind the "play the hot hand" defense and explain why they aren't railing for Brad Eldred to start over Nick Johnson, or just admit they don't like Dukes.

Roster spots, options, and that would be Eldred playing over "Johnson, Young, Willingham, Dunn, and Belliard"...

If Dukes actually plays like a "bonafide beast" he'll earn a spot. He hasn't shown us anything this spring. Hopefully he does in the regular season. Hopefully they all do. I don't want another season of woeful hitting and defense.

[PANatsFan]

Roster spots, options, and that would be playing over "Young, Willingham, Dunn, and Belliard"...

If Dukes actually plays like a "bonafide beast" he'll earn a spot. He hasn't shown us anything this spring. Hopefully he does in the regular season.

Plus look at their lifetime OPS. Kearns performs consistently at the level that Dukes showed over most of a season's worth of games. Sure, Dukes might put it all together, but otherwise, play the guy who's in his contract year and could tear it up.

Not sure why we don't option Dukes and preserve the service time though, if we are gonna run the roster purely as a numbers game.

[Nat of the Living Dead]

And if I'm going to be tagged a fanboy, then a few other people need to step out from behind the "play the hot hand" defense and explain why they aren't railing for Brad Eldred to start over Nick Johnson, or just admit they don't like Dukes.

Have you seen Brad Eldred's stats? His strikeouts? How many times he actually makes contact with the ball? Why he hasn't been on a Major League team since '07?

Brad Eldred, that's funny.

[MrMadison]

Roster spots, options, and that would be Eldred playing over "Johnson, Young, Willingham, Dunn, and Belliard"...

now how about Milledge still being the starting Cfer? if we are going with who is hot, then he should be benched as well.

or Cabrera being on this team at all? don't think I need to say anything further here.

my whole point is, Kearns over Dukes isn't being done for the good of the team or because it gives us the best chance of winning. it's being done for the good of Kearns, because Kearns makes 8m (thanks Jimbo), and because Manny likes him and doesn't necessarily like Dukes.

it's going to play out almost exactly like it did in 2006 when we demoted Church, who was clearly the better player, and everyone was anxious to see what he could do over a full season of starting, in favor of Brandon Watson, based on "who was hot at the time" spring training stats.

Kearns is going to go back to being himself, and we'll have wasted a good month or two hoping for that miracle breakout season. again.

and Manny's playing favorites is going to end up putting us in another hole where "the fork is in the Nats by the end of April".