Fielder

[Ray D]

wondering around stadiums as good luck and then being shot with a crossbow by a GM that is then forced to wear them around their necks as the entire team dies of dehydration.

Best description of Werth I've heard yet!

[Evolution33]

The Yankees payroll was over 200M last year.  The Phillies were at 173.  The Red Sox were at 168.  Having 3 players at 20-25M contracts is very doable without going near those levels.  The question becomes are the Lerners willing to go to the 105-140M range.  There were 9 teams in that range. 

I think Boras can convince them of that. He is very convincing, and if the Nats draw 3 million like the Brewers and get a good TV deal out of this MASN renewel then there is no reason the Nats can't make money and have a high payroll.

[PowerBoater69]

You mean so we wouldn't have anything left to talk about, don't you?

The resolution of the Fielder issue will result in three months of giddy anticipation of a playoff run or three months of agonizing over the prospect of having taken a step backward from last season.  There is no middle ground.

[BerkeleyNat]

Interesting...ESPN just reported on a story from the Milwaukee paper saying that the Nats are the frontrunners to sign Price.

http://www.jsonline.com/sports/brewers/nationals-a-favorite-to-sign-fielder-5q3lan0-136553848.html

[UMDNats]

Interesting...ESPN just reported on a story from the Milwaukee paper saying that the Nats are the frontrunners to sign Price.

http://www.jsonline.com/sports/brewers/nationals-a-favorite-to-sign-fielder-5q3lan0-136553848.html

that actually happened yesterday

[tomterp]

Interesting...ESPN just reported on a story from the Milwaukee paper saying that the Nats are the frontrunners to sign Price.

http://www.jsonline.com/sports/brewers/nationals-a-favorite-to-sign-fielder-5q3lan0-136553848.html

More reporting of other people's reporting of other people's speculation, etc.

[Minty Fresh]

Fielder to the Nats is a real hot topic on the current XM show (Power Alley with Jim Duquette and Kevin Kennedy).  Both think the potential signing puts the Nats up with the Phillies.

[PowerBoater69]

More reporting of other people's reporting of other people's speculation, etc.

Be fair, Zuckerman has pointed out that there have been four separate sources of info on this deal:

1: Executives from other clubs
2: Sources from within the industry
3: An unnamed Nats player
4: MLB officials

[Evolution33]

Be fair, Zuckerman has pointed out that there have been four separate sources of info on this deal:

1: Executives from other clubs
2: Sources from within the industry
3: An unnamed Nats player
4: MLB officials

Wouldn't those be the same sources used for every baseball story. I read an angry tone into Zuckerman's piece from last night and Lodban's from this morning. Maybe I am crazy or maybe they feel like Rizzo has used them or don't like being scooped.

[Ray D]

1: Executives from other clubs
2: Sources from within the industry
3: An unnamed Nats player
4: MLB officials

Conspicuously missing is a "Team Official".  If one of these jokers can cite a  team official - and "unnamed" is fine - then he will have a scoop.  The above four are useless. Especially "Sources from within the industry". That could be nothing more than these (so called) journalists talking among themselves.

[PebbleBall]

Conspicuously missing is a "Team Official".  If one of these jokers can cite a  team official - and "unnamed" is fine - then he will have a scoop.  The above four are useless. Especially "Sources from within the industry". That could be nothing more than these (so called) journalists talking among themselves.

This is the source that I think has it dead-on:

When asked about Fielder being linked to the Nationals, another source said: "I think Boras is using [the Nationals] to drive up the price with interested teams."

[Lintyfresh85]

Wouldn't those be the same sources used for every baseball story. I read an angry tone into Zuckerman's piece from last night and Lodban's from this morning. Maybe I am crazy or maybe they feel like Rizzo has used them or don't like being scooped.

Zuckerman and Lobson hate each other, as in, legit, I hate you... so anytime they're basically writing the same thing, you know they feel they were duped.

[PowerBoater69]

Wouldn't those be the same sources used for every baseball story. I read an angry tone into Zuckerman's piece from last night and Lodban's from this morning. Maybe I am crazy or maybe they feel like Rizzo has used them or don't like being scooped.

Remember that Rizzo used Boz to force the Gio trade through and that old man Lerner prefers to negotiate with Boras directly, I would not assume that ownership is always on the same page as their GM, so his comments to the media may not the thoughts of the ultimate decision makers.

[hammondsnats]

ight i'm not reading the last ten pages, will someone who is not going to be a smart ass please share with me any earth-shattering POSTS/comments? 

much appreciated.

[welch]

Here is the important Fielder news:

<Fielder_news>
  <content>
  </content>
</Fielder_news>

/* Note: I haven't hand-written XML in about 12 years, so I never remember which way the slashes go */

[Rasta]

Wouldn't those be the same sources used for every baseball story. I read an angry tone into Zuckerman's piece from last night and Lodban's from this morning. Maybe I am crazy or maybe they feel like Rizzo has used them or don't like being scooped.

That's the first thing I thought as well.  It's like Zuckerman was saying "No one has told the beat reporters that the Nats are interested and I'll be pissed if they sign him and we never heard about it". 

[Ray D]

I read an angry tone into Zuckerman's piece from last night and Lodban's from this morning.

I can't read anything into Ladson's piece, it's hard enough just reading it. When I was in elementary school there was a publication called "Weekly Reader". Is that still around?   That's what his writing reminds me of, except that Weekly Reader was a bit more coherent.

[Gleason2]

Zuckerman and Lobson hate each other, as in, legit, I hate you... so anytime they're basically writing the same thing, you know they feel they were duped.

Really?  I've never heard or read this before.  What is the source of their mutual contempt?

[KnorrForYourMoney]

ight i'm not reading the last ten pages, will someone who is not going to be a smart ass please share with me any earth-shattering POSTS/comments? 

much appreciated.

The Nats are being used to drive up the price of Fielder.

[Lintyfresh85]

Really?  I've never heard or read this before.  What is the source of their mutual contempt?

Don't know what started it... but I do know there's legit hate there, and it's a mutual feeling.

[hammondsnats]

The Nats are being used to drive up the price of Fielder.

yeah i'm up to date on the news/rumors, i just meant WNFF posters/commenters wise was there anything great (MDS farts smell like snozberries, spider finally changed her name to annienat, PA said LAC, etc).

but thanks.

[HalfSmokes]

Can we please stop using the cliches of players as an albatross. They aren't out there wondering around stadiums as good luck and then being shot with a crossbow by a GM that is then forced to wear them around their necks as the entire team dies of dehydration.

anchor, mill stone, lead weight- chose your cliche metaphor and I'll be happy to change

[MarquisDeSade]

Here is the important Fielder news:

<Fielder_news>
  <content>
  </content>
</Fielder_news>

/* Note: I haven't hand-written XML in about 12 years, so I never remember which way the slashes go */

You have it right.  I'll post some R code I've written to sum up this thread later tonight.

[Minty Fresh]

I'm really excited about the potential of signing Fielder.

Though, I was really excited about Teixeira too. 

[MarquisDeSade]

I'm really excited about the potential of signing Fielder.

Prince Fielder is my second favorite current MLB player after Big Mike Stanton.  Signing him would do wonders for the Nats and I'm not just talking about on the field.