Nationals vs Marlins, Game 3

[Natsinpwc]

Bringing back Franco for $1 or $2 million as a backup corner infielder isn't bad. I don't think Escobar was brought back to start. He was brought back as a backup who could start in a pinch. And Luis Garcia didn't earn the job out of camp.

But if Franco has an OPS over .700 at the deadline, he is gone.

No one wants Franco. He is a career replacement level player. You are living in a dream world.

[welch]

Escobar has a 3 OPS+ - yes, 3 - and there were countless available shortstops this winter. Rizzo chose to plan for Escobar to play 100+ games at shortstop despite a mountain of evidence that Escobar's decent run last year was fluky. Mike Rizzo intentionally slotted in Escobar as our everyday shortstop and is was such poor management that I would love to hear his explanation (fortunately the nats media corps is basically just people who exist to tweet lineups).

He sucks, is at best a bench player, and a 100-loss team could at least play a young player who is clearly wasting everyone's time in AAA.

Franco has been fine for 77 at-bats but let's not pencil him into the 2023 lineup maybe.

Sure, there were FA shortstops, and a 3B or two, like Bryant. Also some competent starting pitchers, better than Josh Rogers and Anibal. All of them would have cost money, and, to my mind, losing games is worse than spending money.

The Nats have no one to trade, unless a team is willing to trade enough value to be worth Soto.

[Natsinpwc]

Bob sounds sick?

Lots of flu here in Orlando. How about your way?

[welch]

No one wants Franco. He is a career replacement level player. You are living in a dream world.

Better than Carter Kieboom, though.

[Smithian]

No one wants Franco. He is a career replacement level player. You are living in a dream world.

Right now he looks fine defensively. If he has a decent OPS, some contender will happily take him as a backup.

We've moved worse players. Take lots of organizational filler and occasionally you'll run into a decent reliever or maybe a shocker like Roark.

[Elvir Ovcina]

I wish Fox would get a couple weeks of starts. I don't think he is a starter, but he may earn the backup spot behind Luis Garcia over Escobar.

He is hitting .000.

And he didn't hit much in the minors.  There's no reason to expect that he can hit major league pitching.

[Dave in Fairfax]

Corbin is a disaster. Idk if he or stras was a worse contract

As Elvir Ovcina noted, this one is all on Davey. Corbin gave up one unearned run in six innings with 8 Ks. All four batters in the 6th hit the ball to the outfield; luckily three of them were caught, but it was clear this was Corbin's limit this game. Davey already had Arano up in the 6th, so he would have been ready to start the 7th inning. No reason to send Corbin back out.

[Smithian]

He is hitting .000.

And he didn't hit much in the minors.  There's no reason to expect that he can hit major league pitching.

I want to see if the glove holds up as a utility backup

[Smithian]

Robles!

[welch]

Victor with a double!

[Elvir Ovcina]

I'm surprised they aren't walking Soto here.

[Smithian]

I'm surprised they aren't walking Soto here.

Josh Bell is hitting the ball. Still surprised.

[Elvir Ovcina]

I want to see if the glove holds up as a utility backup

There are tons of dudes in the minors who can field SS at a major league level but can't hit, and many of them would hit better than Fox does.  His only value is that he's a shortstop who is also really, really fast. 

[welch]

Close! Maybe this game.

[Elvir Ovcina]

Josh Bell is hitting the ball. Still surprised.

Yeah.  Probably they walk him if Bell and Cruz hadn't been switched.

[UMDNats]

Bringing back Franco for $1 or $2 million as a backup corner infielder isn't bad. I don't think Escobar was brought back to start. He was brought back as a backup who could start in a pinch. And Luis Garcia didn't earn the job out of camp.

But if Franco has an OPS over .700 at the deadline, he is gone.

When you sign Escobar and no one else, you are signing him to start. We all were hoping that Escobar was just a bench guy and as the winter went on it became clear he was Rizzo's guy for shortstop. Unless Garcia hit like .500 in the spring, he wasn't starting there.

More and more I suspect the Lerners told Mike they weren't going to spend money this winter because they are going to sell the team and long-term deals hurt the process, and Mike has proven he's really not good at creating platoon value, or squeezing the juice from undervalued assets or really doing anything beyond the moves that make the most sense to the local media. So he signed the guy he found off the street and prayed to the baseball gods that he still had game left (he doesn't). He's never faced criticism before and it won't start now, unfortunately.

[welch]

Well, that was awful, Josh Bell.

[UMDNats]

Another game of absolutely 0 offense from the entire team and now we're about to fly cross country to get our crap pushed in even more.

[Dave in Fairfax]

Another game of absolutely 0 offense from the entire team and now we're about to fly cross country to get our crap pushed in even more.

Tomorrow's game is the AppleTV game, so at least we won't have to watch that one.

[UMDNats]

4-5-6-7-8 spots in the lineup: 0-for-15.

At least corbin showed some life today

[skippy1999]

Lots of flu here in Orlando. How about your way?

Oh yea, two attorneys two weeks ago were taken out for a week with it and now my friend's son and his wife have it and they have a brand new baby! So weird because the symptoms all scream covid but they all tested negative multiple times for it but positive for flu

[skippy1999]

I've got to change my avi, feel like I'm bringing Juan bad juju

[skippy1999]

Did he just call time two times in a row?

[Natsinpwc]

Tomorrow's game is the AppleTV game, so at least we won't have to watch that one.

[Dave in Fairfax]

I wish I could remember where I found the Curly L gif. Seems quite appropriate.