http://www.dcexaminer.com/articles/2005/07/07/columns_sports/jim_bowden/92bowden.txtTwo All-Stars? Not enough
By Jim Bowden
Published: Wednesday, July 6, 2005 11:46 PM EDT
E-mail this story | Print this page
Washington Nationals General Manager
The omission of Jose Guillen from the All-Star Game is a joke. Besides Derrek Lee of the Cubs, Jose is probably the second-most valuable player in the National League in the first half of the season. Without his leadership, clutch hitting and great defense, the Nationals would not sit atop the National League East.
The rest of baseball recognizes what Jose has done. But this All-Star Game snub is ridiculous. He might not have the most powerful numbers and might not be the most popular player. I understand why the fans didn't vote him in.
But the fact he wasn't selected by NL manager Tony LaRussa is just wrong. Managers have their own fraternity and possibly Jose's omission is related to past events with Angels manager Mike Scioscia. We know the history: The Angels cut Jose last year near the end of the season despite strong numbers; and of course, there was the incident last month in Anaheim.
Those instances should not affect what's done on the field and what Jose has meant to this team. Nick Johnson has had a breakout year and he, too, should have been an All-Star. We've won more than 50 games and we're on pace to win 100. A team in that situation should have more than two representatives. The Cardinals will have six in the All-Star Game. If we're a last place team like the Rockies and the Reds, I would understand. But not when you're in first place and have the second-best record in the entire league.
I'm very proud of Livan Hernandez's first half. He has become a No. 1 starter and certainly deserved his All-Star selection. He has never won 20 games in his career, but if he stays healthy this year he'll finally do it. What I'm more concerned about are his starts in October.
Chad Cordero has had his breakout year. We all knew he'd develop into a good closer. But no one foresaw he would become an Eric Gagne or Trevor Hoffman, a dominant closer. Congrats to our scouting director, Dana Brown, who was highly criticized when he selected Cordero in the first round. Now we're looking at an All-Star closer who has had a major impact on the Nationals' first half.
Still, we should have more players in this game.
Fans should vote for who they want, and their input is important. However, the process does not work correctly. The best players don't always play. The 30 general managers and 30 managers should select the teams. If we're going to trust the GMs and managers to select each major league team, then they're the ones to make the right decisions for Major League Baseball.
Read with caution
It's amazing trade discussions with other GMs somehow leak to the media. After reading several articles in the last week, the thing that shocked me more than any other year is that most of the rumors written about the Nationals have been accurate.
There are many instances where this can hurt our chances to make a trade. Sometimes we're working on a trade that no one knows about and then someone reads an article about someone we're pursuing. Then they jump in because they didn't know that player was available and now there's more competition. It's also hurtful if the players rumored to be traded hear about it or read about it. I've seen many players go in the tank because of this. That's why I've always believed it's better if it's between GM and GM.
I'll say this: I'm keeping notes about all of my trade discussions so the readers of The Examiner will get all of the details that no one else will have on our next major trade.
As we head to the All-Star break, we've been very active in discussions. Right now, if we're healthy we have enough talent to win. But if we can add a pitcher and a bat before July 31, this team will prove the first half was for real.
Nationals General Manager Jim Bowden provides an exclusive column to The Examiner each week, ranging on topics from the Nats to the state of Major League Baseball.
As told to Examiner correspondent
John Keim.
