Justice Delayed... Again

Let's run down the list... spring training, June 1st, the all-star break, August 1st, before the playoffs... and now apparently, Thanksgiving. MLB's chief negotiator (and White Sox owner) Jerry Reinsdorf says the sale of the Nationals won't be completed until November. The reason? Reinsdorf is busy attending to White Sox related business.

Reinsdorf: "There will probably have to be a time when I need to be in Washington for a day or two to get this done and I won't have time as long as [the White Sox] are in this." What, Reinsdorf has to be on hand so he can tell Ozzie Guillen when to pinch hit for Joe Crede? He's the owner, not the bench coach.

Lest you think the endless delay in naming new owners is MLB's fault, Reinsdorf wants you to know that the real culprit is the DC city council. The council has truculently refused to hand over the keys to the kingdom (i.e. the new stadium lease). I was no particular fan of the city's initial hemming and hawing over the stadium deal, but now I think they're entirely justified in holding on to their final piece of leverage until MLB names an ownership group with strong local ties and a commitment to the city. Not Smulyan!

In Other Obstructionist News

Comcast received it's second consecutive judicial bitch slap from the MoCo courts, when their amended lawsuit against MASN and the B'Orioles was dismissed again. Apparently Comcast's lawyers couldn't formulate a decent complaint even with two bites at the apple. An appeal is forthcoming.

According to the Times, land acquisition for the new stadium will begin this month, although roughly half the property will have to be taken by eminent domain, adding time and expense to the process. And, surprise, parking for the new stadium is already a problem.

Arbitrary Decisions

The following Nats are eligible for salary arbitration this winter:

• Luis Ayala, RHP
• Jamey Carroll, IF
• Marlon Byrd, OF
• Alex Escobar, OF
• Nick Johnson, 1B
• John Patterson, RHP
• Brian Schneider, C
• Junior Spivey, 2B
• T.J. Tucker, RHP
• Brad Wilkerson, OF

The important thing to remember about arbitration is that nobody's salary ever decreases. Putting the decision before an arbitrator always results in a raise, sometimes a substantial one. With that in mind, most of these decisions are no-brainers. Yes to Ayala, Carroll, Byrd, Johnson, Patterson, and Schneider. No to Alex Escobar. Then comes decision time.

Junior Spivey: Junior made $2.1 million this year, and as noted above, that number won't go down in arbitration. But he is a starter-quality 2B, and with Jose Vidro's health questionable, he'd be a good guy to have around. Plus, he's probably tradeable. Yes to arbitration.

T.J. Tucker: T.J. made $657,000 this year, and probably won't merit much of an increase between being injured and posting a 6.39 ERA in 13 games. Basically it comes down to T.J. vs. Travis Hughes. It would be nice to keep both, but probably a no for arbitration.

Brad Wilkerson: The big question. A raise from his $3 million this year is a certainty. His power numbers slumped hard this year, but his .248 average is disturbingly close to his career average of .256. If you're going to bat .250 from a corner outfield position you need to swat homers like Adam Dunn, and Wilkie don't. It pains me to say it, but with Ryan Church and Marlon Byrd in the fold, Wilkerson might be most valuable as trade bait to bring in a starting pitcher.

Boz Hates Bud

Okay, that's a little harsh. But he does contrast the behavior of the Nats players and fans with that of our "owners". Can't we just call them overlords? The bottom line, once again: No Smulyan!

Season in Review

Today the Post allows us to relive the season game-by-game, albeit in highly encapsulated form. This is probably one of those things that's better in the print edition. I'll have to check on that.

The sentimental crap.

So Nate is right.. The sentimental crap is my department.

Sunday was a great experience. While the game was a loss, I was happy the fans were good spirited. Even the Philly fans we were sparring with were pleasant this time. The standing ovation at the end capped a great year.

I did my own stats for the year. I attended 20 home games this year, including both the home opener and the last game of the season. The Nats were 9-11 while I was in attendance.

For me, the baseball season is over. Besides a casual desire to see the Red Sox out, I'm done thinking about 2005. '06 is just around the corner. First order of priority - this team needs an owner.

Now the big question for the off season - will the three of us venture into non-baseball territory now that the season is over?

Warm Up the Stove

Yes, I know there are still playoffs going on. No, I don't care. As far as I'm concerned the best possible outcome if for the Yankees and Red Sox both to be eliminated in the first round, thereby sending the northeastern United States into a dark nuclear winter of the soul from which it will not emerge until the first time the Knicks play the Celtics.

The Nats opened their off-season by shuffling the 40-man roster to protect some prospects from the Rule 5 Draft. It's complicated, so I'll just report that C Keith "Coach" Osik, P John "The Llama" Halama and RP Antonio Osuna got the ax. Remember Osuna? No, of course you don't. He got into all of four games before going on the DL with a bad shoulder. He's the Terrmel Sledge of the pitching staff. To fill those 3 roster spots the Nats selected IF Kory Casto, OF Frank Diaz and SP Armando Galarraga for the 40-man roster.

Next up? Deciding which of our own players to keep. The following Nats will be free agents this winter, the ones we ought to think about keeping are in blue:

• Tony Armas Jr., RHP
• Carlos Baerga, PH-IF
• Gary Bennett, C
• Hector Carrasco, RHP
• Deivi Cruz, IF
• Joey Eischen, LHP
• Esteban Loaiza, RHP
• Preston Wilson, OF

Tomorrow I'll get into the trickier proposition of which of our arbitration-eligible players we might think about jettisoning.

Of course, this would all be much easier if the Nats had an owner, knew what their budget was going to be, and knew who would be making the decisions. But where's the fun in that?

New Habits Die Hard

So I rolled out of work at 7:30 and halfway home I turned on 104.1 to catch the game. Only 142 days till spring training starts.

Odds & Ends

I'm going to dispense with the season recap. That sentimental crap is more Dave's department anyway. With the season over, Nats players are fleeing the city in droves and going to where ever it is that baseball players live in the winter. I'm equally disappointed that we won't get to see Jose Guillen go spikes up into some kid's snowman and that I won't get an invite to the after-parties in Livan's 5-bedroom, 2-level suite at the Georgetown Ritz-Carlton.

Apparently, Goooz was the only Nat to buy property, which just shows how sure he is that he'll be around next year. Either that, or D.C. is a better winter home than Minneapolis. And why am I only now finding out that Jamey Carroll's wife is an executive at The Gap? Think of all the missed cross-promotional opportunities: Sarah Jessica Parker bobblehead night; Jamey's signature line of bionic man khakis. "Feel like a Six Million Dollar Man, for just $29.99." Ahhh, well... wait till next year.

Thank You

To all the Nationals players, coaches, staff, beat writers, bloggers and fans: Thanks for a great season! (Except for Alex, Zach and Tony... you guys suck.)