Don't you do it bowden ! ! !

[OldFatGuy]

Ok, now it's another guy, and not just Peter Gammons (Gammons has been saying it since the first day of free agency).

Now it's Buster Olney saying Manny has a good shot at landing in DC with the Nationals.

Please Jim Bowden. Reconsider. Think about it. Have a drink, and think about some more. And if you're still tempted, drink the whole bottle and think about it. If you're still interested, drink a bottle of Clorox.

And while on the subject of Jim Bowden. The first year in DC, the Nats were in first place in NL East AT THE ALL STAR BREAK. Lots of folks don't remember that, but I do. FIRST PLACE AT THE ALL-STAR BREAK IN 2005.

Where has Jim Bowden taken this competitive team?

2005-Finished 81-81
2006-Finished 71-91
2007-Finished 73-89
2008-Finished 59-102

Hmm. Anyone other than me see a trend here???

WHY IN HOLY HELL IS JIM BOWDEN STILL EMPLOYED???????????????

[Slingshot]

After ten years of losing, the Nats will come back like the Rays did this year. Look for 2015 OFG.

[gRYFYN1]

Why not sign Manny? The Nats offense has been the worst offense in baseball over those 4 years .. finishing 16th, 10th, 16th, 14th in runs/game.

Even the 2005, when they posted a 77-85 pythag record, they did it with pitching, granted the top 3 pitchers were Livan Hernandez (whose posted ERA+ of 91, 95 and 67 since) Estaban Loiza (whose pitched 200 innings in the last 3 years) and Jon Patterson (whose gone 1-7 in 15 game the last 3 years)

So the team was never as good as the 81-81 record it posted in his 1st year, the Farm system that was in place when he got there has borne litte fruit for the majors so far.

Now obviously this will be tempered by what kind of contact he gets but a 3/60 contract would be good for the Nats -- espically now that ownership is settled and they can actually spend money.

[RedsoxRockies]

Why not sign Manny? The Nats offense has been the worst offense in baseball over those 4 years .. finishing 16th, 10th, 16th, 14th in runs/game.

Even the 2005, when they posted a 77-85 pythag record, they did it with pitching, granted the top 3 pitchers were Livan Hernandez (whose posted ERA+ of 91, 95 and 67 since) Estaban Loiza (whose pitched 200 innings in the last 3 years) and Jon Patterson (whose gone 1-7 in 15 game the last 3 years)

So the team was never as good as the 81-81 record it posted in his 1st year, the Farm system that was in place when he got there has borne litte fruit for the majors so far.

Now obviously this will be tempered by what kind of contact he gets but a 3/60 contract would be good for the Nats -- espically now that ownership is settled and they can actually spend money.

Becase if they sign Manny, they can say bye bye to Lastings, Dukes, and Zimmerman

[beerchaser]

WHY IN HOLY HELL IS JIM BOWDEN STILL EMPLOYED???????????????

I've been asking that for years, dude. If the Nats sign Manny, they better make sure they have a couple of shrinks on staff fulltime. Too many head cases on that team as it is.

That being said, I'll be surprised if Manny ends up anywhere other than back with the Dodgers.

[RedsoxRockies]

I remember one article in SI that claimed Bowden was a genius, and was all over him. when he got Lastings and Dukes, I began to feel he might have something going. Now I feel the only thing going is Bowden, when he leaves Washington.

[HoustonGM]

Milledge and Dukes are shaping up to be two mighty fine acquisitions...

[beerchaser]

Dukes is a powderkeg waiting for a lit fuse, and I ain't talking about his baseball talent. It's a question of when, not if, he explodes. It won't be pretty.

[RedsoxRockies]

Milledge and Dukes are shaping up to be two mighty fine acquisitions...

Yes, they are, that is why I thought he was doing good. Then he got Lo Duca and Perez, and killed the rotation. He HAS made some smart moves, but he seems to like OF too much, and handles pitching badly. Not to mention outside of L-Millz, Zimm, and Dukes, his offense sucks.

[RedsoxRockies]

Dukes is a powderkeg waiting for a lit fuse, and I ain't talking about his baseball talent. It's a question of when, not if, he explodes. It won't be pretty.

He has exploded. He has more kids and ex-wives/Girl Friends then ohms does posts

[OldFatGuy]

Why not sign Manny? The Nats offense has been the worst offense in baseball over those 4 years .. finishing 16th, 10th, 16th, 14th in runs/game.

Even the 2005, when they posted a 77-85 pythag record, they did it with pitching, granted the top 3 pitchers were Livan Hernandez (whose posted ERA+ of 91, 95 and 67 since) Estaban Loiza (whose pitched 200 innings in the last 3 years) and Jon Patterson (whose gone 1-7 in 15 game the last 3 years)

So the team was never as good as the 81-81 record it posted in his 1st year, the Farm system that was in place when he got there has borne litte fruit for the majors so far.

Now obviously this will be tempered by what kind of contact he gets but a 3/60 contract would be good for the Nats -- espically now that ownership is settled and they can actually spend money.

Gotta disagree. I could've easily gotton on board with signing Tex, he's young, and it was an 8 year offer. Manny is 36. You don't build up a team that lost 100 games by signing a guy at the end of his career.

Also, if he quit on the Red Sox, who's to say how motivated he'll be on a losing time like the Nats?? We saw what a motivated Manny could do (his second half in LA was nothing short of AWESOMELY GREAT, for lack of better words to use), and we saw what an unmotivated Manny can do (my knee hurts, so I can't play).

No way is it in the Nats best interests to spend that kind of money on that kind of player with that kind of risk. They would be better off going after a Penny or a Sheets (which would cost less), though both of those are risks for different reasons. If they want to sign a short term star at the end of his career, they could sign Jr. for much less and still leave them with dollars to fix other areas of the team.

You're entitled to your opinion; I'm entitled to mine. I stand by hoping Bowden doesn't do this stupid deal. He could spend that money in a way that would help the team much more and for much longer if he spent it differently. Let Manny and his attitude play somewhere else.

[BINGLEBOP]

Also, if he quit on the Red Sox, who's to say how motivated he'll be on a losing time like the Nats?? We saw what a motivated Manny could do (his second half in LA was nothing short of AWESOMELY GREAT, for lack of better words to use), and we saw what an unmotivated Manny can do (my knee hurts, so I can't play).

Still not sure what it means that he "quit" on the Red Sox. Is it an "emotional" thing that we can't really quantify? He hit .347 in the month of July with a 1.060 OPS, so if anything, he was picking up his game. I think I understand what fans mean when they refer to him "quitting", but it doesn't quite fit with the type of season he was having when he was traded.

[HoustonGM]

Also, if he quit on the Red Sox, who's to say how motivated he'll be on a losing time like the Nats?? We saw what a motivated Manny could do (his second half in LA was nothing short of AWESOMELY GREAT, for lack of better words to use), and we saw what an unmotivated Manny can do (my knee hurts, so I can't play).

Unmotivated Manny hit .347/.473/.587 (his July stat line). The allegations of Manny "quitting" on the Red Sox are unfounded. He may have sat out a game or three, but it's not like he just stopped playing. He still played in 95% of the games, and he was their best hitter in the month that he supposedly was "doggin' it."

This isn't to say that I disagree with your overall point, because I don't. The Nationals shouldn't sign Manny.

[beerchaser]

He has exploded. He has more kids and ex-wives/Girl Friends then ohms does posts

Those were just popguns. There's a bigger explosion coming, and I would not want to be near him when it does.

[OldFatGuy]

Still not sure what it means that he "quit" on the Red Sox. Is it an "emotional" thing that we can't really quantify? He hit .347 in the month of July with a 1.060 OPS, so if anything, he was picking up his game. I think I understand what fans mean when they refer to him "quitting", but it doesn't quite fit with the type of season he was having when he was traded.

Yes, it's an emotional thing. The guy could wake up from a coma and hit. One of the best pure hitters I've seen.

But he quit on the Red Sox. Make no mistake. The Red Sox knew it. Why do you think they made that trade AND paid his salary??? They knew he didn't want to be there, he refused to play in one of the biggest games of the season, and his "Manny being Manny" moments were legendary, while in LA he seemed to hustle out base hits, actually make an effort in the outfield, etc. I mean, I watched that second half last year and he was a different ballplayer.

So, which Manny would the Nats get?? The one in LA, or the one in Boston? It's too much of a risk IMO for that much money. And I'm not alone, either. Plenty of GM's saw that "quit" in Manny, and that's why his options are running out. He's in the position he's in right now because of his own doing. With a different attitude, he would have been THE free agent of this offseason. Just look at that second half he had last year. Any other player with those lifetime stats and that second half would've had 10 teams going after them. Not Manny. And it's for one reason, and one reason only. His attitude.