When first approached by email for this project, it seemed like an idea that I have dreamed of for years. As a teenager in high school and looking toward my future, my dream to become a General Manager. Unfortunately, for this project I got stuck with a team I despise – the Washington Nationals.
However, as I dug into the project I realized my assignment was proving to be quite interesting. The Nationals have a ton of money promised to a core of players that make it hard to stay under the $145 Million salary cap. In addition, they seem to have everything figured out from their pitching to their defense to their offense. Heading into the project there was only one glaring weakness – second base.
My plan, of course was to make a serious upgrade at the position while keeping it cheap. I was first approached by none other than the Mets GM asking for either Denard Span or Bryce Harper: both great players. I was very hesitant to give up either, but I then asked for Daniel Murphy or Dilson Herrera making the trade process speed up. I would eventually make the deal:
Denard Span and $6 Million in exchange for Dilson Herrera and Jack Leathersich.
This trade fixed multiple areas of need for the Nats: freed up $9 Million (only two by the end); opened a spot in the outfield; fixed the lefty specialist problem; and fixed the one weakness on the roster.
The next order of business was to decide whether or not to pick up options or tender certain players. I quickly non-tendered: Kevin Frandsen, Jose Lobaton, Greg Dobbs, Mattheus, Taylor Hill, Blake Treinen, and Ross Detwiler. Then came the hard part of the options. There were two options offered to Adam LaRoche and Rafael Soriano; I declined both. This freed up a ton of money that could be used elsewhere especially for the players eligible for arbitration.
After the arbitration process, there were some brief negotiations with the Mets for Josh Satin, but it fell through. In fact, my roster was actually set with the exception of a 5th outfielder, long reliever, and back-up catcher, all of which were expected fixes on the free-agent market. Fortunately, I was approached by Oakland looking for a trade involving Tyler Moore. After a multiple-day process, a huge deal was completed:
Doug Fister, Tyler Moore, and Nate McLouth in exchange for John Jaso, Craig Gentry, Drew Pomeranz, Danny Otero, and some cash.
While this trade seems sudden and strange, there are a few good reasons for this. Craig Gentry could replace the expensive Nate McLouth as my 4th outfielder, Danny Otero is a huge bullpen piece, and John Jaso is a solid backstop. In regard to Fister, he had a 3.93 FIP with a 2.41 ERA- which is unsustainable. This caused me to look at a cheaper option that holds loads of lefty potential. After this trade, my entire pitching staff was set and extremely solid.
Following the trade was the free-agency gamble. The only positions I needed were a 5th outfielder (Michael Taylor was slated to start) and utility player. Instead of signing a fringe player I went all-in on Torri Hunter. As for utility, Satin was released.
My only two bids were:
Torri Hunter: $9.5 Million
Josh Satin: $1.25 Million
I got both players and immediately relegated Jordan to the bench.
Overall, this was an excellent experience that I will certainly never forget. Obviously receiving an easy team made the project somewhat more enjoyable, but running the Nationals was way more fun than expected.
Individual Salaries
Washington Nationals