Could the Nationals actually be splashing some cash? Outlets were reporting earlier this week that the Nats made an offer to big-ticket free agent Mark Teixeira in the range of eight years and $160 million.
By the numbers, a move for the switch-hitting first baseman makes sense — especially since the Yankees seem to be grabbing any available big-money pitcher from here to Mars. Offensively, the 2008 Nationals were at or near the bottom of the League in most categories — Teixeira’s arrival would give those numbers a boost. He’s a career .290 hitter who has hit at least 30 home runs and knocked in more than 100 runs every year since 2004. (In 2003, his rookie season, he cranked a measly 26 longballs.) Teixeira would be a significant defensive upgrade at first base. Furthermore, Teixeira would provide some much-needed lineup protection for Ryan Zimmerman, potentially rejuvenating his bat and giving the Nats a legitimate 1-2 offensive punch.
But, of course, the move is about so much more than a simple injection to the Nationals’ sagging offense.
For one, Teixeira would be a marketable name for a franchise that’s sorely lacking in that category. Think about it: when Alfonso Soriano was in town and at his peak, the team was in no better shape than it is now; but at least Soriano got people to pay to watch games at RFK. As a position player, fans would get to see Teixeira hit — barring some sort of Nick Johnson syndrome — 81 times a year. A bonafide All-Star, Teixeira would bring drawing power to the new ballpark and ensure that our shiny new playground at Navy Yard doesn’t find itself pathetically empty, as it did many times last summer.
If a general boost in interest doesn’t do it for you, how about giving the shaft to our neighbors to the north? The Baltimore Sun’s Dan Connolly believes that if the Orioles fail to sign their hometown boy, then the winter “can’t be considered a success.” That said, the O’s have reportedly offered Teixeira a similar deal over fewer years — they are certainly making a big push for his services, as are the Angels, Red Sox, and, of course, the Yankees.
Still not convinced about the big signing being a good idea? Well, just think of Teixeira as owner Ted Lerner’s way of beginning to make it up to us after shafting the city out of rent payments. In all seriousness, though: do the Nationals’ beleaguered owners need to sign Teixeira? Obviously, there’s no shortage of reasons for management not to. But can they? The common perception, unfortunately, is “no bleeping way.”
Photo courtesy the Associated Press.
