In Trader Jim’s first move of the off-season, the Nationals have traded catcher Brian Schneider and outfielder Ryan Church to the Mets for outfielder Lastings Milledge. Milledge batted .272 last year with 7 HRs, 29 RBIs, .341 OBP and .446 slugging, though he only accumulated 184 at-bats. Church had similar averages last year, but with almost 300 more at-bats only had 8 more homeruns and 41 more RBIs. Schneider only hit .235 last year, with…

News and notes surrounding Washington’s loveable cellar-dwellers: Belliard Signs Extension: Though he was widely considered the Nats most moveable commodity, he and the team agreed to a 2-year, $3.5 million extension to keep big Ron in D.C. Belliard’s versatility makes Manny Acta’s job much easier for the next few years with his ability to play multiple infield positions, his willingness to be a bench player when needed, and his veteran leadership. In the meantime, his…

Prompted by the opening of online balloting for the 2007 All Star Game a few weeks ago, we recently started wondering who might represent the Nats in San Francisco (since, you know, somebody has to). Dmitri Young? The guy’s hitting for a scorching .500 average over the last 21 games. But he’s mired behind popular stars like Albert Pujols and Nomar Garciaparra, as well as reigning MVP Ryan Howard and Prince Fielder’s 23-homer bat. Even…

Ponder this one for a minute: Now that official online voting is open, if you had to select the Nats representative for the ’07 All Star game based on the team’s first 52 games, who would it be? No National appears in the top five at any position in the early voting results, which is indicative of both the nature of the voting as a popularity contest and of the Nats’ subpar 21-31 record….

The talk about the Nationals being the worst team in major league history seems to have been slightly exaggerated. That being said, they’ve been pretty awful in losing 5 in a row, including being swept by the Cubs this weekend. The Nats are 9-22, 10.5 games out of first place in the National League East and 5.5 behind the fourth place Phillies. And they face the surprising Brewers, who have the best record in baseball,…

For all the hand wringing over the Nats 9-17 April record (the second worst in baseball), the month’s last game provided some vindication for many of the teams fans, and especially for centerfielder Ryan Church. At the beginning of April, Church’s fate with the team was cloudy, with his supporters almost hoping he could be traded to find another opportunity. A quick glance at the lineup before a 3-2 win over the Padres late Monday…

While D.C. was enjoying its glorious spring weather this weekend, the Nats were in Miami getting severely pounded by the Marlins. Many of the now-usual themes were present: big early deficits, too many walks, and baserunning blunders maligned the brief road trip. The biggest culprit, the Nats much-maligned pitching, has been adequately covered by others, including Chad Cordero’s two blown saves and the disasterous outings by Matt Chico and Jerome Williams. Really, in a just…

Put the champagne on ice, kids. The Nats, at 4-9, are threatening to climb out of last place for the first time since last June, ahead of struggling Philadelphia. Both teams are 4.5 games back, but the Nats have one more win thus far. Try washing down your $90 million payroll with that, Phils fans! After a dreadful first turn through the rotation, the Nats starters have rebounded with some impressive performances as of late….

Well, Nats fans, what’s there to say? What can we add to the criticism leveled by so many others? What can we say about an opening week where the Nats have yet to lead for a single pitch? When the pitching has spotted the opposition leads of 6-0, 6-0, 5-0, 4-0, 7-0, 6-0, and 3-0? When the lineup needed 30 at bats to finally get a hit with a man in scoring position? When the…

Maybe it was the indignity of the Marlins spoiling the last Opening Game ever in RFK. Maybe it was the insufferable Aramark concessionaires, who insist that it’s perfectly acceptable to run out of buns in the fifth inning of the first damn game. Maybe it’s the humiliation of the long winless streak to the other presidents. There’s no telling. Something, though, was terribly amiss in that giant head of Teddy Roosevelt’s during the Nat’s 9-2…