Kevin Baker's book is here!

Kevin Baker's book is here!
"... an exemplary sports book..." Kirkus Reviews

Monday, January 19, 2015

We have finally gone through the wormhole into the next universe: Baseball's glamour team is the Washington Nationals

Washington... 
Last in war, last in peace,
And first in the NL East!

It will be fun this year, watching the ups and downs of America's team, the Nationals - aka the "Beltway Bombers," who play in "The House That Bush Built." The story lines are spectacular: The wunderkind, Bryce Harper... the once-a-generation arm, Stephen Strasburg... Zimmermann and Zimmerman, Jordan and Ryan... the aging vet, Jayson Werth... and now the game's top hired gun, Max Scherzer, who signed with them today. Their stocked farm system pushed Syracuse into the Triple A playoffs last year. And they have money to burn: Their payroll still remains about $50 million less than the former America's team... I forget the name.

Of course, the former team still has some interesting former story lines:

Can CC Sabathia regain his former prominence? Will Carlos Beltran be his former self?
Can Mark Teixeira return to his former form? Will Alex Rodriguez be the former star he formerly was? Can Brian McCann reform into his former form? Can Stephen Drew... ah, enough... you get the picture. A former team of former stars, formerly followed by their former fans.

Yesterday's team, built to win it all in 2009.

Well, at least today's news brings one bright spot: The former Yankees weren't lying when they said they wouldn't sign Scherzer. Many former Yankees fans assumed they had to be telling falsehoods: They couldn't imagine last year's main lineup being recycled. It's bad enough to watch Hangover II. But who has a taste for Transcendence II?

Oh well, at least we have something to watch in 2015. America's team. It should be interesting.

3 comments:

JM said...

Nationals-Royals World Series. Now, that would be fun. As opposed to the Yankees.

Who, by the way, are known to Red Sox fans as the Yank-me's. Which is a pretty good description of our intrepid band of ace executives' efforts this winter.

Anonymous said...

Cashman needs to get on the phone with Mike Rizzo and try to get one of the Nationals starters in exchange for bullpen arms.

Might as well take advantage of the folly of the Nationals in signing Scherzer unnecessarily.

Anonymous said...

Maybe throw a catcher in too, since all the young Yankee catchers are blocked by McCann anyway.