Johnny Estrada Signs, Paul Lo Duca Hurts Himself

Alright, I haven't been posting much. You know why? Because there's nothing to post. The Nats aren't doing anything. But here are a couple of little tidbits for you.

Paul Lo Duca had knee surgery. He hurt his knee while working out last week, and is supposed to be out only four to six weeks which won't take him out of the regular seasons, but...

Johnny Estrada will sign with the Nats for 1yr/$1.5m. Sources close to the Nats are saying that this is in no way a reaction to Lo Duca's injury, well, we'll see. Lo Duca's current injury, while it's only supposed to keep him out four to six weeks, could, and I'm just spitballing here, be symptomatic of what happens when you're not on steroids. If Paulie Dukes all of a sudden appears somewhat injury prone, well, I won't exactly be standing by with a look of shock on my face.


The real reason for the Estrada signing is obviously that with Robert Fick gone, we need someone to keep wearing the real stirrups. No team is complete without them.

Tim Redding loves reading. Stories like this are why I haven't been posting. This is a nice thing, but if it's all the official site can muster up, well, I think the evidence speaks for itself. Literacy is not a #1 priority of this particular blog.

More to come, whenever there is more to write about.

No Lo Duca

It's looking like Paul Lo Duca is not bound for Washington, which is just fine by me. It'll probably take $5m+ to bring him in for a year, and the litany of reasons for not doing so is a pretty long one. I'm all for a trade that would bring in someone like Miguel Montero or Ronnie Paulino, but Lo Duca is clearly not in a position to contribute to the future of the franchise, and his contributions even to next year are questionable, probably no more than someone (like Damian Miller) who would come much cheaper.



This dapper gentleman is Katsuhiko Maekawa, the other guy mentioned in Svrluga's post. He's a 27 year old lefty who is a lifetime 19-36 with a 5.08 ERA in 9 seasons in Japan. He starts some, he relieves some, and he's posted a career WHIP of 1.60. But apparently Jimbo and company see something there, so we'll just have to see if the negotiations with him go anywhere but AA. One potential upside is that it might allow the Nationals to get their foot in the door in the Japanese market, but who knows what the payoff there would be?