Nationals Future: Gloomy Or Glorious Depends on Next Few Days

If baseball is truly a ballet, then general managers all across the nation are strapping on their slippers and practicing their pirouettes. Midnight is fast approaching and the dance is about to end. In about a week, the curtain will fall on all of those easy, I’ll-get-rid-of-him-because-I-can trades. Some teams, like the Yankees and Red Sox, are always buyers. They have more payroll dollars between the cushions of their couch then most teams have on the field. Other teams, like the Pirates and Royals, will trade their talent for prospects, who then grow up to become talented major leaguers, who are then traded for prospects. It’s a process that lives somewhere between a vicious circle and Catch-22. And then there is the Washington Nationals.  The Nationals are not a poor franchise, and they aren’t playing in a small market. At least, I don’t think so. The Lerner family, owners of the franchise, is one of the richest in the District. And in terms of demo...