The signing deadline for draftees is August 17th, at 11:59 pm. In other words, one month from today. The Nationals as an organization have one month to prove to their fans that they are not the joke that ESPN, Barack Obama, and everyone else seems to think they are.
- One month to sign Stephen Strasburg.
- One month to trade expiring contract slash expiring source of power Nick Johnson.
- One month to trade Josh Willingham or Adam Dunn. Maybe not, because they’re both under contract for beyond this season, but seriously, move one of these guys.
- One month to cut ties with Austin Kearns, because why is a guy who can’t hit, has a buyout for next year, and is going to be 30 next year on a team that is rebuilding?
- One month to bring Elijah Dukes back and start playing him full time in the majors so we can see if he’s part of the future – ours or someone else’s.
- One month to start playing Alberto Gonzalez full time to determine if he’s a viable starter.
If most of these things aren’t done in a month’s time, and the first simply one has got to be done, I can’t see how this organization denies it’s national joke status.
By the way, I’m out of town early next week. No time to do anything too in depth, but if a move is made I’ll certainly chime in with some reactions.