for Aaron Thompson per MLB network

YAY!!!!!

EB to the bench - improves our bench, and improves our starting lineup by a good bit.

That's it? Just Thompson? Weren't the Nats asking for both West AND Thompson at one point? I like the move, and they absorb the costs. Now we have a good 2 hole hitter, a good three hole power hitter, a good 4 hole hitter (although not a scary 4 hole hitter, unfortunately), and a young and speedy and improving 1 hole hitter.

 

Coghlan

Johnson

Ramirez

Cantu

Ross

Uggla

Hermida (to be replaced shortly by Maybin)

Baker/paulino

Pitcher

 

That lineup makes me happy.

You actually think Freddi is smart enough to bench EB, he is in love with the guy after all. I love the trade though, so excited!

i would have preferred teahen because he would have been able to play 3rd. i'm kinda worried about cantu's defense at the hot corner

I don't know if we actually offered more or not but it seems to me like the Nationals caved. And good thing, because it would have been tremendously deflating to every player on the team to be in contention and to not get some sort of reinforcement.

 

All in all this is a great trade for us- Thompson isn't a sure enough prospect that we really have to worry too much about this coming back to bite us but we get a stretch run addition that could prove highly beneficial.

i would have preferred teahen because he would have been able to play 3rd. i'm kinda worried about cantu's defense at the hot corner

 

 

 

Sure we should worry about Cantu at 3rd, it was horrendous early on last year. But remember, he is taking over for the NL leader in errors. I'm not saying errors is the best way to judge players by, but we have seen Bonifacio make dumb plays at 3B, and he was also still learning a new position this season. I'll take the offensive upgrade (.200 OPS points better btw over Boni) in the defensive semi downgrade.

i would have preferred teahen because he would have been able to play 3rd. i'm kinda worried about cantu's defense at the hot corner

 

 

 

Sure we should worry about Cantu at 3rd, it was horrendous early on last year. But remember, he is taking over for the NL leader in errors. I'm not saying errors is the best way to judge players by, but we have seen Bonifacio make dumb plays at 3B, and he was also still learning a new position this season. I'll take the offensive upgrade (.200 OPS points better btw over Boni) in the defensive semi downgrade.

 

Errors aren't the best way to judge defense, but at the same time if you make a lot of them, I don't think you're doing your job on defense.

I don't know if we actually offered more or not but it seems to me like the Nationals caved. And good thing, because it would have been tremendously deflating to every player on the team to be in contention and to not get some sort of reinforcement.

 

All in all this is a great trade for us- Thompson isn't a sure enough prospect that we really have to worry too much about this coming back to bite us but we get a stretch run addition that could prove highly beneficial.

 

I have a feeling that the Nats wanted much more originally and the Marlins were probably reluctant. The Nats probably wanted both Tucker and Thompson or West (or something like that) and the Marlins weren't budging. That is probably what killed the deal around 3:15.

 

Probably not too long after the Nats realized that they were risking receiving nothing in return for Johnson and he would be walking free at season's end (I don't know what his draft pick compensation status would be). They probably felt obliged to get something in return and came crawling back.

I like that the Fish were able to keep Tucker/West, hard to believe they only got Thompson, almost feel like they felt sorry for the Marlins for Bonifacio.

So in the end, it was pretty much:

 

Nats get:

 

Willingham

Olsen

Thompson

 

Fish get:

 

Johnson

Bonifacio

Smolinski

Dean

I don't know if we actually offered more or not but it seems to me like the Nationals caved. And good thing, because it would have been tremendously deflating to every player on the team to be in contention and to not get some sort of reinforcement.

 

All in all this is a great trade for us- Thompson isn't a sure enough prospect that we really have to worry too much about this coming back to bite us but we get a stretch run addition that could prove highly beneficial.

 

I have a feeling that the Nats wanted much more originally and the Marlins were probably reluctant. The Nats probably wanted both Tucker and Thompson or West (or something like that) and the Marlins weren't budging. That is probably what killed the deal around 3:15.

 

Probably not too long after the Nats realized that they were risking receiving nothing in return for Johnson and he would be walking free at season's end (I don't know what his draft pick compensation status would be). They probably felt obliged to get something in return and came crawling back.

That's exactly what I was thinking. I was reading that Johnson might not even end up a type B, so it probably hit them like a brick that they were going to end up with absolutely nothing for Johnson in two months,

lol they called him little hitler on 790

So in the end, it was pretty much:

 

Nats get:

 

Willingham

Olsen

Thompson

 

Fish get:

 

Johnson

Bonifacio

Smolinski

Dean

 

 

and roughly $6 million in salary relief. (probably $5m net)

lol they called him little hitler on 790

 

There ain't nothing little about Nick the Stick.

Lol

 

#mlbtrades, Hanley, who hits. .396 with runners on base, all smiles after Johnson trade went down.

 

Also

 

#mlbtrades an FYI, to make room on 40 man roster, Andy Gonzalez of Triple-A New Orleans, was designated for assignment.

 

-Frisaro Twitter

This is nice. Always liked Nick the Stick. Solid hitter w/ a good glove

The best news I've received all day! So long, Bonifacio.

so will he be starting tomorrow?

He should be.

Good, solid trade. Hopefully this gives us some consistency on the offensive side.

Gammons was saying earlier that the Nats were not expecting to get ANY draft compensation for Johnson, so my guess is they wanted to have SOMETHING to show for all of this. I like this pickup, as it gives us a real 2nd hitter who gets on base and takes some pressure off of the other hitters. Even better, it puts Bonifacio on the bench.

he was in the WS in 03 so this time he goes with us and wins it ;P...if we wint it this year would this team winning be more of a surpirse to you then the 03 team doing it?

We'll see if this is what it takes to push us over the this season. The Marlins will not be getting any type of compensatory picks in return for Johnson when he walks this offseason, so the Marlins are essentially blowing their load in this trade. It hard to say whether this will be the thing that does it for the Marlins in 2009. I don't think it makes the team a clear favorite by any means, but it definitely improves the team's chances.

 

Anything that takes Bonifacio out of the lineup is addition by subtraction. When you add the fact the guy replacing him gets on base at a .400+ clip, you've got to be happy.

In closing, Bingo Bango everyone. Shirts out, high five.