Treinen gets final bullpen spot, Heisey will be right-handed pinch-hitter

Treinen gets final bullpen spot, Heisey will be right-handed pinch-hitter
Right-hander Blake Treinen has secured the final spot in the Nationals bullpen, while veteran Chris Heisey has claimed a role as a backup outfielder and right-handed pinch-hitter. After Friday night's 4-3 win in an exhibition game against the Twins at Nationals Park, the Nats made a series of roster moves that finalized the composition of manager Dusty Baker's seven-man bullpen and made the bench picture much clearer. Outfielder Matt den Dekker and right-hander Trevor Gott were optioned to...

Breaking down the final bench candidates

Breaking down the final bench candidates
JUPITER, Fla. - The Nationals essentially have two more roster decisions to make by Sunday's major league deadline. One involves the bullpen. The other involves the bench. We've gone through the various bullpen options (which are complicated some by the possibility of the Nats carrying eight relievers until they need a fifth starter on April 13), but we haven't spent as much time running discussing the final bench options. There are all sorts of factors to consider here. It's not nearly as...

Heisey hopes walk-off homer is spark toward spot on bench

Heisey hopes walk-off homer is spark toward spot on bench
VIERA, Fla. - Today's game was perhaps the wildest the Nationals have played so far this spring, a back-and-forth affair with the Braves that included six home runs on an afternoon when the wind wasn't even blowing that hard at Space Coast Stadium. It was the last of those six homers - Chris Heisey's three-run, walk-off shot to left in the bottom of the ninth - that secured the Nationals' 9-7 victory and left them an impressive 11-3-2 in Grapefruit League play. Heisey, who took right-hander...

Dusty Baker on bench construction

Dusty Baker on bench construction
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. - As the Nationals get deeper into spring training, more talk turns toward how new manager Dusty Baker will construct his bench. How will he balance his reserves between left- and right-handed hitters? How much does he value experience over versatility? Does speed count more than the ability to hit cold off the pine? So what about it, Dusty? What factors will the skipper consider as he formulates what is expected to be a five-man bench? Figuring that backup catcher Jose...

Playing the field with the non-roster invitees

Playing the field with the non-roster invitees
Dan Uggla and Clint Robinson were among a host of veterans brought to Nationals spring training on minor league deals last year with seemingly no shot to crack a packed roster fresh off a division crown. Longtime major league outfielder Reed Johnson joined them in final days of camp. After years as one of the game's best power-hitting second basemen, Uggla's offense had dropped off a cliff in the couple of seasons prior and his appearance was considered more of a charity case when he showed...

What those minor league contracts really mean

What those minor league contracts really mean
More than a few eyes were raised in recent weeks when the Nationals signed a succession of guys who play center field to minor league contracts with invitations to major league spring training. To be honest, the Nats usually wait a little deeper into the offseason before this news trickles out, and they routinely make a formal announcement only after all of their signings of this kind are in the fold. To recap, the Nats have inked Reed Johnson, Chris Heisey and Logan Schafer - three veteran...