One good thing about the Nats-Orioles series this weekend? It stops us from talking about another mediocre battle: the Redskins quarterback position.
For a short time, it looked like maybe this weekend would see both teams over .500 for the first time since the Nationals arrived in Washington. But, alas, that’s not happening. Hey, sometimes these rebuilding projects take, oh, a decade.
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Are better days ahead? Well, we’re too smart to predict that both teams, in two years, will contend for titles. But maybe more interesting days are ahead.
Maybe next year this series will provide a Zach Britton vs. Stephen Strasburg matchup. A secondary matchup? Brian Matusz vs. Jordan Zimmermann. And maybe in two years we’ll be debating who is better: Baltimore’s Manny Machado or Washington’s Bryce Harper. All of these players could be longtime All-Stars. All would provide star power. But Orioles catcher Matt Wieters was supposed to be a star. Now he’s a good defensive player without much offense.
The problem is, neither franchise has a budding farm system like Texas, Tampa Bay or Kansas City. Of course, the Nats are now starting to spend more on free agency.
But they do have some hope. At least the Nats have three picks among the top 34 in what is considered a deep draft.
What this matchup needs is more buzz. Maybe in a year or two that will happen. Maybe.
