We're an hour and 15 minutes away from the Nationals not being able to sign Strasburg. That means he goes back into the draft for next year, unless Boras figures out some way to screw with the system and get him to be a free agent. This would likely take lawsuits I'm guessing, which could drag on for a long time. Long enough that Strasburg could still end up in the draft even as they fight it out in court.

Now, the Nationals are a lock for last place. However, they can't draft him again without his permission anyway, which won't be granted of course. That means the race is on for the second to worst record in the league.

So I guess the question is, even though it would suck to lose another 30+ games, does the potential for getting Strasburg kind of make it ok? Andy is (correctly) trading away as many veterans as possible. Our rotation and lineup are looking really, really thin, at least with proven players. And we could start bringing up Snyder, Arrieta, Patton, etc. to take their lumps for the last month of the season and nobody would fault us for it.

I understand that we need to start developing a winning culture and all that. And I don't want the young guys exposed to too much losing right away. I also don't think you can just tank for 40+ games (nor would I suggest it), especially in baseball.

But if we do continue to suck, the good might outweigh the bad, right? Of course, they still might sign him.

Hi, looking for a bar in Boston to watch the O's game tonight. Anyone?

And I think I need to write more, so I'm here for work, I'm from Abingdon, I'm married with a kid on the way in May (first one), I think Pie's three hits last night were a fluke, and I think the Yankees aren't going to make the playoffs. Is that enough? Need two more...

I know this isn't going to happen, nor do I think it should, but what if the O's decided to put the best possible team out there for 2009 with the goal of winning as many games as then can, just for this year. That means not worrying about development, not worrying about rushing players, etc. How many games would this team win this season:

Roberts

Jones

Markakis

Huff

Wieters

Scott

Reimold

Mora

Izturis

Pie

Freel

Wigginton

Zaun

Guthrie

Matusz

Tillman

Arrieta

Bergeson

Hill

Penn

Sarfate

Johnson

Uehara

Ray

Sherrill

Obviously I took a few guesses/risks with the pitching staff since we don't know if Hill, Penn, or even Sarfate would be the best options in there. You could make a case for David Hernandez or Troy Patton. You could make a case for Liz. You might prefer Uehara in the rotation and Arrieta in the pen for this year. Or Bergeson in the pen. I also think Reimold is better than Pie, right now and for the future. 7 of your starting 9 would have a .350 OBP or better most likely (only Izturis and Jones wouldn't), so we would score runs. Tillman, Arrieta, and Matusz might blow up some days, but I think all three would be better than league average.

I say the team above goes 86 - 76. Tell me I'm crazy.