Will He Stay?

The Plan could continue apace today as rumors abound about a contract extension for MVP candidate Dmitri Young (if MVPs were nominated according to the letter of the law that such candidates be those who are judged the most valuable to their teams. Who is more valuable to any team than this guy is to the Nats? He’s already been snubbed once; it must not happen again). Thus is nearly completed his journey from near death to key piece of a soon-to-be contender. Could Dmitri have been sending us all a message that it's a done deal with his RBI single in the first inning of this afternoon's game? Almost assuredly yes.

This may be yet another signal that The Plan is moving to the acquisition phase and is done with the relatively brief (yet somewhat painful) blowing-up and jettisoning phase. Or it may be a lesson learned from the Soriano affair of last summer.

There are of course naysayers and doubters who wonder where this pillar of inspiration fits in a lineup with a healthy Nick Johnson (scientists have been unable to definitively prove the existence of such a being) at first base. There’s the oft-proposed outfield, where Dmitri has briefly toiled before. Some decry this move as stupid, wondering how Dmitri could lumber after flyballs in the gap and corner. We understand, but we would like to point to another hefty-yet-talented hitter who played in the outfield to some distinction: George Herman Ruth. Yes, we are comparing Dmitri Young to Babe Ruth. And if the aforementioned Soriano could make the bizarre transition from second base to left field, surely Dmitri can slide back 150 feet or so from first base to play in right.

Speaking of the outfield, yes, it hurt us to see that debacle unfold in the Nats' outfield in the bottom of the ninth last night. But we are not spiraling into depression or anything else resembling the slightest bit of a blue mood because of it. Why? Because Chris Marrero plays outfield, he will be here soon enough, and he’s clearly going to be the second-greatest-hitter of all time. Second only to who? You know.