Nats Acquire Span; LaRoche Probably Gone

The Nats traded for Denard Span today, dealing Alex Meyer to the Twins. The move likely means the Nats weren’t feeling good about re-signing LaRoche. That either means Michael Morse will play first base, or he will be traded. While his defense at first is nothing close to LaRoche’s, I kind of hope he stays there, in the spirit of team continuity and clubhouse cohesiveness. The Nats have great chemistry in their clubhouse, and to me that’s one of the biggest intangibles in baseball. I’d hate to see a lot of disruption there. As for losing Meyer, I hate to see a young pitcher with such promise get traded, but since it’s for a bona fide starter whom the Nationals control for the next 3 seasons, I can see why they made the deal. You need to give up quality to get quality. As for LaRoche, it will be interesting to see where he ends up. If it’s with a bottom-dweller, he may find himself wishing later he hadn’t demanded an additional year and a few extra million for his last big contract versus a chance to get to the playoffs for the next 2 years. Some guys are motivated by competing for a title, and some just want the big money. I thought he was the former, but time will tell if he is the latter.