Nick 'The Stick' Johnson

Nick Johnson presents an interesting situation. He’s a very valuable player. He pounds out doubles, hits some home runs, and walks like a beast* He also get injured a lot. As in, I hate steroids, but I wish he’d take them so he’d heal faster a lot.

* Well, more like a horror-movie killer. You know, teenagers running, serial killer just keeps walking, same pace, unstoppable. Every times you turn around, there he is, walking at that same pace. That is Nick Johnson.


Here is my point. There are a number of teams, possible contenders, that could use a relatively cheap highly productive first baseman. Some of these teams have some good prospects. The Nats are not going to the playoffs anytime soon.** By the time we get there, one assumes one of our many 1B prospects will have developed into an at least ok MLB first baseman. So to trade a commodity that is valuable at present for one that has future value makes a lot of sense.

** You ever write a sentence and desperately hope somebody looks it up in a years time and says “ha, you are a moron!” This was one of those sentences.


Except, and here is the thing, I cannot see a Nick Johnson trade happening. Jim Bowden should be asking for a lot, because Nick Johnson is a very good ballplayer who seems to have come back unaffected by more than a year on the sidelines. On the other hand, any GM of moderate intelligence should be hesitant, because this guy is clearly hated by the gods of ligaments, bones, femurs, and such.

The thing that worries me is if Bowden decides to settle for some small package, worried that Johnson gets injured and the Nats get left with nothing. That might be the right move, but I’d rather risk holding on to him. I have little trouble imagining Johnson putting together two quality seasons and ending up an A free agent.* I have more trouble imaging us getting prospects in a trade that would be better players than the ones from those “A” FA draft picks.


*To be fair, I have no idea what criteria Elias uses to figure out A free agents. I just think Nick can have two really good seasons.