Grading the Washington Nationals' Offseason Post-Winter Meetings

The Washington Nationals entered the 2014 winter meetings with the potential to make the most noise of any club.

But when general manager Mike Rizzo closed up shop Thursday, he did so with almost all of the bargaining chips he brought with him to San Diego still under Washington's control. 

Sunday signaled the start of the hottest five days of the hot stove season, and several weeks prior, USA Today's Bob Nightengale reported the Nationals were open to the possibility of dealing righty Jordan Zimmermann. 

Fellow-starter Doug Fister's name was also subject to trade rumors, but when all was said and done, Washington only moved one piece during the meetings. 

In the twilight hours of the week, the Nationals struck a deal with the Rangers to send not Zimmermann or Fister, but lefty Ross Detwiler to Texas, according a report from Scott Boeck of USA Today.

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Washington reportedly received infielder Chris Bostick and reliever Abel De Los Santos, both minor leaguers, in exchange. 

The move was neither a huge surprise nor a massive loss for Washington. Detwiler spent the first seven years of his pro career with the Nationals, seeing time as both a starter and a reliever but failing to establish himself at either position. 

The most interesting note to be taken away from the Detwiler trade is that Texas originally made contact with the Nationals with the intent to land Zimmermann, according to MLB.com's TR Sullivan.

The Rangers' pursuit of Zimmermann carried the most weight of any reports we've heard since Washington made the 28-year-old available. The two sides' failure to reach an agreement could serve as proof that the Nationals are serious about making a team send everything but the kitchen sink in exchange for his services. 

Rizzo managed to get some value out of Detwiler and held on to Zimmermann and Fister, so Washington is in no worse shape after the winter meetings than it was before. The GM also used the week as a starting point for extension talks with Zimmermann's agent, according to The Washington Post's James Wagner, but the subject has yet to be broached in Fister's case. 

For its handling of the Nationals' pitching up to this point in the offseason, Washington gets a B+. 

Washington's other order of business heading into the winter meetings was finding an infielder who could fill its need at second base.

On that front, the Nats were silent. 

Free-agent infielders Jed Lowrie, Stephen Drew and Asdrubal Cabrera have been on Washington's radar all offseason, but this week was its chance to seriously gauge the trade market as an alternative. 

According to a separate report from Wagner, the Nationals asked the Rangers about young infielder Rougned Odor before trading Detwiler for the other aforementioned pieces. Washington also reportedly asked the Tampa Bay Rays about Ben Zobrist to fill its need at second, to no avail. 

A potential trade target in Howie Kendrick is no longer an option. The Los Angeles Dodgers went into the winter meetings with guns blazing and swept him up in one of their numerous deals this week. 

Much of Washington's wheeling and dealing for the remainder of the offseason hinges on its ability to sign Zimmermann and Fister to extensions. Without an agreement, the likelihood that one or the both of them is traded for an infielder skyrockets. 

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Shortstop Ian Desmond is in the same boat—set to become a free agent after the 2015 season and a candidate for a possible extension. The Nationals already opened and closed some Desmond trade talks with the Seattle Mariners, according to The Tacoma News Tribune's Bob Dutton.

If there is any position on this talented Washington roster that needs an upgrade, it's second base. And even though its relatively early in the offseason, a limited pool of free agents and trade targets should start to dry up soon. 

For its handling of the search for infield help, Washington gets a B.

The most troublesome development this offseason is the possibility of a grievance hearing for the face of the franchise, Bryce Harper. 

Harper signed his first contract minutes before the deadline in 2010, and now, more than four years later, he and the Nationals are in disagreement about his current eligibility for arbitration. 

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According to MASN's Dan Kolko, Harper meets the base requirements for arbitration because he falls in the "top 22 percent of players who have between two and three years of service time." The disconnect between the two sides is on whether or not the 22-year-old's contract includes an opt-out clause. 

If Washington and Harper's agent, Scott Boras, can reach a settlement before the grievance hearing—which would take place some time later this month—then it's a moot point. 

That's plan A for the Nationals, but they're prepared to put the issue in front of Major League Baseball at the risk of creating a rift between the organization and its star player.

"We'd like to stay out of the hearing, if possible, but this is a business decision," Rizzo told reporters at the winter meetings, per Kolko. "And we feel that we have basis for it."

For its handling of Bryce Harper's arbitration status, Washington gets a C. 

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