News from Nats Town: Thoughts on Marquis Signing

Washington Nationals Headed to Playoffs in 2010, The Hardball Times

“Having a mentor to work with the young pitchers can be valuable, and Marquis is young enough himself to do just that while furthering his career. This signing brings to note a common refrain repeated yearly: why spend the money on Marquis if they're going nowhere? If the Nationals are a 77-loss team, why spend the money to bring them to a 75-loss team? Answer: It's not that simple. You still need bodies out there to compete. What if their internal options were lousy? How about signing cheaper alternatives -- they're cheaper because they're riskier. Maybe they're not projected to be a good mentor (Erik Bedard would scare me in that role) or just not good, period.”-Evan Brunell

Nationals Sign Jason Marquis, Fangraphs

“But here’s the rub. What exactly is the point of spending $4 million for a win when you’re the Nationals? The team currently has maybe seventy-something win talent and they’re well on their way to becoming basement dwellers in the NL East yet again. Signing an innings-eater such as Marquis to a contract like this makes zero sense; all he does is makes the Nationals slightly less bad than they were a year ago.”-Erik Manning

Thoughts on Marquis Signing, Nats Journal

The deal for Marquis – two years, $15 million – fits quite squarely under the category already established this offseason for respectable (but occasionally perplexing) veteran starters. Brad Penny received a one-year, $7.5 million contract from St. Louis. Rich Harden received a one-year, $7.5 million contract from Texas. Marquis gives you more consistency and less upside than either, but for a team in need of innings/reliability, that’s probably a worthy trade-off.- Chico Harlan

Nationals sign Jason Marquis…Matt Capps Next?, Federal Baseball

“The second big signing of the winter for Washington, following close on the heels of the much-maligned two-year deal extended to future Hall of Fame catcher Ivan "Pudge" Rodriguez, the Nationals' deal with Marquis has already drawn similar scorn, with most of it the "why sign players when you won't compete this season" variety, which is usually in reality the bitter rant of a fan who thinks (most often incorrectly) that his or her own team is just one pitcher away from competing with the game's elite, and thus doesn't want to see any player "wasted" on a perennial doormat like the Washington franchise. This makes Nationals fans happy! (ed. note - "Some who don't like the deal think Marquis walks too many...His 3.3 BB/9 ranked as the 10th highest amongst starters in the NL last season, these folks might have an argument.")”- Ed Chigliak

Jason Marquis to the Washington Post

"Just coming to an organization that started making moves to brighten their future, I feel like being part of that could be something special," Marquis said. Stephen "Strasburg could be something special. [John] Lannan has been great the last two years. Pudge [Rodríguez] to mentor. I just wanted to be a part of something where they were showing they were going in the right direction, and also something where they wanted you to be a part of it."