No matter what one may think of Jim Bowden, I surmise most reasonable people would find agreement that it's hard to make decisions when there's no decision-maker. Bowden is our decision-maker at present, and decisions must be made, and they can't be made in the absence of a decision-maker. Faced with the choice of decisions or no decisions, one probably must side with "decisions," even if that means that Bowden is the guy still doing the decision-making.
That's exactly what it means, as Bodes, whose contract with the club was set to expire on Halloween (trick or treat, baby!), signed on for an extra six months. Consequently, no matter who owns the Nats during the winter---MLB or someone who actually cares---Jim Bowden will be in that owner's service up to Opening Day.
He celebrated the announcement of a consecutive Bodes-tastic off-season by immediately issuing an ambiguous pronoun reference:
"The difference between the general manager and the coaching staff is they don't go to work 'til February," Bowden said.
(Of course, I'm being snarky just for the sake of being snarky. But it does shed some light on what Bodes considers the value of Robinson's input, doesn't it? Ah, Frank. Yeah, we'll get back to you. . . . No, I'll call you. . . . The off-season? Nah, I'll handle it. . . . No, really; it's okay. Play some golf for me, buddy. . . . Yeah, you too.)
Bowden's name had been linked to other GM openings, most notably Arizona's. (In a Goodbye cruel world, hello ironic twist moment, Josh Byrnes, reported darling of Nats Derby frontrunner Fred Malek, has emerged as the leading contender for the D-Bucks' job.)
To be sure, I approved of any effort Bodes made to explore other options and secure a long-term future---outside of DC, of course. Now, though, I suspect that Bodes has positioned himself rather well to secure a long-term future in DC. That would depend on the identity of the new owner and perhaps how Bowden's upcoming (and past) moves are regarded in the media, but I think it's obvious that the Bowden-Tavares partnership is doing everything it can to build so quickly on its foundation that the new owner would decide not to knock it down. But all that is hard to figure currently, of course.
For now, though, we're looking at six months. As noted at Capitol Punishment, it's the only reasonable move. Not only reasonable, even; as Curly W reminds us, another other option at this point is not only impractical, but probably impossible. It's not ideal, but life isn't always a banana split.
In conjunction with the Bodes announcement, the team also shuffled some front office chairs, mainly concerning Bob Boone and some guys of whom I have no particularized knowledge. Insofar as that stuff concerns the minor leagues, consider it Nationals Farm Authority's bailiwick. Read and learn---not just about the Nats, but also about the gestation period of a baboon.
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Franklin Haney is, at best, running fourth in a three-team race for ownership of the Nats, despite his efforts. But he's number one in terms of Natosphere intrigue. Interesting stuff, and be sure to check out Just a Nats Fan for all your Gary Bennett-related news! (Or, for those of us who hold no particular affinity to the guy, check out Just a Nats Fan's comprehensive look at the ownership contenders. Good stuff.)