Arizona outfielder Eric Byrnes has his own radio show on XM radio, and I believe it's called "the Hustle" with Eric Byrnes, but rather unbelieveably in this day and age, there is now show site anywhere to be found, so I'm relying on my memory to recount both the name of the show and response Byrnes provided to a Baltimore area caller who wanted to know what Byrnsie...
http://www.byrnesie.com/ssp/news/...
...thought about the caller's neighbor to the south...Byrnes thinks(paraphrasing of course, since I was driving when I heard this...):
-The Nationals are a couple years away.
-The Nationals need to show they are winners to attract
big name free agents, at least finish .500 for a few years.
-Before resigning in AZ, Byrnes considered DC as a free
agent destination.
-Right now they'd have to overpay for stars because DC is
not an attractive place to play.
-New stadium, Manny Acta are positives.
-Byrnes has a high opinion of Acta, with whom he has
crossed paths professionally...
Washington baseball fans had better get used to hearing that phrase, "...the Nationals are just 'a few years away'", because it's going to be printed ad nauseam in every MLB '08 preview, magazine, newspaper and blogger's article or analysis of the team's chances in the upcoming campaign for the next few months, starting here...
As for attracting free agents, I'd agree that the Nationals are not attractive right now, probably "a few years away" from finishing higher than 3rd in the NL East, but the Nationals are in good shape with the new stadium, (once everyone sees how it plays), and a young, well-regarded Manager in Manny Acta, to attract free agents to compliment what will be a young, experienced, competitive(i.e. "playoff) team in the near future...
I think Byrnsie is spot on about overpaying for free agents. That's what the Nationals would have had to do to attract Andruw Jones or Aaron Rowand, both of whom are probably too old to be of much use "in a few years" when the Nationals are legit, or bona fide...
Eric Byrnes already has his second career lined up when he retires from play, the show's good, not great, (he actually gave himself a C+ for the day's show)...very insider-ish though with Byrnes still playing and all...