Wire Taps: Washington Nationals/AFL Links, Tweets, Quotes, Etc.

• AFL Action With Sammy Solis Today: So Bryce Harper, Derek Norris and Zack Walters were a combined 1 for 9 in the first Arizona Fall League game for the Washington Nationals' prospects playing in the so-called "finishing school" for the game's top prospects. This afternoon, Nats' left-handed pitching prospect and 2010 2nd Round pick Sammy Solis makes his fall debut as the Scottsdale Scorpions take on the Surprise Raft...What? Who the **** are the Salt River Rafters? Wait? The Surprise Saguaros? And only one team in Peoria? All those jokes about Peoria's first and second favorite team, ruined, ruined...Very disappointing. Here's your Washington Nationals links, 3:35 pm today for Sammy Solis' AFL debut, 12:35 pm MST in Arizona. The Scorpions used most of their non-Nats' bullpen, so there could Rafael Martin and Pat Lehman sightings today in AZ...

• LINKS AND LINKS AND...

• NATS BEAT: 

• "Scottsdale Scorpions left-hander and former University of San Diego standout Sammy Solis makes his 2011 Arizona Fall League debut today against Salt River Rafters." - "Solis will work on breaking pitches in first AFL start" - Byron Kerr, MASNSports.com

• "[Jordan] Zimmermann made huge strides this season to establish himself as a legitimate, front-line starter in the big leagues, but there is still room for improvement." - "Position analysis: Rotation" - Mark Zuckerman, Nats Insider

• "Over the last several seasons, the headlines in Arizona have been dominated by Washington Nationals farmhands - and 2011 will be no different." - "P-Nats Headline 2011 Arizona Fall League" - Potomac Nationals News

• AFL: "Saguaros starter Shane Dyer (Rays) gave up only a leadoff single by Zach Walters in the third. Dyer (1-0) also plunked Brown, but faced one over the minimum in his three innings of work." - "Saguaros smack three consecutive homers" - MLB.com: News

• AFL Box Score: Bryce Harper - 0 for 3, 1 K, Derek Norris - 0 for 3, Zach Walters - 1 for 3 - MLB.com: Gameday

• "AFL Update: October 6, 2011" - NationalsProspects.com

• "The Nationals will have a rotation of Stephen Strasburg, Jordan Zimmermann and Peacock 1-3.....is that better than the Braves 1-3 in 2012? I think it might be." - "Prospects Chat: BA's Eastern League Top 20 Chat" - Ray Guilfoyle, FakeTeams

• Your Daily Message From The Dalai Lama On Twitter (@DalaiLama): "We can solve many problems in an appropriate way, without any difficulty, if we cultivate harmony, friendship and respect for one another."

• NATSTOWN: 

• "[Matt] Purke is another one to watch in the desert league. This will be his first foray into pro ball, since he didn’t sign until the deadline last summer." - "Nationals send cream of minor league crop to Arizona Fall League" - Dave Nichols, District Sports Page

• "[Chris] Marrero's debut got a lot of people excited because he was the 15th overall pick in the 2006 draft and the #1 prospect in the organization going into the 2008 season according to Baseball America." - "Top 1B Prospect: Not Chris Marrero" - Steven, FJB

• "In 2011, the Washington Nationals put together the 2nd best record in its team's history at 80-81, but it sure doesn't seem like DC viewers cared too much." - "Washington Nationals Have Fewest TV Viewers in Baseball" - Joe Drugan, The Nats Blog

• "And there's Shane Victorino with a throw for the ages during Phillies-Cardinals NLDS Game 4." - "Holy LOL Shane Victorino!" - Nats Enquirer

• "Starting on Monday we will be undertaking our biggest, and possibly stupidest, series ever." - "A Few Good Men" - Mac, Capitol Baseball

• "This is not just a blog about the Nationals. Oh no. It's is also a service blog for young journalists aspiring to be lazy sportswriters." - "Nationals Baseball: Lazy Sportswrting 201" - Harper, Losing in the Playoffs

• "Looking at his numbers, it is obvious that Rendon was playing through this injury during his last year at Rice, which could not have helped." - "Nationals Being Cautious About Rendon, Will Sit Out Arizona Fall League" - Will Yoder, The Nats Blog

• NL EAST UPDATES: 

• Mets: "Former major league managers Jim Riggleman, John McLaren, Bob Geren and Larry Bowa appear on the New York Mets' internal list of candidates to become bench coach, organization sources told ESPNNewYork.com." - "Sources -- New York Mets eye former skippers for bench" - Adam Rubin, ESPN New York

• Braves: "Well, on one of the greatest nights in baseball history, that potential collapse became a crippling reality for the Braves, as they lost a late-inning heartbreaker to their division rival Philadelphia Phillies." - "Divide and Conquer, NL East: Final Moments of a Brave 2011 Season" - Michael Jong, Baseball Prospectus

• Phillies: "After riding their stellar starting pitching to the best regular season in franchise history, it all comes down to one game for the Phillies." - "Phillies season down to one game" - Phil Sheridan, Philly.com

• Marlins: "The Miami Marlins need to bolster their starting rotation next year. But is Carlos Zambrano the answer?" - "Does a Carlos Zambrano reunion with Ozzie Guillen make sense for the Marlins? | Fish Tank blog: Florida Marlins" - Joe Capozzi, The Palm Beach Post

• Mets: "Roughly a week after the Mets wrapped up their 2011 season, Johan Santana's own season is about to come to a close." - "Johan Santana will rest rather than play winter ball" - Anthony DiComo, mets.com: News

• Moar Moneyball Links: 

• "Yesterday was the first part of the Billy Beane exclusive for Athletics Nation. Today you get part 2 where Billy delves into Moneyball, the minor league system and where he actually was for that mammoth 20th consecutive win." - "Oakland A's GM Billy Beane, Post-Moneyball, Visits Athletics Nation - Part II" - Tyler Bleszinki, Athletics Nation

• "Why It’s Good to Be Michael Lewis" - Jessica Pressler, New York Magazine