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Starting Nine: Nationals Sign Three Minor Leaguers; Adam LaRoche/USO Tour; Expos?

So you're not sitting around monitoring Twitter, searching #Nats, sifting through aggregators and sorting through hundreds of random blog posts and stories about the Washington Nationals? We try to make it easy for you with "The Starting Nine," a collection of the stories you need to read...

By Patrick Reddington
Brad Mills-USA TODAY Sports

We understand, sort of, not really, that not everyone can spend their offseason waiting around for some news on the Washington Nationals to break. So if you find yourself wondering what you missed in the last week, catch up every Monday with The Starting Nine. Nine topics/stories that will keep you in the know as far as what's going on with the nation's capital's Nats. We're also including "The Rotation" below, the Top 5 Stories from the last week on Federal Baseball...

1. Bo Knows This, (What?) Bo Likes Nats, (What?) But Bo Don't Know Jack, Cause Bo Can't Rap:

• "The Astros could look at the Nationals’ Tyler Moore, who played for ‘Stros manager Bo Porter in Washington when Porter was a coach with the Nationals." - "There's one good way to get Cubs back on track" - Ken Rosenthal, FOX Sports on MSN

2. Bearded LaRoche Visits Troops:

• "LaRoche returned to Washington on Friday, then attended a dinner hosted by the Nationals at the Occidental Grill, speaking to reporters about his experience overseas." - "Washington Nationals' Adam LaRoche grateful for role in USO Holiday Tour" - Andrew Simon, nationals.com: News

• "Seated at a table at the Occidental Grill on Pennsylvania Avenue last night, a couple of reporters briefed LaRoche on the Jerry Blevins trade and Corey Brown being designated for assignment, and LaRoche quietly took it all in." - "Nationals Pastime: Back from trip abroad, LaRoche, friends reflect on meaningful USO Holiday Tour" - Dan Kolko, MASNSports.com

• "LaRoche was selected and, as a part of the invitation, could spread the word to other celebrities he knows. He called his friends and business partners from the A&E show ‘Duck Dynasty’ shortly thereafter, brothers Willie and Jep Robertson." - "Adam LaRoche, Duck Dynasty guys tell stories from USO Tour" - Chase Hughes, Nats Insider

• "Adam LaRoche might be back from his USO Holiday Tour, but he's got a little bit of time to relax before baseball takes over again." - "Nationals Pastime: LaRoche on Williams, McLouth and his health" - Dan Kolko, MASNSports.com

3. ANGELOS!!!!!!!:

• "Schoenfeld also offers his perspective on Angelos' legacy in Baltimore, his management style with the Orioles and his grip on the Washington Nationals' television revenue." - "Podcast: The Orioles after Peter Angelos; A new course for the Reginald Lewis Museum" - James Briggs, Baltimore Business Journal

4. No #WSOB From Williams:

• "Don’t worry, there was no 'World Series or bust' proclamation from Williams at the Winter Meetings, unlike predecessor Davey Johnson’s ill-advised quote from the previous year." - "New Nationals manager Matt Williams embraces lofty expectations" - Mark Zuckerman, Nats Insider

• "'If [Williams] wants me to come by his office and chat, I will,' Johnson said. 'But if I was a young manager, I wouldn’t want an old manager coming by.'" - "Davey Johnson hopes to come to Nationals spring training" - James Wagner, Washington Post

5. Harper, Rendon, Pizza And $9,126 For Charity:

• "Winning bid in auction for Bryce Harper and Anthony Rendon pizza party goes for $9,126" - Nats Enquirer

6. Your Daily Message From The Dalai Lama On Twitter (@DalaiLama):

7. Scoops And Red Sneakers:

• "The annual baseball winter meetings don’t feel like a place for a kid. Nearly everyone in baseball, except players, spends four days jammed into the same hotel in December." - "Young reporter Chris Cotillo, 18, gets big-league scoops at the MLB winter meetings" - James Wagner, The Washington Post

• "In an interview last week, Cotillo said it all began with an anonymous Twitter account, @TradeDeadliner, that he started in his sophomore year to gather and distribute baseball news." - "Phenom in Red Sneakers, Not Spikes, Pitching Scoops, Not Sliders" - Tim Rohan, NYTimes.com

8. eMb:

• "When the Expos morphed into the Washington Nationals at the end of the 2004 season, I thought we were done with baseball in this town." - "Expos' return to Montreal is suddenly a lot more possible" - Jack Todd, Montreal Gazette

9. Danny Espinosa Will Have His Revenge:

• "His agent, Scott Boras, was at the winter meetings and, when asked about Espinosa’s ability to adjust to a bench job, spoke highly of the infielder’s ability to start." - "Agent Scott Boras talks about Danny Espinosa’s future" - James Wagner, Washington Post

• BONUS LINKS (Minor League Signings):

• "The Nationals have announced the signing of three players to minor league contracts: first baseman Brock Peterson, right-handed reliever Manny Delcarmen and catcher Brian Jeroloman." - "Nationals Pastime: Nats sign Peterson, Delcarmen, Jeroloman to minor league deals (updated)" - Dan Kolko, MASNSports.com

• "The Nationals signed three players on Friday to minor league deals with invitations to major league spring training: first baseman Brock Peterson, pitcher Manny Delcarmen and catcher Brian Jeroloman." - "Nationals sign three to minor league deals with spring invites" - Chase Hughes, Nats Insider

• "Desmond proved his breakout in 2012 to be no fluke, repeating as a 20-20 player and a Silver Slugger winner." - "NL Top Players: No. 31 Ian Desmond" - Dennis Lin, UTSanDiego.com

• The Rotation: Top 5 Stories From The Last Week On FBB:

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