Wire Taps: Dusty Baker is out, and the internet is angry about the Nationals’ ownership

Dusty Baker is out, and yet again, a lack of logic has prevailed at Nationals Park. Unbelievable. Quite literally, unbelievable.

Here’s the news from Nats Park.

Firing Baker diminishes Nats, MLB
The Nats removed a legend that made both his team and the sport better. What's more, the names that are apparently floating around as his potential replacements are borderline insane.

Nationals display arrogance again in firing Dusty Baker
Dusty Baker was expecting a $6 million dollar contract, a press conference, and then none of it showed up. So, he went home to California, where the Nats woke him up with a nice phone call to let him know he wasn't returning, and the Nats continued their streak of treating managers like trash.

Who's next up on the Nats' hot seat?
John Farrell: Recently unemployed. Alex Cora: Three years older than Jayson Werth. Dave Martinez: The official Wire Taps-endorsed candidate.

Out: Dusty Baker. In: A manager who’d better win a World Series. Apply within.
The new Nats manager, whoever he may be, will sit down on a manager's chair that is already hot. The way to cool it down? Easy as pie: Win a World Championship. To convince the Nats that you can be the guy, you had better have one hell of a first impression prepared.

Maybe the Nats will find a better manager than Dusty, but good luck trying
Two division titles and nearly 200 wins in two seasons isn't enough, begging the question: What is? And if the organization's official strategy is literally "World Series or Bust," who the hell would want to manage this team?

Daniel Murphy undergoes surgery on right knee
Ladies and gentlemen: An actual explanation as to why Daniel Murphy was really crummy for the last few months of the year.

Will the Nats pursue Jayson Werth?
Werth seems destined for the DH in the AL, but hey, anything could happen.

Bryce Harper is a year away from free-agency. What's he really worth?
Believe it or not, this was the big story this morning. Basically, Bryce isn't worth $400 million. Okay, back to implosion news.

Look at ownership and the front office to explain the struggles of the Nationals
The Nats view the position of manager as unimportant, not worth paying for, and it seems to be a financial philosophy that extends to the rest of the team.

Stigma surrounding Dusty Baker remains (unfairly) after latest ouster
Dusty Baker hasn't always made the best choices in the game or over the long run, but overall, he's a great manager that runs a team better than nearly anyone else. Of course, a few bad plays a few decades ago made people hate Baker a long, long time ago.

Undermined yet again, what's next for GM Mike Rizzo?
The Lerners, not Mike Rizzo, were the negotiating party when it came to re-signing Dusty Baker. Mike Rizzo wanted the extension done in March -- the Lerners said that now wasn't the time again and again until they got rid of Dusty. Which, of course, leads to the question: How long can Rizzo take this?

There's no right or wrong answer for the Nats' decision to let Dusty Baker go
Is not succeeding in the postseason reason enough to let a manager go? Or did the Nats just throw away the best manager they've ever had?

Nats invite more dysfunction by letting Baker go
Baker's firing was unfair, and uncalled for. In the meantime, the Nats have continued to add to the stigma that their management is cheap where it counts and that their organization is a plethora of dysfunction.

Dusty Baker is out. Now what?
Dusty, for some reason, is out in Washington.