Wire Taps: Washington Nationals and José Andrés team up + Trea Turner buys a house + more Nats links...

So yeah, that Big Brother Baseball in Arizona plan did not go over well. MLB responded to all the reports about a potential plan to have all 30 teams gather out in the desert and play out the 2020 season in empty parks for your entertainment with a press release which said that Major League Baseball is considering multiple options for how to play games when it’s safe, but hasn’t settled on any one plan yet.

As you’ll see below, there are numerous issues with a plan like the one that was discussed earlier this week.

Also, there are plenty of articles on the new partnership between the Nats and José Andrés’ World Central Kitchen to hand out free meals at Nationals Park. Go read your links...

NATS BEAT:

Home confinement re-watch: 2019 World Series Game 2 - (MASN)
"The elite pitching matchup again dominated the FOX game intro, just as it did in Game 1. Then, of course, both guys gave up two runs in the first inning."

Nats prospect watch: Antuna healthy again - (MASN)
"It was great to get an update regarding shortstop Yasel Antuna after the young Nationals prospect was out of almost all games due to injury for more than a year."

Toast the World Series champs from home with Nationals-themed beers - (WaPost)
”You probably won’t be able to enjoy it at the ballpark anytime soon, but Devils Backbone Brewing Company and the Washington Nationals on Monday announced a new beer to celebrate the World Series champions.”

MLB “Plan” Reaction:

MLB says it hasn’t settled on contingency plan to play out season in Arizona - (NBC Sports Washington)
"Not yet. At least that’s what Major League Baseball announced Tuesday morning in response to an overnight ESPN report which detailed a possible plan for the season to be played out in Arizona."

Maximizing games while maximizing safety is MLB’s biggest conundrum - (NBC Sports Washington)
"Early Tuesday morning, just after midnight, an ESPN story on a location and timeline for the resumption of baseball caused a stir. The reported proposal: All 30 teams in Arizona, the season starting around late May or early June."

DOING GOOD:

José Andrés Helps the Nats Turn D.C.’s Baseball Stadium Into a Community Kitchen - (Eater DC)
”The Washington Nationals have teamed up with chef José Andrés’s global nonprofit to utilize D.C.’s empty professional baseball stadium as a place to cook and distribute thousands of free meals to residents in need during the novel coronavirus crisis.”

Nationals partner with chef José Andrés to turn stadium into community kitchen - (NBC Sports Washington)
"Two kitchens in the ballpark will be used to cook and prepare hot meals that will be distributed by Uber Eats drivers across the community."

Jose Andres, Nationals Park team up to cook and distribute free meals - (Washington Times)
"Washington-based chef and philanthropist José Andrés teamed up with Nationals Park for Andrés’ not-for-profit World Central Kitchen to use the ballpark’s kitchens to produce and distribute free meals for the poor beginning Tuesday."

Chef José Andrés will distribute free meals from Nats Park - (MASN)
"The Nationals are lending celebrity chef José Andrés a really big place to cook."

NATIONAL(S) BEAT:

Washington Nationals shortstop Trea Turner snags $3.25 million home in Florida - (Orlando Sentinel)
"Just a few weeks before baseball season was supposed to begin, Washington Nationals shortstop Trea Turner snared a brand-new home in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla."

Nationals' catcher Yan Gomes still has the World Series clinching baseball - (WJLA)
"Yan Gomes, back with the Nationals on a two-year $10 million dollar contract, is keeping close tabs over that World Series clinching baseball he caught."

Washington Nationals all-time team: Scherzer joins Pedro in rotation; Expos greats Raines, Carter in lineup - (CBSSports.com)
"As we know, the Nationals transitioned to D.C. from Montreal, where they were the Expos. There will be players from both on this all-time roster."

MLB coronavirus shutdown is driving players crazy - (Sports Illustrated)
"A strict quarantine is a good way to learn about your partner, and what Sara Hudson has learned is that her husband, Daniel, the Nationals’ closer, does not know how to use a Lysol wipe."

Nats' Top 5 second basemen: Camerato's take - (MLB.com)
"2. Howie Kendrick, Nationals (2017-present) - Key fact: Kendrick is the first player to hit more than one go-ahead home run in the seventh inning or later in deciding games in the span of a single postseason."

NL EAST UPDATES:

Phillies’ Zack Wheeler throws cold water on MLB’s Arizona coronavirus plan: ‘That’s not going to work’ - (nj.com)
"But at least one former Mets star and brand-new Phillies No. 2 starter is out on the idea if it means being away from his wife all summer. The reason? Zack Wheeler’s wife is pregnant."

Robinson Cano May Not Be Done Yet - (MLB Trade Rumors)
"The 37-year-old Cano could hang it up right now and go down as one of the most accomplished second basemen ever."

Q&A with Marlins' 2019 second-round pick - (MLB.com)
"Perhaps the best defensive shortstop available in the 2019 Draft, Nasim Nunez turned down a Clemson commitment to sign with the Marlins for $2.2 million -- well above slot value -- after being selected in the second round (No. 46 overall)."

5 Braves questions, plus a look at the future - (AJC.com)
"I didn’t feel [Cole] Hamels’ health was as significant a factor in the Felix [Hernandez] decision as some believed. If Hernandez showed he had something left — and it looked like he did — he’d make the team."