Wire Taps: Washington Nationals’ 2020 MLB Draft; Nats’ third base history + more...

Is it wrong to just hope that the 2020 MLB Draft happens tonight? Like, actually happens.

No last minute postponement. No fights between players and the league. Just some olde-fashioned baseball content on our TVs/devices. I know, our pessimism is showing, but it’s hard to imagine something MLB-related going smoothly these days.

Of course, it’s all going to be much, much different than we’re used to anyway, with only five rounds, instead of 40, and then a free-for-all signing period with a $20K cap for any players not selected in the first five rounds. Think I’d just go to college and try again in a couple years if I was a high school-age prospect...

Are you ready for the 2020 MLB Draft and the Nationals picking 22nd overall tonight? Go read your links while you wait...

NATS BEAT:

Stephen Strasburg: Clear skies after decade in storm - (Washington Times)
"There were no dark clouds in the skies above Washington, D.C., the night of June 8, 2010. There was electricity in the air, make no mistake. But there was no storm in the forecast for Nationals Park as game time approached."

Carter Kieboom following Anthony Rendon and Ryan Zimmerman's standard of success at third base - (NBC Sports Washington)
"In the 14 years from 2006 through 2019, no team has had more individual player seasons of three WAR or more at third than the Nats..."

Eight area legends, two championship teams to be inducted into DC Sports Hall of Fame - (MLB.com)
"The 2019 WNBA champion Washington Mystics and the 2019 World Series champion Washington Nationals both will be honored as a Team of Distinction."

2020 MLB SEASON:

Players, owners can't try to fight 2021 battle in 2020 - (MASN)
"The handful of proposals each side has presented in recent weeks have gone nowhere."

Reports: Players come back at MLB with 89-game proposal - (NBC Sports Washington)
"The players asked for full pro-rata salary across the 89 games, something that will be a sticking point with the league."

DRAFT:

Nationals are as close to normal as can be before MLB draft - (NBC Sports Washington)
"The Nationals’ draft think tank spent much of the last week on multi-hour Zoom calls. Their mechanism to converse about Wednesday’s MLB Draft has changed. Not much else has."

College players have a big decision to make as draft landscape changes - (MASN)
"Tomorrow’s First-Year Player Draft will look like no other thanks to the five-round format and the $20,000 cap on free agent signings."

NATIONAL(S) BEAT:

Denard Span Discusses His Decision To Walk Away - (MLB Trade Rumors)
"'I would say, in my heart, once I didn’t sign a contract going into the 2020 season, that was it for me,' said Span. Retirement, however, is a bittersweet step..."

MLB Still Isn’t Close to Returning—and It’s Running Out of Time - (The Ringer)
"Three months after the baseball season was suspended, little progress has been made toward a comeback. Where do things stand? And where will they go from here?"

MLB rumors: N.J. native, Nationals’ All-Star reliever Sean Doolittle vents about owners’ restart proposal - (nj.com)
"Washington Nationals All-Star reliever Sean Doolittle, who’s a graduate of Shawnee High School in Medford, N.J., went on Twitter Monday afternoon to vent his frustration."

These stars took express lane from Draft to bigs - (MLB.com)
"Stephen Strasburg - Drafted 2009 (first overall) / Debuted with Nationals on June 8, 2010

Strasburg's 14 strikeouts are the second most put up by any pitcher in his big league debut, delivering on the hype that drew record crowds to see his Minor League starts."

His name is Tiger King, and he’s the best baseball movie Netflix never made – (The Athletic)
"The Lafayette team emerged as the best in the league under [Jimmy] Gonzales, whose eye for talent soon resulted in a job as a scout for the Cincinnati Reds (10 years) and Washington Nationals (15 years and counting)."

NL EAST UPDATES:

The 2020 draft a rare positive sign for MLB - (NY Post)
"Finally, a baseball event goes on as scheduled, even if not as originally designed."

MLB Draft 2020: Miami Marlins bonus pool, expert mock picks, strategy - (Fish Stripes)
"The Marlins own six of the 160 total draft picks and a signing bonus pool of $12,016,900 (fourth-largest in the league)."

Braves' pay cuts vary under proposals to start season - (AJC.com)
"Freddie Freeman, the highest paid Braves player, originally was scheduled to make $22 million this year. That would be reduced to less than $8 million under the MLB owners’ latest proposal, made Monday, to start the pandemic-delayed season."

Remembering just how dominant that Brad Lidge-Ryan Madson bullpen was, especially in playoffs - (NBC Sports Philadelphia)
"And then there was Ryan Madson. What a major difference maker he was for the Phillies down the stretch in 2008 and in the postseason."