Jim Bowden
Jim Bowden
James Goodwin Bowden IVis a baseball analyst and insider for ESPN. He writes a blog for ESPN.com titled "The GM's Office" and is a co-host of SiriusXM's "Inside Pitch" on MLB Network Radio. He used to be a host and co-host on Fox Sports Radio, a baseball analyst for FoxSports.com and a Baseball Insider for the Los Angeles Dodgers and Los Angeles Angels for Fox Sports West. He has held positions of Senior Vice President and General Manager for both...
appreciate both complete core influence lock nationals next nick player players pleased positive type view washington
We are very pleased to be able to lock up Nick Johnson, who we view as one of the core players who will take the Nationals to the next level. Nick is a complete player both offensively and defensively, and we appreciate his positive influence in the clubhouse. He is the type of player and person that the Washington Nationals are all about.
good people players solid
We have some good solid players and not a lot of strikeouts. It's better than people think.
club coming great issues opportunity player respect side situation understand
We had great discussions. I think it's important to understand where each side is coming from. I think we had an opportunity to look at each other eye-to-eye and go through the issues of the club and the issues of where Alfonso is coming from. We have a lot of respect for Alfonso as a player and as a person. And he understands our situation and where we're coming from.
baseball coming compassion games job player position team win
We have compassion for his position on where he's coming from, but we have a job to try to win baseball games with the team we have. We're not going to give the player away.
action arm couple depends guy history lack last looked player saw says single starts
It depends on his history. If a guy has a history at all or lack of durability or those kind of problems, we do it, or if we see something in his arm action that says we should do that. We saw every single one of his starts the last couple months, and the player looked healthy.
again experience good happen involved office players support system violation
We support the commissioner's office, the minor-league drug program. We're disappointed in the violation that two of our players caused, but we support the system 100 percent. And hopefully, this will be a good experience for the players involved and it won't happen again in the future.
again experience good happen involved players support system violation
We support the commissioner's office, the minor-league drug program, ... We're disappointed in the violation that two of our players caused, but we support the system 100 percent. And hopefully, this will be a good experience for the players involved and it won't happen again in the future.
happy knew players preference team
Obviously, if we knew it was going to play out this way, we wouldn't have done it. My preference would be to keep him. We're a much better team with him. My preference is for everyone to be happy in this game. Organizations do better, players do better when we're all happy.
brain control convinced eye lose mental met people physical players prove succeed
When these players lose it, they can't control it. It's a physical thing, not a mental thing. He's got the eye of the tiger. When I met with (Sosa), that's the one thing I was convinced of. His brain would do everything it could to succeed because he'd like to prove to people that he can still play.
best direction felt interest job opportunity player
I felt it was in the best interest of the organization to go in a different direction on the player development side, ... I felt it was in Adam's best interest to do it now to give him an opportunity to get a job with another club.
believe player refused violation
The player refused to take the field, which we believe is a violation of his contract.
ask baseball change few last player pride sensitive several simple votes
It's not that simple to ask Soriano to change positions. This is a player that has been an All-Star for several years. He has had as many All-Star votes as any player in baseball the last few years. He has pride and he is a sensitive guy.
build continue panic players
It's April. You don't panic in April. By the same token, we continue to look for good, young players you can build with long-term.
given good player respect salary team
We respect the arbitrators' decision. We feel that it's a good salary for the team and a good salary for the player given his talents.