The Nationals may not have landed Teixeira, but it was an encouraging sign by the Lerner's that they're willing to spend money on quality free agents as they continue to rebuild the franchise. They have rebuilt the front office, scouting department, and the farm system besides entering a new stadium with all types of amenities.
The Nationals didn't send any mixed signals about making a legitimate offer to Teixeira. Their offer was as high as any team still in the bidding war for his services. The team has been reluctant to sign any high priced free agents while instead focusing on rebuilding the infrastructure of the franchise that was decimated by MLB's ownership of the Expos. This would supposedly lead to a healthier team as the farm system was also rebuilt.
Buster Olney of ESPN recently wrote that the Nationals shouldn't have even entered the sweepstakes. "But what in the heck are the Nationals doing in this poker game? What in the heck are the Orioles doing in this conversation?
They should not be bidding. They should call Scott Boras, the agent for Teixeira, three minutes ago and tell him -- like someone who accidentally raises his hand at an auction -- Look, sorry for the misunderstanding, but we made a mistake. We really didn't mean to make that $160 million offer. ESPN.
Apparently it's only ok for the Yankees to spend an insane amount of money to improve their team and other teams may not apply or make any attempts. It's an elite club that only is acceptable for the big boys to join. It's more than insulting when you consider that the Yankees pitching staff was woeful and lacked the power in the lineup other than Teixeira.
The Nationals rebuilt the farm system from one of the worst in the MLB to a top ten farm system. Yet when the Nationals looked to rebuild the franchise and tender a serious offer to Teixeira, it was deemed unacceptable. Replace the names of the players and team names and both teams in the bottom of their division were attempting a similar strategy.
Had the Nationals improved the team with some additional talent in previous seasons, Teixeira may have been more inclined to sign with Washington Boswell. After a couple of seasons getting their feet wet, the Lerner's were ready to make a splash into free agency and turn the page into remaking the organization into a winner and for someone to dismiss a serious offer from a team that has the money and willing to make a commitment seems a bit premature especially with new ownership and no real track record to assume that no additional money will be spent on veteran talent.
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