WASHINGTON (AP) -- So there they stood, gathered in the stands near the home dugout, clapping and whooping it up for their last-place Washington Nationals. And there on the dirt near third base were manager Frank Robinson, his coaches and the players, hugging each other, then pointing to the crowd and applauding right back, before offering up balls, caps and bats. For more than five minutes after Sunday's season finale, the Nationals and their fans saluted and celebrated each other, heartfelt thanks exchanged between a city that yearned for a major league team for 34 years, and a team that yearned for this kind of reception.
Thanks, the fans were saying, for bringing the national pastime back to the nation's capital. Thanks, too, for all of those one-run wins in June, for that 50-31 start and NL East lead in July, and for playing meaningful games right into the middle of September. The 31-50 swoon that left the club at .500? That can be forgiven. Thanks, the Nationals were saying, for being there every step of the way, scooping up more than 2.7 million tickets for creaky, dingy RFK Stadium, cheering sacrifice bunts and booing when opponents issued intentional walks. ``They know the game of baseball. They've been in every game,'' outfielder Brad Wilkerson said. ``It's been a great love affair for us so far.''
And yet, in what must feel like a cruel twist to Wilkerson and others who were part of the Montreal Expos' latter years, Washington heads into the offseason with perhaps more uncertainty than any other team. It's not known which of eight bidders will buy the Nationals from the other 29 clubs for what's expected to be about $450 million. Robinson, general manager Jim Bowden and president Tony Tavares can't be sure they'll be back.
The same applies, of course, to players. ``That'll just give us headaches if we worry about that,'' catcher Brian Schneider said. Second baseman Jose Vidro, the franchise's longest-tenured player, is ready for some news. ``We've been hearing since the beginning of the season, 'Oh, next month. Oh, next month. Oh, next month.' Here we are, and we still don't have an owner,'' Vidro said. ``It could hurt a lot because a lot of guys have their hands tied again.'' Bowden doesn't have a 2006 budget to work with and will hold off as long as he can on making big moves.
The GM wouldn't say whether he would keep Robinson, who used every motivational ploy he could dream up this season. ``When the new owner comes in and makes the decision on me, then I'll answer questions after that. At this point, it would be inappropriate,'' Bowden said. ``I can tell you this: I have really enjoyed working with Tony Tavares and Frank Robinson.'' Said Robinson: ``That's the only thing I'm concerned about right now -- getting an answer as soon as possible.''
The roster needs upgrading. Two starters, preferably one a lefty, and two big hitters are musts. A hard-throwing left-hander in the bullpen and a true leadoff hitter, too. The second-half drop from NL East leader to a fifth-place finish -- albeit with 14 more wins than in 2004 -- can largely be traced to injuries, clubhouse tension and a lack of offense. ``It was a magical-type season, the first half. Things went right for us,'' Robinson said.
``And the second half has been kind of like a nightmare.'' While the pitching staff ranked fourth in the NL with a 3.87 ERA, and Chad Codero led the majors with 47 saves, the offense dragged. Washington finished last in the majors in batting average (.252), slugging percentage (.386), runs (3.94 per game) and homers (117). They also had the NL's fewest steals (45) and were caught stealing the most (45). But, oh, what fun they had for a while. At one point, the Nationals were 23-7 in one-run games, winning 12 straight. Later, they lost 13 in a row and finished 30-31 in such contests.
And those D.C. residents who pined for baseball got plenty of chances to remember why: Robinson jawing with Angels manager Mike Scioscia as both benches emptied and Jose Guillen had to be restrained in a game Washington later rallied to win; Robinson persuading an umpire to wipe out an apparent tying homer by Atlanta's Brian Jordan; shortstop Cristian Guzman, who flirted with batting below .200 before finishing at .219, making an error when forced to throw a ball caked with mud because the infield was filled with puddles; 32-year-old Rick Short making his major league debut after more than 1,000 hits in the minors and homering off Dontrelle Willis and John Smoltz; Ryan Zimmerman, just out of college, hitting .397 with 10 doubles over the final month.
``We've always said that we were just missing a real small part, and that small part was moving to a new city and having a home. And we got that this year,'' Schneider said. ``You could see in the first half how we responded to that. We were in this race.''
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