Finally, Washington Nationals owners have opted for security. While changing managers like day traders, the team re-signed general manager Mike Rizzo through 2020 just hours before its home opener on Thursday.
It’s about time.
Rizzo is the architect of four NL East titles in six years with the Nats second overall in victories since 2012. Rizzo drafted Bryce Harper, Stephen Strasburg and Anthony Rendon, while trading for Adam Eaton and Trea Turner. Rizzo also signed Max Scherzer and Daniel Murphy. That's a lineup of stars.
Sure, the Nats have been postseason busts with four first-round punch-outs. But that’s on the players, not the GM. There wasn't a hole in the lineup, just in players' bats.
Rizzo would have been a free agent at season's end, but after buying a home near Nationals Park last month, it seemed certain he was staying. Rizzo’s now the fifth-longest tenured GM in baseball after being promoted from assistant in 2009.
And really, why would the Nats not want Rizzo to stay? There's always work to do. Pitcher Gio Gonzalez, Harper and Murphy are free agents next year. If Rizzo left, there's a real chance the trio would have departed, too. Losing Harper would be a gut-punch to the fan base.
Remember when Jim Bowden was GM and the team signed one misfit after another? Losing seasons stacked atop each other? Well, Rizzo turned it all around by drafting, trading and signing players. That's a triple threat.
These are the good times at Nats Park, even if they've ended cruelly each fall. Rizzo built a great team and deserves to see a World Series come to Washington. So do fans. With Rizzo, there's a great chance it will happen one day. Maybe one day soon.
Rick Snider has covered Washington sports since 1978. Follow him on Twitter: @Snide_Remarks
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