I have made no secret of the fact that I wanted Jim Riggleman to stay on as the Nationals’ manager, and today the club made it official.  When Manny Acta was fired, it was said that he wasn’t holding the players accountable.  Riggleman came in with a new approach, and began working on fundamentals.  It was made clear that every player was being held to a different standard.

General Manager Mike Rizzo appeared on  XM Radio this afternoon to talk about signing Riggleman.  The comments that he made on “The Show with Jody McDonald and Rob Dibble”  were telling.  He led off by saying that he did not want to hire a manager with no experience.  Rizzo was also impressed with Riggleman’s “open door” policy.  He stated that many managers say that they have an open door policy, but really don’t.  Riggleman, Rizzo said, actually gets up and goes through that open door to talk to his players.  The Nationals have also been impressed with his knowledge of the game, or as Rizzo put it, the X’s and O’s.  Rizzo had talked to Tony LaRussa and Bobby Cox about Riggleman, and they both were impressed with his knowledge and strategy.

Riggleman is direct.  Rizzo mentioned that he is the kind of person who can “pat you on the back and kick you in the butt”.  This is especally important since baseball has changed according to Rizzo.  He pointed out that now, most players get their experience at the Major League level.  Therefore, being able to teach the fundamentals at this level is key, and Riggleman can do that.  While I agree that Riggleman can do that, I do question Rizzo’s comment.  Are players really being called up without knowing the fundamentals?  If so, why?  Has the talent become so diluted that players need to come up before they are ready?  Maybe baseball did expand too fast.

I mentioned in yesterday’s post that Ryan Zimmerman was up for a Silver Slugger.  Today it was announced that he was given that award for his work with his bat.  The Silver Slugger is given to the top offensive producer at each position in each league.  In a league with Wright and Jones at 3B, Zimmerman comes out on top.  Zimmerman finished the season batting .292 with 33 HRs and 106 RBIs. 

Congrats again, Ryan!!