Ankiel/Farnsworth Could Teach Dunn Something

Rick Ankiel and Kyle Farnsworth were traded to the Braves at the deadline, and according to a report by Mark Bowman on MLB.com, they "gladly welcomes the opportunity to spend the next two months playing meaningful games with the Braves."

As one tweet put it - the Braves were falling in line with the "You Break It, You Buy It" philosophy by picking up Ankiel who lost his control as a pitcher in the 2000 NLDS against the Braves.  More importantly, however, buried deep within this "no-duh" opening sentence is a point to which Adam Dunn should pay close attention.

If you'll remember, Dunn is mildly upset that the Nationals have yet to offer him a contract extension this season, even though, apparently, his camp made an initial offer during spring training.  I think what he fails to realize is that by signing a contract extension, he is contractually obligated to play in Washington on the Nationals - a place that has not seen, nor will see, significant baseball in the last two months of the season for several years.

Of course, if he does sign a contract extension, he could be a major topic of discussion every season when the end of July rolls around.  Hmmmm.... maybe he IS a genius!

Dunn Losing Interest in Washington?

Apparently, Adam Dunn is becoming frustrated by a lack of urgency from the Washington Nationals to work out an extension that would keep him with the team beyond this season.  

Okay, let me get this straight.  Dunn doesn't have a long-term contract that will require him to continue playing for the Washington Nationals, and he's frustrated by it?  Maybe he just doesn't understand how this works.  

Okay, Mr. Dunn, if you have a long-term contract, that means that you continue playing in Washington D.C., as a baseball player, for a longer period of time than just the end of this season.  I don't see how this is a bad thing.

The Sluggers Strike Back

Sluggers throughout baseball, pissed that everyone keeps referring to this season as the "Year of the Pitcher," took some might hacks at that image on Wednesday night.  Across baseball, a season high of 46 balls left the park in fair territory and one more was legged out just for good measure.

Paul Bunyan Adam Dunn led the charge with three round-trippers against the Padres, while Matt Holliday, Buster Posey, Martin Prado and Casey Kotchmann all pitched in with a pair.  Blue Jay Jose Bautista, bored with just jogging around the bases, decided to add an in-the-park dinger to his league leading total.

Take that mainstream media!