Nationals sign Adam Dunn

February 11, 3:49 PMMLB ExaminerAlex Brown

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Adam Dunn has agreed to a two-year deal with the Washington Nationals, according to the Washington Post.  Dunn was being considered by the Angels, but signed quickly with Washington following Los Angeles’ signing of outfielder Bobby Abreu.  Dunn didn’t originally express a strong desire to sign with the Nationals, but there wasn’t much of a market for his services.  He was originally seeking a four-year, $56M deal.

Nationals GM Jim Bowden is known to have a fascination with former Cincinnati Reds, and Dunn is one of his favorites (Bowden was the GM of the Reds from 1992-2003).  Dunn will bring huge power to Washington, hitting 40+ homers in each of the past five seasons.  He gets on base at a high percentage as well - .381 for his career, to be exact.  He’s drawn over 100 walks in six of his seven full seasons of play.  He won’t transform the Nationals into a contender, but he’s a helpful player if used well in a lineup. 

Those things considered, I still can’t understand why the Nationals would make this move.  They already have a crowded outfield which includes Austin Kearns, Lastings Milledge, Elijah Dukes, and Josh Willingham.  Willie Harris was just resigned to be a backup, and Wily Mo Pena is in the mix as well.  Dunn is capable of playing first base (though not terribly well), but the Nationals haven’t shown a willingness to deal often-injured incumbent Nick Johnson yet.  It would seem as if another move is on the horizon – my bet is that Kearns or Johnson are on the move soon.

Well, it took until February, but Adam Dunn is off the market – combined with the Angels signing of Bobby Abreu, these moves should jump start the signing process for the remaining free agent outfielders.  One big winner in all of this is Manny Ramirez, who rejected the latest offer from his former team, the Los Angeles Dodgers.  The Dodgers lost a lot of leverage today, with Abreu and Dunn agreeing to terms with other clubs – I wouldn’t look for Manny to back off his high demands any time soon.