What the Nationals don"t have, however, is a true offensive superstar. The kind of hitter a team can build its entire lineup around. A 40-homer, 120-RBI behemoth who has the respect of his teammates and strikes fear in opponents.
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Andruw Jones headlines that list, and even after a subpar season by his standards, he figures to be the Nationals" top target. Torii Hunter and Aaron Rowand also are free agents, quality players each, though neither is a cleanup hitter in Jones" mold. Japan"s Kosuke Fukudome remains another option, though he"s not considered a top power hitter.
So get ready for a lot of Andruw talk over the next few months. Nationals president Stan Kasten knows him well from their days together in Atlanta; Kasten even managed to sign Jones to an extension several years ago by negotiating directly with the player and not with uber-agent Scott Boras.
Jones will not come cheap. If Alfonso Soriano was worth $17 million a year, Jones will be worth more. That"s a major investment, one the Nationals have yet to make since coming to town three seasons ago.
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Washington can have AJ if that's the case!