Expectations
To not suck.
Beyond that, sorting through some of the young talent and making commitments around how is part of the long-term project and who is not would go a long way towards clarifying Ottawa’s future. Staying healthy would go a ways towards this, especially on the mound.
Best Case
Bob Moose, Bob Brown, and Roy Halladay all return strong from injuries, joining Old Hoss Radbourn in a decent pitching staff and the core talent sorts itself out, especially in the OF.
Worst Case
The pitching continues to be among the worst in the league and none of the massive potential of Randy Johnson, Ken Griffey Jr or Álex Rodríguez comes to the surface.
Key Questions
- Can the staff both deliver and stay healthy?
- Who is the bullpen?
- How the young talent sorts itself out.
Trade Bait
Not really. Radbourn has some value, but he also was the only quasi reliable arm for the Mounties last season.
Well, that was interesting: Griffey, Jr. was moved on, netting Adrián Beltré plus.
Roster Evaluation
| POS | Elite | Strong | Solid | Meh | Weak | Unknown |
| C | Carter | Ausmus | ||||
| 1B | Staub | Watson | ||||
| 2B | Alomar | |||||
| 3B | Beltré | |||||
| SS | Rodríguez | Dorgan | ||||
| LF/ RF | Walker | Raines | Thompson | |||
| CF | Beltrán | Monday | ||||
| SP | Halladay | Radbourn | Moose | Peters Griffith Johnson Podgajny | Hammaker | |
| End | Dempster | Ryan | ||||
| RP | Gregg Shaw |
Over half the roster is either unknown or was pretty horrible last year. Hence the goal being merely not to suck.
Talent Ratings
| WBL | Minors | |
| Raw Power | C Gary Carter | OF Jim Lemon |
| Batting Eye | IF Roberto Alomar | 1B Nick Johnson |
| Contact | IF Álex Rodríguez | OF Terry Puhl |
| Running Speed | U Tim Raines | OF George Burns |
| Base Stealing | U Tim Raines | OF George Burns |
| IF Defense | 3B Adrián Beltré | IF Dick Bertell |
| OF Defense | OF Sam Thompson | OF Jason Heyward |
| Stuff | P Charles Radbourn | P Reggie Richter |
| Control | SP Roy Halladay | P Curt Davis |
| Velocity | RP Ryan Dempster RP Tom Henke | RP Greg Holland |
Best In The Minors
| Rank | Age | POS | Name |
| 1 (4) | 23 | P | Al Orth |
| 2 (30) | 21 | P | Dan Haren |
| 3 (50) | 23 | P | Max Scherzer |
| 4 (70) | 22 | 1B | Bob Watson |
| 5 (80) | 20 | 1B | John Mayberry |
| 6 (102) | 20 | 2B | Jimmy Dykes |
| 7 (106) | 19 | P | Mark Eichhorn |
| 8 (181) | 20 | C | Milt May |
| 9 (183) | 22 | P | Dupee Shaw |
It’s not a bad system, but it lacks–beyond the top arms–top end potential. Watson and Shaw both start the season with the Mounties.
| Most | Least | |
| Age | P Ken Forsch, 38 | IF Elbie Fletcher, 19 P Mark Eichhorn, 19 OF Warren Cromartie, 19 P Dave Bennett |
| Height | P Randy Johnson, 6’10” | OF Wee Willie Keeler, 5’4″ |
| OPS | 1B Dale Long, 1.236 (—) | IF Mike Sharperson, .526 (—) |
| HR | 1B Dale Long, 66 (—) | IF Larry Kopf, 0 (—) IF Mike Dorgan, 0 (—) |
| SB | U Tim Raines, 92 (WBL) | Many with 0 |
| WAR | 1B Vic Saier, 5.0 (—) | IF Mike Sharperson, -2.3 (—) |
| W | Danny Cox, 16 (—) | Jesse Crain, 1 (AAA/AA) |
| SV | Ryan Dempster, 16 (WBL/AAA) Pedro Ramos, 16 (—) | |
| ERA | Mark Grant, 2.31 (—) | Randy Johnson, 6.60 (WBL/AAA) |
| WAR | Charles Radbourn, 4.4 (WBL) | Monk Dubiel, -1.6 (WBL/AAA) |