Al Grito De Guerra

New Blog! The Nationals Inquirer today tackles a subject dear to my heart but recently neglected. Remember the lovable dipshits of the Loudoun Cabal? They need money, as the Inquirer informs us. Welcome aboard, mysterious Inquirer!

As you've probably heard, we finally got Esteban Loaiza. One year, $2.9 million, so I can't get too upset. Oh, he's going to suck, don't you worry about that. The official excuse for his horrendous 2004 seems to be that he was pitching with a tired arm. Great. That's like getting pulled over for speeding and, when asked if you knew how fast you were going, responding that you didn't but it's not your fault because you were too drunk to see the speedometer. Anyway, this doesn't make us any better, but it can only make us worse for one year, which is a rousing success by Bowden standards. Furthermore, the signing set off a chain reaction the final result of which was the acquisition of Antonio Osuna, who signed up with this rag-tag bunch of misfit largely because he digs Mexicans. Osuna is good when healthy, but once again . . .

I lied above - the final final result of the chain reaction was the designation of Sun-Woo Kim for assignment. I don't like this at all. Kim isn't going to win a Cy Young and he's not a two-time All-Star like Loaiza, but he's versatile, doesn't make much, and is only 27. In short, he's a much better fit for the needs of this team than Esteban is. So actually, if I think about this too much, I am going to get all pissed off about Loaiza. Jim Bowden is a dirty liar, by the way.

Speaking of Bowden's incompetence, there's an infuriating puff-piece on the MLB.com site about the middle infield.

Guzman will play alongside second baseman Jose Vidro, forming one of the best double-play combinations in the National League.

They're not joking! I don't feel like arguing with this crap right now, but you go ahead and enjoy it.

UPDATE: Distinguished Senators has obtained this exclusive photo of Antonio Osuna addressing the press from a diner.