Photo by Marlene Koenig for TalkNats
Guys were fired up weeks ago was the January message from manager Blake Butera. The players from last year’s roster responded by reporting early to camp, and most have been there for over a month. Position players didn’t even need to be in camp on Tuesday. They were there anyway. The CACTI Park of the Palm Beaches has a new feel.
Vibes are different. The energy level is higher. These are new beginnings. And while players didn’t want to diss their former bosses, they seemed happy to turn the page with one player telling us that there is a “good vibe here.” You wouldn’t expect a team coming off of 96 losses to feel that way.
While we expected a veteran position player would have been added to this staff via a trade or free agency — that hasn’t happened yet. And Butera said that leaders will emerge. On Tuesday, we let you know that Miles Mikolas was in talks with the Nats. Could he be that leader for the whole team? The 10-year veteran and two-time National League All-Star right-handed pitcher signed officially on Wednesday and wasted no time by reporting to camp on Thursday.
It helped that the Nats’ facility is on streets that Mikolas knows very well. He grew up about 15 miles away and attended Jupiter High School in the same Palm Beach County that encompasses the CACTI Park of the Palm Beaches. Mikolas made his permanent home in Jupiter which is where he also spent most of his Spring Training time after returning from three years in Japan and signing with the St. Louis Cardinals where he became an All-Star in that first season after Japan. A success story that opened eyes for teams looking at failed MLB players who went to Asia to learn in a different setting.
Not only can Mikolas be a mentor to Nats’ pitcher Foster Griffin who just followed a similar path coming to the Nats directly from Japan, the 37-year-old can impart wisdom on many of his teammates who were in elementary school when he was drafted. On Thursday, Butera spoke in a media session about Mikolas and the experience he brings to this young Nats team.
“He’s still extremely motivated and thinks there’s still another gear he can get to even though he’s 37 years of age, which is pretty cool to hear. There’s definitely motivation to continue to get better, and also just the leadership qualities that he entails.”
— Butera said on Mikolas
For Mikolas, he feels he is up to the challenge, and has a lot of optimism about his new team. His experiences of dealing with injuries, failures, and reinventing himself in Japan have given him a wealth of knowledge and wisdom that not only comes with age — but also reaching success. As mentioned, he is a two-time All-Star and was in the Cy discussion at the age of 29. While he might not be able to help Dylan Crews swing a bat, he might be able to tell him why he retired him twice on a total of three pitches when he faced him last year via a weak groundout an a popup.
Smart position players can learn a lot by talking to pitchers. The last time that Mikolas faced his new teammates was on July 10th of last year. He had strikeouts against the Nats’ three best position players: James Wood, CJ Abrams, and Daylen Lile. Get out those scouting reports and tell these kids some stories.
“The way the game is changing so much, I think I have a lot to learn from some of the young guys probably, and I’ll be able to share some of the stuff that I have learned over my career with them.”
— Mikolas said
“… Getting in on the ground floor, with a young group of guys. I played them the last couple of years, they’ve got tons of talent. [This is] a team that I think can really surprise people — a team that I think is going to be really fun.”
“I like to get in here early on most days, get my work in the training room and the weight room, really focus on whatever we are doing out there on the back fields – attention to detail, things like that. Not just watching over stuff and doing an eye-watch. We’re not just out there to get through it – really work on that stuff, make sure it’s tight, make sure it’s buttoned up, so when things happen in a game, it’s just a reaction and you don’t have to think too much about it.”
The team needed someone with some leadership ability. A player who has seen winning and success. Mikolas started against the Nats in the 2019 NLCS, and even though he pitched great in his appearance, he got no run support. The Nats won’t miss facing him as he had a career 2.98 ERA in his 12 regular season starts.
What everyone can also get excited about is the way they are already getting coached up. The attention to detail. The use of technology. The type of communication. This is the system that President of Baseball Operations, Paul Toboni, has built.
In theory, all of this is great. And we all know that in the end, once larger sample sizes come together, this management group and coaching staff will be judged on results. “Everyone is fired up to get started,” as Butera said, and the hope is that as the days, weeks, and months click by, that nobody gets fired. That would be a sign of failure.
There is a lot riding on this. If it is a huge success, this will be a model for other teams — and if it fails, you will hear the “I told you so.” That’s how it works in reality — fair or unfair. This, however, should be a time for some optimism, and as Mikolas said, ” … a team that I think can really surprise people.”
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