For what it’s worth, the Nationals recently made contact with the agents for center fielders Torii Hunter and Aaron Rowand. This really doesn’t mean much – I imagine such "initial contact" phone calls are happening all over the place but we only hear about a few of them.
It’s known that Hunter is interested in playing for Washington, because of the African American community and Dmitri Young’s presence. Rowand has also been mentioned before. The Nats have been connected to Coco Crisp and Andruw Jones as well. And on the pitching side they’ve been linked to Tom Glavine. Jim Bowden has pledged to sign one veteran starter on a one-year deal.
I admit that this approach should engage Nationals fans this offseason, even if they don’t make a big signing. Is this really the right time to make a four or five-year commitment to a center fielder? It seems better to wait until more young talent develops and then make a strike.