--Washington announced its 2009 spring training schedule, a 33-game slate highlighted by two exhibition games against the Baltimore Orioles -- one at the Orioles' Class AAA home in Norfolk, Va., to be followed by a contest at Nationals Park on April 4, two days before Opening Day.
--The Nationals named John Philbin their new strength and conditioning coach. Philbin, the strength coach of the Washington Redskins from 1992 to 2000, replaces Kazu Tomooka, who had been with the team for seven seasons. --LHP Odalis Perez was not offered arbitration, eliminating the most obvious way the veteran starter would pitch a second season with the Nationals. Perez is not considered to be a Type A or Type B free agent, so Washington would not have received any compensation had it offered Perez arbitration before he signed with another team. However, the Nationals are believed to have some interest in bringing back Perez, who was 7-12 with a 4.34 ERA last season.
--3B Aaron Boone was not offered arbitration. He hit .241 with six homers and 28 RBI, becoming a key part of the Nationals' bench after Ryan Zimmerman went down with a shoulder injury in May.
--1B Nick Johnson could be on the move in the next week, particularly if the Nationals sign a big-name first baseman like Mark Teixeira or Adam Dunn at the winter meetings. Johnson's health has always been a concern, and he missed four months last season with a torn tendon sheath in his right wrist.
BY THE NUMBERS: 0 -- The number of players on the Nationals' roster with a 30-homer season in their careers. The dearth of power is a big reason why Washington is believed to be interested in slugger Mark Teixeira heading into the winter meetings.
QUOTE TO NOTE: "I don't want people to have unrealistic expectations." -- Nationals president Stan Kasten, in the Washington Post, downplaying talk that the team was among the favorites to sign free agent 1B Mark Teixeira
