The Nationals formally introduced Dave Martinez as manager on Thursday, and he joins an organization in which ownership has "made it clear that anything short of winning a World Series championship is grounds for dismissal," according to Thom Loverro of the WASHINGTON TIMES. Martinez at various times during his introduction said the goal is to "win a world championship in Washington" and the team is "not just here to win a playoff game." The comments "drew applause from the Nationals employees and the Lerner family, who sat in the front row." Loverro notes the "only person Martinez was really talking to" was Managing Principal Owner Ted Lerner. The message of "World Series or bust was repeated throughout the entire session, clearly for the benefit of the owners." Every team "uses the same world championship rhetoric, but few ... have made it a job requirement." Martinez is the team's seventh manager since the franchise relocated from Montreal for the '05 season, and after not picking up the contract of Dusty Baker, the Lerners "have done just that -- made winning a World Series a requirement of the job to manage" the Nationals (WASHINGTON TIMES, 11/3). In DC, Barry Svrluga notes winning a title has "now become an edict from ownership." There may be no ownership in MLB that is "more involved in the selection of its manager" than the Lerner family, and Ted Lerner's imprint "is on this franchise more than any other." Nationals President of Baseball Operations & GM Mike Rizzo said Lerner's "involvement is like any other major decision we make in this franchise’s history: It’s a group decision." However, Svrluga notes as fans "get to know Martinez and gain a feel for how he’ll handle the club, let’s be clear about something: If the Lerners didn’t own the team, and Ted Lerner didn’t provide the most important counsel, and the baseball operations department made the choice, Dusty Baker would still be the manager." Svrluga: "Lose the Lerners, and you lose the job" (WASHINGTON POST, 11/3).
