With President Obama set to throw out the first pitch on Opening Day, Nationals Park will be a festive place indeed.  The majesty of the American flag draped across the outfield.  Lots of entertainment throughout the park.  And a new group of players hoping for a better year.  Who could ask for a better day?

But entering its sixth year, a more profound question faces the team:  has Washington been good for baseball?  And here, the answer might not be as pretty as the cherry blossoms in the outfield concourse.  If you recall, Bud Selig's main reservation for relocating the Montreal Expos to DC was its impact on the Baltimore Orioles.  Would having two teams in the same general geographic area produce two weak teams instead of one with the financial might and fan interest to compete year in and year out?  Would we see two ballparks that are half empty (or worse) rather than one filled to the brim?  

Indeed, it might be hard to recall, but a decade ago the Orioles posted the fourth largest attendance per game (40,700).  The 3.3 millions fans who attended O's games in 2000 were more than all those who went to Yankee games that year.  Since then?  Attendance at Camden yards dropped 17 percent between 2000-2004, and once the Nats came to DC in 2005, another 27 percent.  Thus, last year, just 1.91 million fans attended Oriole games, while 1.82 million visited Nationals Park.  In other words, a single team drawing the fourth-most fans in baseball has been replaced by two teams finishing 21st and 24th out of 30 major league teams in fan attendance, with last-place records to boot.  

Of course, any snapshot is not a perfect picture.  The economy was a lot worse in 2009 than in 2000.  The Orioles were more competitive in 2000 than either team was last year, although, at 74-88, not by much. And fan interest is not the only indicator of financial success.  All true.  But a deeper look at the stats shows that steadily declining attendance at both teams has been the trend, not the exception.  Perhaps not as a coincidence, the win-loss records during the Nats existence:  three fourth-place and two fifth-place finishes for the O's.  And the Nats, well, we know the answer there.  

When it comes to fan attendance and win-loss records, which is the chicken and which is the egg?  At some point, it doesn't really matter.  All we know is that reigniting fan interest needs to become a priority for Nats and O's.  And given the deep hole that both teams have dug for themselves, it won't come easily.

      

Ah, here we are on the eve of the 2009 season for Major League Baseball, which I keep telling my friends includes the Washington Nationals.  But before we re-join The 9,000 Club of MASN viewers, let's ask, "What did we learn from Spring Training?"

Here are five things that I learned.  Feel free to add yours in the comments section.

1 -- Spring Training is way too long.  From Valentine's Day to April Fool's Day...and beyond...is absurd.  I know that ST was purposely long this year because of the World Baseball Classic, but seven weeks to get ready for a six-month season is out of whack.  It's like the baseball gods were saying to us, "Ready, set, set, set..."  How about all future STs begin on March 1 and end on April 1? 

2 -- The WBC is just plain unworkable.  Let's face it, there is no good time for this thing.  Americans don't care.  MLB players make too much money to risk injury.  And MLB owners don't really want their players to go.  The best part of the WBC?  Seeing the hitting prowess of the Nat's new addition, Adam Dunn.  Unfortunately, we saw his fielding prowess, too.  Gulp!

3 -- Jim Bowden is no longer the Nats' GM.  How he departed reminds me of the old Richard Thompson song, "Did She Jump Or Was She Pushed?"  Doesn't matter; the result is the same.  From here, the drama level in the front office can only go down and the quality of on-field play go up.  Now, that's change we can believe in!

4 -- Josh Willingham got screwed.  Remember last fall when the Nats traded for Josh and annointed him as the new starting left-fielder?  Then Dunn came along and was handed that job.  Now Josh is riding the bench and none too pleased about it.  Here's hoping his fortunes turn around.

5 -- Young guys rule.  With four of five starting pitchers under 25, including two rookies, this is going to be a high-wire act where we don't look down and pray for the best.  Let's hope Mike Rizzo knows what he's doing. 

Bonus Pick -- Stephen Strasburg is God's gift to bloggers.  The college pitching phenom wasn't even in ST, and still dominated chatter about the Nats.  Will they draft him with the #1 pick and will he sign? The opening bids: Boros/Strasburg, $50 million; Kasten/Lerners, $10 million.  Let the games begin!  

And by that, I don't mean just bargaining for future starting pitchers, but baseball games that actually count.