Joe Girardi withdrew his name from the Washington Nationals' manager pool:

Former Florida Marlins manager Joe Girardi, considered for weeks the favorite to become the next manager of the Washington Nationals, took his name out of consideration for the job yesterday, saying it was a decision based on keeping his young family together but simultaneously saying he could still end up on a baseball field next season.

Girardi had two meetings over the last three weeks, one with General Manager Jim Bowden and the other with Bowden and team president Stan Kasten. Girardi said the talks went well and that the decision to pull out was "very, very difficult."

I hoped Girardi took this job so he could manage against the Marlins next year. My guess is that Joe's been away from his family for a long time, between playing, coaching, broadcasting and managing. If someone is going to pull him away from that, it's going to need to be the perfect job or a whole lot of money. After all, he's getting paid to sit on his behind for the next two years, why not enjoy the new baby and the best Miami has to offer?