Play ball, after all.
The chains of Major League Baseball’s 99-day lockout were broken Thursday afternoon, ending the second-longest work stoppage in league history.
So … what now?
Well, for the Nationals — and every other team in baseball — an expedited free-agency period awaits, starting as early as Thursday night. And now the questions that fans pondered before the lockout sucked up all the oxygen the past 99 days are more pressing than ever.
Most important among them: What type of team will the Nationals be in free agency?
If the front office’s actions before the lockout began on Dec.