The Washington Nationals' 2007 season began with the team trying to win its first NL East title since moving to Washington. During the offseason, the team replaced manager Frank Robinson with former Montreal Expos coach Manny Acta. They lost several players through free agency and trades. The most notable of those are José Guillén, Ramón Ortiz, Alfonso Soriano, and José Vidro. The Nationals signed few major league free agents. Their most experienced free agent signing was Dmitri Young. Luis Ayala, Alex Escobar, Cristian Guzmán, Nick Johnson, Michael O'Connor and John Patterson were expected to return from season-ending injuries.