Vidro hits the diamond

On Thursday afternoon, second baseman Jose Vidro was spotted on the baseball diamond at Robert F. Kennedy Stadium playing with second baseman Carlos Baerga, his son, Jose Jr., and his younger brother.
Vidro was catching balls at first base and slowly getting fly balls around the diamond. Vidro is still wearing a protective boot after suffering a high ankle sprain and torn peroneal tendon against the Dodgers on May 4.

Vidro said that the boot is coming off this weekend and he is hoping that he could start exercising the ankle after that. He is not expected to be activated until after the All-Star break.

In the meantime, Vidro has been keeping himself in shape by lifting weights.

"The ankle is coming along pretty good," Vidro said. "I hope I can come back earlier than after the All-Star break. I feel much better. The team is going pretty good. These next couple of weeks are going to be critical as far as when I'll be back. If there's no pain, then I should know when to come back."

In Vidro's absence, Jamey Carroll has been the starting second baseman. Vidro said he told interim general manager Jim Bowden recently that Carroll has done a great job.

"We were glad that Jamey can play a lot of positions, especially second base," Vidro said. "The one thing that I really like about Jamey is the approach he has toward the game. When he is not playing, he is paying attention to a lot of things. He's one of those guys that learns pretty quick."

The short of it: After 1,200 hits in the Minor Leagues, infielder Rick Short finally became a big leaguer for the first time on Thursday. Short, 32, admitted that tears were shed when Triple-A New Orleans manager Tim Foli gave him the good news on Wednesday.

"It didn't sink in until much later in the night. My initial reaction was just that finally I'll get to play in the big leagues," he said.

Short feels it took him so long to reach the big leagues because he was in situations where the teams were not looking for an infielder. He also acknowledged that his below-average defense played a role in him not getting promoted to the big leagues sooner.

Injury report: Manager Frank Robinson, who is cautious when it comes to injuries, said that Carroll could be out of action for the rest of the week because of a sore left ankle. However, Carroll said that his ankle is much better and expects to play against the Mariners this weekend.

The Nationals called Short, in part, because of Carroll's injury. ...

Outfielder Jeffery Hammonds was activated from the 15-day disabled list and then optioned to Triple-A New Orleans. Hammonds was on the DL because of a right hamstring pull.

Stat of the day: Eight of Chad Cordrero's 10 saves this season have come in games decided by one run.

Did you know: The Nationals' streak of 10 straight come-from-behind wins is the longest in the Major Leagues since the Cardinals posted 10 straight of their own from April 5-26, 2002.

On deck: The Nationals begin a three-game series against the Mariners starting Friday night at RFK Stadium. The last time the two teams met was last season with the Mariners sweeping the Expos in Seattle.

Right-hander Tomo Ohka will make the start against the Nationals in Game 1. Ohka, who has never faced the Mariners, is looking to win his fourth consecutive decision. The last time Ohka pitched was on June 4 against the Marlins. He gave up three runs -- two earned -- in 3 1/3 innings, but didn't figure in the decision as the Nationals won, 7-3.

Source: http://washington.nationals.mlb.com/