By Barry Svrluga
Washington Post Staff Writer
Sunday, March 25, 2007

VIERA, Fla., March 24 -- Nook Logan's initial thought Saturday afternoon, when his hit bounced into right field, was to stretch what looked like a single into a double. Logan is one of the fastest players in baseball, and his greatest asset for the Washington Nationals is sheer speed.

But when St. Louis Cardinals right fielder John Rodriguez charged hard, Logan planted his right foot in the dirt, intending to head back to first. With that one action, though, he potentially sent the Nationals' Opening Day lineup and roster into a tizzy. Logan, Washington's center fielder, immediately crumpled to the ground, where he lay motionless for a couple of minutes. He limped off the field with an athletic trainer at his side, clutching what the club has initially labeled a strained right groin.

Nationals officials had little idea after the game when Logan would be able to return, but the injury at least enhanced the possibility that rookie Kory Casto -- who has impressed the coaching staff and front office all spring -- could not only make the team, but be in the starting lineup when the season opens April 2.

"It could be three days, it could be five," Manager Manny Acta said of Logan's injury. "It could be two months. We don't know yet."

Logan, who limped into the clubhouse from the trainers' room under his own power after a 10-inning, 4-2 loss to the Cardinals, was more optimistic. "Hopefully, it's a couple of days," he said, and the club did not order an MRI exam. Rather, Logan will be evaluated again on Sunday.

"It was more of a scare," he said. "I just felt a little grab and pain right there. Ten, 15 minutes after that, when the doc checked me out, there was no swelling. So that's good right now."

Logan said the injury was not as painful as a left groin strain he suffered before he was drafted by the Detroit Tigers from Copiah-Lincoln Community College in his home town of Natchez, Miss., in 2000. Even with that injury, Logan said he missed negligible time. But Acta knows such comparisons don't necessarily mean much.

"The first day, guys don't think it's that serious," Acta said. "It's the next day, when they wake up."

Should Logan miss significant time and begin the season on the disabled list, the immediate solution would be to move Ryan Church, whom Acta has said would be his starting left fielder, to center. Two years ago, Church was slated to be the Nationals' Opening Day center fielder -- until he strained a groin in an exhibition game the day before the season at RFK Stadium.

Church, who is hitting just .204 this spring, said he would have no problem moving to center.

"I feel comfortable," Church said. "It doesn't matter. My whole thing is: As long as I'm in the lineup, everything will be good."

Had Logan's injury happened two weeks ago, Acta's answer about who would play left field would have been easy: Chris Snelling, who leads the club with 13 RBI in Grapefruit League play. Asked that question after Saturday's game, Acta said, "TBA. We'll make a decision on that later."

The reason: Casto. Though the 25-year-old has never played above Class AA, he has won over the Nationals coaches and front office with his patient approach at the plate, tireless work ethic -- including almost daily appearances in the batting cages before 7 a.m. -- and willingness to play whatever position he is asked, from left field to third base to first base.

"It's good to be able to do multiple things," said Casto, who went 0 for 4 Saturday but is still hitting .324 with six walks in 40 plate appearances. "If something does happen, I'm not just limited to one spot. If they needed somebody to come up or whatever, I could play three or four or five positions."

Acta believes Casto's natural position is the one he might fill if Logan's injury is, indeed, serious: left field.

"He's got very good instincts back there," Acta said. "He moves very well. He's got a strong arm."

All of that had some staff members wondering, even before Logan went down on Saturday, how the club might be able to keep Casto without losing Snelling or Church, who are both out of options and could be claimed by another club if the Nationals tried to send them to the minors.

One potential solution: keeping only 11 pitchers, rather than the 12 that were in the original plans because of what is expected to be a shaky starting rotation. Originally, Acta said he would not want Casto to be in the majors unless he was able to play every day. But Casto's performance during spring training changed that.

"We're reevaluating that situation," Acta said. "Casto's 25 years old. I think that even if we got him up here [and into games] two, three times a week, we could keep him up here . . . because we're not talking about a 20-year-old guy where we don't want him sitting [on the bench] up here. We think he can handle it."

Logan's injury is potentially the most serious in what has largely been a healthy camp for Washington. Before Saturday, right-hander Jason Simontacchi strained his right groin, an injury that could cost him a turn in the rotation during the season's first week. Catcher Brian Schneider is scheduled to return Sunday from a hamstring strain that cost him a week. Right-hander John Patterson suffered from dehydration Saturday, though club officials don't believe the condition to be serious.

"It could've been worse," Acta said. "A couple of guys have had 'Tommy John surgery' already on other clubs. That's why I keep telling [the media], I can't give you a 25-man roster now, because too many things can happen."