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Acta to second basemen: Job's up for grabs
Nationals notebook
Date published: 9/17/2008
BY RICH CAMPBELL WASHINGTON-- The Washington Nationals touted Emilio Bonifacio as their second baseman of the future when they traded for him on July 22, but that didn't stop them from stockpiling middle-infield depth.That included trading for Anderson Hernandez, whose recent emergence at the plate has provided the foundation for a 2009 spring-training position battle between Bonifacio and him. Manager Manny Acta doesn't consider that a negative development. In fact, his evaluations of both players during the remainder of the year will impact who starts next season. "Once they show up to the big league camp, a lot is going to be decided over there," Acta said. "But that being said, the last month of the season is that lasting impression that you leave on people. Going into spring training, whoever played the best here probably has the upper hand on getting in." Hernandez hit .340 with 12 RBIs in his first 17 games since arriving from the New York Mets in a trade on Aug. 20. His breakout was somewhat surprising considering he batted only .203 in 125 games at Triple-A before the trade, in which Washington sent reliever Luis Ayala to the Mets. Hernandez's transformation has been fueled by improved confidence. When he was struggling in the minors, he was hard on himself because he knew he could play better than what his numbers showed. Now, he is more relaxed. "When I got traded, I just said, 'Well, I'm just going to start again. I'm going to try to do my best again.' I've been working hard," Hernandez said. Acta is familiar with Hernandez from his days as a coach with the Mets and said he isn't surprised by Hernandez's contributions so far. "He probably needed a change of scenery," Acta said. "Other than 2006 when he started as the second baseman there, he hasn't had that many at-bats at the big league level. So I think being able to play more and the change of scenery probably helped him." Hernandez, 25, played 117 games at shortstop in Triple-A this season but since the trade has played 12 at second and only two at shortstop. Acta believes Hernandez and Bonifacio are both capable major-league defenders.
Date published: 9/17/2008
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