As Taylor moves closer to return, Goodwin's numbers decline

The Nationals have been able to withstand the long-term injuries to lineup regulars by getting contributions from a number of backups. And in some cases, even the backups to the backups.

But they do need to start seeing those regulars come back from the disabled list, and in the process allow those backups to slide back into the roles for which they were intended all along.

There is some good news in that regard: Michael A. Taylor last night played his seventh rehab game, and launched a three-run homer in the process.

After suiting up for Single-A Potomac for six games, Taylor moved up to Double-A Harrisburg and debuted for the Senators last night in Bowie. Leading off and playing center field, he went 1-for-6 but made the most of that one hit, sending a three-run homer over the scoreboard in left-center.

Overall, Taylor is hitting just .160 (4-for-25) in his week on rehab assignment, but the strained oblique muscle that sent him to the DL back on July 7 has healed, and he's simply getting his timing and baseball legs back now.

The Nationals have made no formal declarations about Taylor's timeline, but there appears to be a good chance he'll come off the DL before the end of the current homestand.

That will allow the club to move Brian Goodwin back into a reserve outfielder's role, which at this point might benefit him. Despite showing some surprising power (12 homers in 234 at-bats) and strong defense, Goodwin might be getting exposed a bit at the plate while playing every day.

Since Taylor went down and Goodwin took over as the everyday center fielder, he's hitting .209 with a .267 on-base percentage and .712 OPS. And that's with last night's three-hit performance included.

Goodwin, who has started 27 consecutive games, insists fatigue is not an issue.

"Not really," the rookie said. "I'll take as much (playing time) as I can get. You come from playing every day down there in the minors, so it's really not too big an adjustment."