Dusty Baker weighs in on Danny Espinosa's offensive struggles

VIERA, Fla. - The presumed opening day Nationals shortstop has played in only three of the team's first seven Grapefruit League games and has yet to reach base. Danny Espinosa is 0-for-7 with four strikeouts, yet all signs still point to him manning the position when the Nats open in Atlanta on April 4.

If there are any signs of concern, they aren't evident.

Espinosa may be stumped by his slow start at the plate, and he certainly doesn't want to waste an opportunity, not with promising prospect Trea Turner angling for playing time. But Espinosa has manager Dusty Baker in his corner.

"I know he's frustrated, but we've got to give him a chance," Baker said. "What's a chance? A week? I'm not like that. We'll figure it out. We'll help him because we need him. We don't know if the kid (Turner) is ready or not. So we gotta do things we have to do."

Turner has made an impression with his speed and range in spring games, and the Nationals also have veteran shortstops Brendan Ryan and Stephen Drew in camp. If Turner forces the Nationals' hand and winds up starting the season as their shortstop, Espinosa again becomes a utility man, a role he got tired of over the past two seasons. If Espinosa wins the job and Turner heads to Triple-A Syracuse, Drew or Ryan could be the backup infielder.

So far, Baker isn't tipping his hand. He wants Espinosa and Turner to compete, figuring a positional battle potentially brings the best out in both. But the skipper also knows he has work to do to get Espinosa's inconsistent offense to level out.

Simply put, Espinosa needs regular at-bats in order to find his groove, something that's been difficult with Turner, Ryan and Drew (and, to a lesser extent, Wilmer Difo) vying for innings and at-bats.

"We got to find innings for him," Baker said. "We've had a lot of guys in camp. Soon here, we'll make cuts and guys will start extending their innings and their at-bats. I've been talking to him, (hitting coach Rick) Schu's been talking to him, (assistant hitting coach Jacque Jones) has been talking to him."

But Baker is also wary of having too many voices whispering in Espinosa's ear. He wants instruction to be taken the right way, not to complicate an existing issue. Baker knows he's the new guy in town and is thankful that Schu already has some experience working with Espinosa.

"You just don't make wholesale changes that you can just apply right away all the time," Baker said. "It's like feeding a young kid Pablum sometimes when you're trying to change (eating) habits. ... Sometimes, we can work hard and spend a lot of time, but sometime we possibly could have been working incorrectly and therefore compounding mistakes without even knowing that you're doing it. We're working with him."

Of the shortstop candidates, Ryan and Drew have been doing the most offensively. Ryan is hitting .417 (5-for-12) with a double, triple and an RBI. Drew is batting .286 (2-for-7) with two RBIs. Turner is hitting .111 (1-for-9) with a homer and an RBI, but has stolen a team-high two bases.

Well, it's time to hit the road to Lakeland for today's game. Joker Marchant Stadium is one of my favorite stops on the Grapefruit League circuit. There's a lot of history in Tigertown, true baseball ambience. Talk to you from the ballpark. I'll leave you with the game preview and Nationals lineup, which is chocked full of regulars who will make the two-hour trek.

WASHINGTON NATIONALS AT DETROIT TIGERS
Where: Joker Marchant Stadium, Lakeland
When: 1:05 p.m.
TV: None
Radio: MLB.com (Tigers broadcast)
Weather: Mostly sunny, 80 degrees, 16 mph variable winds

For the Nationals:

CF Ben Revere
2B Daniel Murphy
RF Bryce Harper
3B Anthony Rendon
LF Jayson Werth
1B Clint Robinson
SS Danny Espinosa
DH Jhonatan Solano
C Spencer Kieboom

LHP Gio Gonzalez