Report: Ex-Phillie Frandsen will join Nats (updated)

JUPITER, Fla.- According to this tweet from Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports, the Nationals appear to have found a veteran backup corner infielder to fill out their 25-man roster, Kevin Frandsen. Frandsen, who was released by the Phillies yesterday, would back up at first base and third base, and can also play second base and the outfield corners. The 31-year-old is a career .259 hitter in 402 games with the Giants, Angels and Phillies. He batted .338 in 55 games with Philadelphia in 2012, and boasts a career .265/.318/.343 slash line as a pinch-hitter. He also hits left-handed pitching quite well, to a .289/.343/.435 career slash line. There's been no confirmation yet from the Nationals, but it appears Frandsen will be the final piece of the Nats bench. That likely means third catcher Sandy Leon and utility man Jeff Kobernus will start the season with Triple-A Syracuse. Update: The Nationals have yet to announce the Frandsen signing, and manager Matt Williams declined to address specifics about Frandsen during his pregame conversation with reporters, citing that nothing is official yet. When a reporter tried asking in a roundabout way what Williams likes in his bench players, the skipper smiled. "I like options," he said. "Options are good. If, in fact, we were to look for somebody else, it would be somebody else that would give us multiple options, that has the ability to play multiple positions. That's important. It's important for your team to have guys that can move around and that are experienced in that regard and have done it." Sure sounds like a guy whose name rhymes with Shevin Bandsen to me. One factor that could be holding up the official announcement of the Frandsen signing is that the Nationals will need to clear a spot on the 40-man roster in order to add the veteran utility man. One candidate to be dropped off the 40-man is outfielder Eury Perez, as fellow center fielders Brian Goodwin and Michael Taylor are expected to start at Triple-A Syracuse and Double-A Harrisburg, respectively.