Werth, back in D.C., still not cleared for baseball activities

MIAMI - It has been 16 days since Jayson Werth fouled a ball off his left foot, six days since the Nationals outfielder was eligible to return from the disabled list.

And it's going to continue to be a while until Werth is back in the Nats lineup.

Despite initial hope he wouldn't need more than the minimum 10 days on the DL, Werth remains out. He remains in Washington, rehabbing with the club's non-traveling training staff, not yet having been cleared for baseball activities.

"We were hoping he would join us (here in Miami), but he's still receiving therapy," manager Dusty Baker said before tonight's series opener against the Marlins. "We'll see him when we get home. I'm hoping he's getting better."

At issue is the fact Werth cannot yet run, or do any baseball activities that would involve putting pressure on his left foot (ie. batting). For now, all of his work is restricted to conditioning. That's helping keep the 38-year-old in shape while he's out, but it's not helping him get closer to playing baseball.

"He's swimming and doing all the core work to try to stay in the best shape he can until he comes back," Baker said. "We'll get a better look at him when we get back."

From the moment Werth had to depart the Nationals' June 3 game in Oakland after fouling a ball off his instep, just shy of his big toe, Baker said these types of injuries notoriously take a long time to heal, especially for veterans.

So far, the longtime manager has been proven correct, leaving the Nats in a bind. With no one bona fide replacement for Werth, Baker has been spreading around at-bats among a trio of left fielders: Brian Goodwin (7-for-35), Ryan Raburn (6-for-21) and Adam Lind (3-for-7).

Collectively, those backup left fielders are hitting .254 with a .309 on-base percentage and a .524 slugging percentage. Werth, for what it's worth, is hitting .262 with a .367 on-base percentage and a .446 slugging percentage.

"The other guys have been getting a chance to play, but we miss Jayson," Baker said. "We miss him big-time. We miss him on the field, miss him on the clubhouse, miss him on the bus, on the plane. He's a big presence on this team, one of the real leaders on this team. But in the meantime, we have to do what we have to do until Jayson gets back. I'm trying to round-robin the best I can out there."

Raburn is getting the start tonight against Marlins lefty Justin Nicolino.