June 29, 2006


It was only a matter of time before Nationals third baseman Kory Casto moved
from the hot corner to another defensive spot. And while that was widely
speculated that the Nats would move the 24-year-old to the right side of the
diamond to second base with Ryan Zimmerman entrenched at third in Washington,
Casto played the outfield Wednesday for the first time since 2003.

Originally drafted as an outfielder in the third round out of Portland, Casto
played the outfield during his pro debut at short-season Vermont. But after
he batted just .239/.322/.355 in 259 at-bats, he was moved to third in 2004
and made 35 errors in 112 games.

He made tremendous strides defensively at high Class A Potomac, but with
Zimmerman entering the system, his days at third were numbered. That's when
the Nationals considered the move to second, but with Alfonso Soriano likely
to be dealt at the July 31 trade deadline, and the fact that Casto played the
outfield before, the move to left field makes more sense.

"It wasn't something that was a shock because there has been talk of me
changing positions and there has been a chance someday somebody could want
you to play there," Casto told the Fredericksburg (Va.) Free Lance-Star. "You
just want to enhance your value, put up good numbers and see what happens.

"It's a little more of a comfortable change. Moving back to the outfield, I
have been out there before so I know what it's like. It's not going to be as
big of an adjustment."

The biggest reason for the switch now is Casto's bat. Even as he worked so
diligently on his defense at third base in Potomac last season, his offense
certainly didn't suffer--he hit .290/.394/.510 with 22 homers and 90 RBIs in
500 at-bats. It was more of the same story this year, as Casto was batting
.299/.419/.536 with 13 bombs in 261 at-bats.

"Kory's asset is his bat and he's having another tremendous year and he's
getting pretty close to the major leagues," Nationals assistant GM and senior
director of player development Bob Boone told the paper. "If there were a
trade or something happened in the next 30 days, or by the 31st [of July], he
would be a viable option if you want to put him in left field."