Stop me Nationals fans if you've heard this before: the team will send down outfielder Justin Maxwell to AAA-Syracuse, this time to make room for pitcher Luis Atilano, according to Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post.
It's the fourth time Maxwell has been sent down this season, and while it was a necessary move to get Atilano back in the Nationals' rotation, that's no consolation for Maxwell. Maxwell expressed his frustration with the situation prior to last night's Nationals game.
"The game's not frustrating," Maxwell said. "The process can be. Like I said before, I'm not worried about all that other crap. I just want to play."
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"I asked them, 'Is this how it's going to be?' " Maxwell said. "They just said, 'You're the guy with options.' I said, 'Okay.' That makes sense. They want me to play every day and I want to play every day. Considering I'm the only guy with options on the team and I'm not a left-handed batter, I'm the odd man out. But I know God has a plan for me and it's all going to work itself out."
Such is life when you're on the fringes of the Major Leagues.
Meanwhile, Atilano, who will start Tuesday night's game, was 6-6 with a 4.85 ERA this season before being briefly sent down to AAA.