Washington Nationals rookie second baseman Danny Espinosa has played in every game this season,and intends to keep it that way through the rest of the year. The rookie-of-the-year candidate said that he had discussed playing every day with now-departed Nationals manager Jim Riggleman:
"Riggleman talked about, ‘Well, I want to get you 500 at-bats,' " Espinosa said this morning. "I was like, ‘Well, what's the difference between 500 and 700? I want to play every single day. I'm not stopping at 500. What's the deal?' I want that. I want to play every day. I mean that. I really do want to play every single day."
New Nats manager Davey Johnson said that Espinosa has the body-type to withstand playing every day, and the youngster sure seems gung-ho about the prospect of doing just that:
"You're supposed to play all 162, aren't you?" Espinosa said. "I want to play in every game. I want to start in every game. I don't want to miss a single thing. I hate sitting out. I love playing every single day, whether I'm hurt, whether I'm not feeling 100 percent. I want to play."
So, should he sit out? He is young, but 162 games is a lot.