Pregame news from Nationals Park: The club has traded reliever Luis Ayala to the Mets for a player-to-be-named, who will be infielder Anderson Hernandez.

The transaction actually won't be official until Wednesday, because Hernandez must go through waivers before he can be traded (since it's after the July 31 trade deadline). That said, the Nats are guaranteed to acquire him, because they have the worst record in the majors and thus have the first claim to any player that goes on waivers. But it takes several days for that process to become official, so Hernandez likely won't be in uniform until Wednesday in Philadelphia.

Also, the club plans to promote right-hander Marco Estrada from Class AAA Columbus in time for the start of this week's series at Philadelphia on Tuesday. Estrada, who is 3-3 with a 3.58 ERA in 12 starts with the Clippers, will pitch out of the bullpen for Washington. Another move will have to be made before Wednesday for Hernandez to join the 25-man roster.

Ayala was the longest-tenured player with the organization, having been selected by the Expos in the 2002 Rule 5 draft. He was among the best relievers in baseball for three years before blowing out his elbow in the 2006 World Baseball Classic and missing the entire season, but he came back strong in the second half last year to post a 3.19 ERA in 44 games.

So what happened this year? Ayala is 1-8 with a 5.77 ERA in 62 games and hasn't looked anything like the pitcher he used to be. He insisted today that he's healthy, and indeed his velocity has been in the low-to-mid 90s all season. The problem appears to have been mental more than anything. Ayala admitted he's gone through a lot this year, including a divorce and the bizarre hunting accident over the winter in which he was shot in the left arm by a friend. All of that apparently weighed on his mind and affected his performance.

"I feel healthy all year," Ayala said. "The proof is I've got 60-something games. I was healthy. The thing is, when you don't have the really focus on your job, you can't do a good job, you know? It's not like an excuse, but if you don't feel comfortable, something happens to where you can't do your job. I tried to do my best."

Ayala did ask for a trade earlier this season, but the Nats found no takers until now. He was a mixture of happy and sad this morning as he packed his bags.

"It's very tough," he said. "I had some great moments, some bad moments too. When I put on the jacket or the jersey, I feel like that's my team. That's where Im coming from. And then this year was a lot of things bad. When [Jim Bowden] told me you've got a trade, I remember my first game with the Expos, I remember my first game with the Nationals, too. So it's very tough. I played with a lot of great players, and in a few years I think they're going to be a great team."

As for Hernandez, he's a 25-year-old middle infielder who has shown he can hit in the minors and in winter ball but has never been able to sustain it in the big leagues. He's a career .274 hitter in the minors, .138 in the majors. Manny Acta knows him well from his time with the Mets, and he had good things to say about him today.

Where would Hernandez fit in long-term around here? Well, Cristian Guzman was just signed for two more year and $16 million. Alberto Gonzalez was acquired from the Yankees. So Hernandez would appear to be Class AAA filler and an available body in an emergency.

Other injury-related tidbits as the Nats and Rockies get ready to play...

-- Ryan Zimmerman, Austin Kearns, Guzman and Jesus Flores are all out of the lineup today. Just a day off for Zim and Kearns, who are still working their way back from injuries. Guzman continues to be hampered by a sore thumb but could be ready to return Tuesday. Flores has a strained right calf after an awkward slide into the plate last night. X-rays were negative and he sounded optmistic today that it's nothing serious.

With that, here are today's lineups...

NATIONALS

2B Bonifacio

LF Harris

CF Milledge

1B Boone

3B Belliard

RF Langerhans

SS Orr

C Nieves

P Perez

ROCKIES

2B Barmes

CF Taveras

LF Holliday

1B Atkins

RF Hawpe

C Iannetta

SS Tulowitzki

3B Stewart

P Cook

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