Two news items to report as the Nats prepare for tonight's game against the Pirates: 1) Elijah Dukes is back in the lineup, starting in right field and batting second one night after his very public dugout tussle with manager Manny Acta, and 2) Ryan Zimmerman returned from his doctors appointment in Cincinnati and was told he'll spend the next four to six weeks rehabbing his left shoulder, at which point a decision will be made whether or not he needs season-ending surgery. Let's tackle each subject one at a time...

THE DUKES ISSUE

Not a whole lot was said publicly today. Acta essentially re-said what he told me last night: That it was a "miscommunication" and that the situation was resolved after the game. "It's over with," Acta said today. "What happens in Pittsburgh is going to stay in Pittsburgh. We talked it out after the game and we're cool. We're fine."

Acta said he didn't hesitate to put Dukes back in the lineup tonight. "That has nothing to do with what happened yesterday. He's our right fielder."

Dukes said nothing about the matter. Several of us attempted to approach him in the clubhouse and were cut off by both Dmitri Young and James Williams (the guy hired by the Nats to watch over Dukes).

General manager Jim Bowden, who was in on the meeting with Dukes and Acta after the game, also said the matter is closed in his mind. "We met with Elijah after the game. There was a misunderstanding. We dealt with the situation behind closed doors. I support Manny Acta, the manager, 100 percent. We resolved the issue. It's now behind us."

THE ZIMMERMAN ISSUE

After meeting with Dr. Tim Kremchek in Cincinnati this morning, Zimmerman was told he should take the next four to six weeks to work on rehabbing his left shoulder. He won't be allowed to swing a bat for at least a month, only strengthening exercises. If at that point, around the All-Star Break, the shoulder has not healed to the point he can play, Zimmerman will have season-ending arthroscopic surgery.

"Dr. Kremchek believes that there is a 70 percent chance that we can resolve this without surgery over the next four to six weeks," Bowden said. "We will know at the All-Star Break either way. If in fact he's not better by the All-Star break, then at that time we'll operate so that he's 100 percent for next season. We will not wait til the season's over to risk going into next year." Zimmerman, while not ecstatic about this news, wasn't exactly stunned.

"I knew we were going to take it slow," he said. "Obviously, the four to six weeks is lenient. It could either be four or six. I don't think it's that much worse than I thought it would be."

So there you have it from a busy Wednesday afternoon at PNC Park. Here's Acta's lineup for Game 2 of the series...

SS Guzman RF Dukes CF Milledge 1B Young C Flores 3B Belliard 2B Lopez LF Harris P Lannan

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