As if there haven't been enough tough injury breaks for the Nationals this year, here's another one to add to the pile: Ronnie Belliard strained his right groin legging out an infield single tonight and is probably lost for the remainder of the season.

The veteran infielder came up lame about one-third of the way down the line on a seventh-inning grounder to short and immediately clutched his upper right leg. He'll undergo an MRI tomorrow, but manager Manny Acta suspects he won't return in time to finish the season.

It's a tough blow particularly because Belliard has been this team's best offensive player for almost two months now. He was hitting .353 (47-for-133) since the All-Star break and had taken over as the everyday first baseman.

"It's tough," said Belliard, who won't concede the season quite yet. "Not only me, but I think we're all playing good right now. ... I'll try to get better for the last couple of weeks, and we'll see what happens."

With Belliard shelved, Acta said he'll probably platoon Kory Casto and Aaron Boone at first base for the immediate future. Dmitri Young could also get thrown into the mix once he returns from the DL next week, depending on how he feels.

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