Yesterday, it finally came to a head. The issue everyone kept putting on the backburner finally rushed to the forefront of the Washington Nationals’ spring training season. Alfonso Soriano, the highest paid player of the club, refused to take the field in his assigned role of left fielder against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Space Coast Stadium in Viera, Fla. Brandon Watson eventually took the field in Soriano’s place, playing centerfield while moving Ryan Church to left.

General Manager Jim Bowden, who met with Soriano and manager Frank Robinson before yesterday’s game, said the club would put Soriano in the line up again, at the same position, for Wednesday’s game against the St. Louis Cardinals, and if he refuses to take the field, the club would attempt to put him on MLB’s disqualified list. “We do not want it to come to that,” Bowden told the Post. “We have compassion for him. But we’re in a position for this ballclub that if we can’t make a trade that makes sense, we’re not going to give him away, and we have a team to run. Our feeling is we don’t want to wait till Opening Day to do this.” Putting Soriano on the disqualified list would mean he wouldn’t get paid until he agreed to take the field. It appears Soriano has no chance of playing his natural position of second base. “If he’s going to play here,” Robinson said, “he’s going to be out in left field.”

With only two weeks left until Opening Day, this situation bears watching. Local baseball blog Capitol Punishment has a rundown of local opinion on the matter. It seems like no one’s going to come out as the winner in this battle, no matter what the outcome.