Nationals' Jake Alu: Roster bid falls short

The Nationals optioned Alu to Triple-A Rochester on Monday.

Alu got on base at a .409 clip over 11 Grapefruit League games, but the fact that he has two minor-league options remaining and slashed a pedestrian .226/.282/.289 over a larger sample of 175 plate appearances in the big leagues last season likely worked against him in his bid for a utility role with the Nationals. He should play on an everyday basis while he's with Rochester.