"Jose is on a leave," Kasten said Saturday. "With all the questions swirling and with all the work being done still on this matter, we felt it would be a good time for him to be away from here."
Rijo, who runs the Nationals' Dominican academy, was instrumental in the 2006 signing of a prospect who went by the name Esmailyn Gonzalez and claimed to be 16. The shortstop's representative at the time was Basilio Vizcaino, a buscon (street agent) and childhood friend of Rijo's.
Washington gave that player a franchise-record $1.4 million signing bonus and touted him as a future star, but the club admitted this week that a Major League Baseball investigation revealed he had lied about his name and age.
That player's real name, according to a new passport the Nationals received, is Carlos Alvarez. He was born in November 1985, making him four years older than previously believed.
The player, who hit .343 to win the rookie Gulf Coast League batting title last season at 23, remains in the Dominican Republic but could report to Viera with the rest of the organization's minor league position players March 13.
The FBI has been investigating illegal practices by MLB clubs in which team executives skim the signing bonuses given to Dominican players. Bowden was interviewed last summer by the FBI, and Rijo's name has since been linked with that investigation as well.
Both Bowden and Rijo have denied any wrongdoing. Bowden made his first appearance at spring training Saturday but declined to talk to reporters.
"When all this comes out, people will see I didn't do anything wrong," Rijo said Saturday night. "But I don't want to be a distraction, so this is better for everyone right now."
Rijo, a former All-Star and World Series MVP with the Cincinnati Reds, had been in uniform and on the field through the first week of workouts, even after the prospect scandal was revealed Wednesday. But after meeting with Kasten and other front office executives Friday night, the 43-year-old agreed to leave the club indefinitely and return to the Dominican Republic, where he can also tend to his ailing mother.
Kasten said there is no timetable for Rijo's return but stressed that he remains a team employee.
Asked if there was a concern that Rijo could become a distraction, Kasten said: "Yeah, there was a general feeling, I think. And knowing how intrepid you reporters are, we didn't want to invite continued scrutiny of Jose while he would otherwise be trying to work. So this is just sensible."
Kasten said no other Nationals employees have left the club, though the ongoing MLB investigation could reveal improprieties within the organization during a scandal he has called a "deliberate, premeditated fraud."
"There's a lot going on behind the scenes," Kasten said. "You've only seen a small piece of it so far, but there's a lot more to do. So in time we will be learning more and more about it.
"This has been long and drawn out. And we're not going to stop until we get all the answers to all the questions this has raised. The first revelation was good. It was a long time coming, but it's good that we got it and got it out. Whatever else remains to be found out, we want to find out. And the sooner the better.
"I promise you, we're doing everything we can on our end to expedite everything we possibly can."
TEMPERATURE CHECK
Jose Rijo
Is this first of several shoes to drop?
World Baseball Classic
Cabrera, Martis, Bernadina pull out of event
Autograph seekers
Dudes, Jordan Zimmermann is not Ryan Zimmerman
OVERHEARD
"Yeah, if you go to one of these places here and start dancing naked on top of a table in the first week. Regardless of who you are, you might lose your job."
- Manager Manny Acta, when asked if anyone could win or lose a roster spot this early in camp
Back to work
VIERA, Fla. - Ryan Zimmerman was back at Nationals camp Saturday, $3 million richer than he was when he left two days earlier.
The 24-year-old third baseman, who agreed to a one-year, $3.325 million contract shortly before his scheduled arbitration hearing in Phoenix, sounded ready to get back to Baseball as he sat at his locker at Space Coast Stadium.
Zimmerman said he's interested in trying to sign a long-term deal before Opening Day. Although he can't become a free agent until after the 2011 season and might be better off waiting until the economy improves, the "face of the franchise" thinks there's good reason to get a deal done now.
"It just gets to the point where you think: How much do you really need, and do you really want to be here?" he said. "That's the most important thing. The whole point of being a free agent, and the whole point of having the negotiating power, is to play where you want to play. I don't really need to go anywhere. I'm happy to be here. It's just a matter of getting the figures right."
Wagner impresses
Forgotten not long ago by the organization and by fans, right-hander Ryan Wagner is back and making a case to be part of Washington's bullpen.
The reliever, 26, hasn't pitched in the majors since suffering a major shoulder tear in 2007. Upon returning last season, he posted a 5.68 ERA at Class AAA Columbus. But he's fully healthy now and dazzled onlookers Saturday while facing live batters.
"I feel as good as I've felt since '04," said Wagner, a former first-round pick of the Reds. "I feel like I'm back to myself."