VIERA, Fla. -- After Livan Hernandez and John Patterson, the rest of the Nationals' starting rotation is up for grabs, according to manager Frank Robinson. The candidates for the remaining three spots are Tony Armas Jr., Ryan Drese, Brian Lawrence, Ramon Ortiz and Jon Rauch. All five right-handers come with question marks. Armas, Drese and Rauch had shoulder problems last year, while Lawrence and Ortiz had bad years.

"You have certain guys in mind, like Tony, Ortiz, Lawrence and guys like that, but we have to wait and see," Robinson said. "I'm not saying, 'OK, that guy is locked in this slot.' After Livan and Patterson, it's an open audition."

Armas hasn't pitched a full season since 2002 because of shoulder problems, but Dr. Tim Kremcheck had convinced general manager Jim Bowden that Armas will be healthy. It's the No. 1 reason Armas was re-signed for another year. Kremcheck performed minor surgery on Armas' shoulder in September.

"This year I'm coming with a different mindset," Armas said. "Every year, I've come into Spring Training wanting to be healthy. This year, I'm going to be healthy. I'm going to be positive more than before. I don't have to be on a pitch limit."

Drese also had right shoulder surgery last season, and he told Robinson on Saturday afternoon that his arm is free and loose. Drese said he was pitching with a sore shoulder all season.

"I'm able to get into my high arm slot that I wasn't able to get to last year," Drese said. "It's encouraging, but I have to make sure that I don't do too much too quick."

Rauch missed more than three months in 2005, but came back in time to pitch during the final month of the season. Robinson said that Rauch would be stretched out as a starter, but there is a possibility he could be a reliever.

"We'll see where he fits and how he performs," Robinson said. "If you don't start him, it would be very difficult to get him to start later on. We can also make him a reliever. I haven't seen him enough as a starter to draw a conclusion. As a reliever, he has been very effective. What I have liked about him from Day 1 is that he has been able to throw a strike with his fastball at almost any time. If he gets behind a hitter, he can throw a fastball for a strike."

Lawrence is coming off a season in which he went 7-15 with a 4.83 ERA with the Padres. For now, Lawrence said it's too early to concentrate on where he fits in with the team.

"I'm not trying to be a number," Lawrence said. "I'm still going to pitch. I'm just going to have a different uniform on."

Ortiz said he has no excuses as to why he had a 5.36 ERA. He even refused to use the alibi that he pitched in a small ballpark in Cincinnati.

"You can't think about a small ballpark. You have to keep the ball down. That's what you must do in the game," Ortiz said. "Everybody said the ball flew out in Cincinnati, but it's a good field. It doesn't matter if it's a small ballpark, big ballpark. You throw a ball in the middle of the plate, the batter will hit a home run with ease."

Slim fast: During the last four years with the Nationals/Expos, reliever Joey Eischen had a bulky frame. But this season, he came to camp 17 pounds lighter. Eischen was motivated to lose the weight because he didn't like the way he looked at the end of last season, and because his wife, Nicole, decided to become a professional body builder. Her first competition is in June.

"I finished the season with a fat body. I gained some of the weight partially because I couldn't work out and do different things after breaking [the radius in his right arm in April]," Eischen said.

"I worked hard [this offseason]. I wanted to get down where I was before," he continued. "My wife has been training and getting ready for a competition, and that kind of spurned me on a little more. I couldn't let her outwork me, and I came in a little lighter than I wanted. I'm in better shape than I planned. ... She was a good motivator for me this offseason."

Injury report: Right-hander Andrew Good tweaked his left ankle while covering first base in a practice session on Sunday morning. Robinson then told the grounds crew to fix the dirt near first base.

After practice, Good was walking around without a limp, and he said he hopes to practice on Monday.

"The ground was a little soft over there and I rolled on my ankle. It's not a big deal," Good said. "I'll get treatment the next couple of days and it should be fine. It's just a slight sprain. We'll see how it feels tomorrow."

Catcher/first baseman Robert Fick had his right elbow wrapped in ice after the first workout. He said the elbow was tight after lifting weights during the offseason. He said it was nothing serious.

Fick spent most of the day getting tips about the art of throwing behind the plate from assistant general manager Bob Boone, a great defensive catcher in the 1970s and '80s. Wiki Gonzalez later joined in the session, which lasted over an hour. Boone is trying to get Fick to throw more accurately to second base.

"He was talking about my hands and how I should receive the ball," Fick said. "The rap on me is my throwing. He said he is going to make me an accurate thrower to second base. I have the arm strength, but I haven't had the accuracy. We talked about the correct form. It was different information than I ever heard before."

Watching out for Chad: Chad Cordero's arm was tired during the month of September. In fact, he gave up eight runs in seven innings during the final month of the season.

Robinson said he had to find somebody else to close games once in a while, and doesn't want Cordero to have all of the workload this season. Cordero pitched in 74 games in 2005 and saved 44 of them.

"When you are losing, a manager thinks about using his best," Robinson said. "That's where I could have used somebody else in certain situation."

Luis Ayala, Gary Majewski and Mike Stanton have been known to close games during their professional careers.

Roster move: The Nationals signed reliever Kevin Gryboski, 32, to a Minor League contract with an invitation to Spring Training. Last season, the right-hander played for the Braves and Rangers. He appeared in 42 games and had a 5.52 ERA.

Gryboski's best season was with the Braves in 2004, when he had a 2.84 ERA in 69 games.