WASHINGTON -- A day after dismissing John Wetteland because of philosophical differences, Nationals manager Frank Robinson hired Randy Knorr to be the bullpen coach for the Nationals for the rest of the season.

From 2002-04, Knorr tried to make the Expos teams as a backup catcher under Robinson, but his lack of hitting would always force him back to the Minor Leagues. Since then, Knorr had been managing in the Nationals' farm system.

Most recently, Knorr was managing at Class A Potomac, who were 31-36 and in third place in the Northern Division of the Carolina League. They were only two games behind first-place Lynchburg.

"He is an ex-catcher and was always praised about his handling of pitchers," Robinson said. "I know when I came into this organization, we kept him around for three or four years for insurance at the big-league level, had him at Triple-A to handle the young pitchers down there. I think he fits the bill here for the position that's open."

It will be Knorr's job to straighten out a bullpen that has been inconsistent all year, make sure they pay attention to the games and don't pull any practical jokes. Robinson felt Wetteland undermined his authority.

Knorr is already familiar with some of the relievers. He caught Gary Majewski and Jon Rauch when all three were with Triple-A Edmonton.

Knorr said he was surprised that he got the call to join the Major League club.

"I'm down in A-ball and we have a chance to win the first half and I get a call yesterday. When someone like Frank Robinson asks you to do something, you do it," Knorr said. "I'm going to go down there and clean up the bullpen. ... To be in the bullpen, you have to be prepared to come in the games."

Edgar Caceres will replace Knorr as the manager of Potomac.

Defending Wetteland: Wetteland was accused of changing the personalities of the relievers, especially Chad Cordero and Gary Majewski, but both players said that Wetteland did nothing of the sort. But they did acknowledge there were times they didn't pay close attention to the game.

"It's one of those things where we have becoming a family down [in the bullpen]," Majewski said. "He's a guy you hang out with. He played the game a while and you pay a lot of attention to it. It was a surprise. I didn't see it coming.

"We tried to do our best, but you have to have fun in this game. We probably took some things to the limit that Frank didn't like. Frank didn't like the way [Wetteland] did things. A couple of times, we may not have been paying attention in certain situations and I can understand where Frank is coming from. We have to pay attention to the game. All he is asking for is three hours of work to get things done."

Cordero acknowledged that the relievers were mischievous in the bullpen, but the antics were done before games and in-between innings.

"We were not messing with anybody. We really didn't do anything," Cordero said.

Send in your questions: The Nationals mailbag runs every Monday.Send in your questions now.

Stat of the day: Entering Friday's action, the Nationals are 22-11 when scoring first in a game.

Did you know: Ryan Zimmerman's 41 RBIs leads all Major League rookies entering Friday's action. Zimmerman is on pace to drive in 100 runs this season.

Coming up: The Nationals play the second game of a three-game series against the Yankees on Saturday at 1:20 p.m. ET at Robert F. Kennedy Stadium.

Right-hander Ramon Ortiz will get the start for Washington, while right-hander Shawn Chacon gets the nod for New York.