WASHINGTON -- The Nationals activated left-hander Ray King and placed right-hander Jerome Williams on the 15-day disabled list with a mild left ankle sprain.

Manager Manny Acta informed Williams of the news on Sunday morning, a day after Williams felt a DL stint was unlikely. Williams said the ankle is still sore.

"It [stinks], but you know what? Whatever it takes to get me healthy. If I miss a start, it's not going to hurt me at all," Williams said. "I want to be healthy and be competitive out there. I'm disappointed because I was pitching pretty good."

Williams was pitching a shutout after six innings on Saturday. After going to the mound in the top of the seventh, Acta and assistant athletic trainer Michael McGowan went out to check on Williams, who stayed in the game. But after walking David Wright on five pitches, Williams was removed from the game and limped toward the dugout.

Williams hurt the ankle swinging the bat in the bottom of the sixth inning against left-hander Tom Glavine. On an 0-2 pitch, he hit the ball over the head of left fielder Moises Alou. Williams thought the ball was out of the park for a home run and took his time going to first base because his ankle was hurting. The ball hit the fence, however, and Williams ended up with a long single.

Williams aggravated the injury further when he tried to break up a double play minutes later.

Williams' next turn in the rotation would have been Thursday, but the Nationals have the day off.

"Since we had [Thursday] off, [putting him on the DL] was the best option for us," Acta said.

By pitching well on Saturday, Williams saved himself from being demoted to the Minor Leagues. Prior to Saturday's action, the right-hander had given up 19 earned runs in 22 innings.

As for King, he had been on the DL because of tendinitis in his left shoulder. After missing a couple of weeks, the southpaw said the shoulder is feeling the way it did during his best seasons with the Cardinals in 2004 and '05.

"I'm hoping it was just some scar tissue that was building up over the years," King said. "When I was throwing my bullpens and simulated games, I was able to throw some changeups that [had some bite to them]."

King will join Micah Bowie as the two lefties out of the bullpen.

Transaction: The Nationals are expected to recall Kory Casto from Triple-A Columbus on Monday. He is expected to be the everyday left fielder.

The Nationals have not decided on a corresponding move. In his first stint with the Nationals, Casto was 5-for-29 (.172) with an RBI early this month. Part of the problem was that he was unable to pull the ball; all of his hits and outs were hit to either left or center field.

Casto now feels that he has fixed the problem by keeping his hands back. In fact, entering Sunday's action, all of Casto's three home runs for Columbus were hit to right field.

Baseball tragedy: Outfielder Austin Kearns, shortstop Felipe Lopez and reliever Ryan Wagner were saddened to learn that Cardinals pitcher Josh Hancock was killed in a car accident early Sunday morning in St. Louis.

The four of them played together in Cincinnati in 2004 and '05. Kearns, Lopez and Wagner all said that Hancock was a good guy who kept to himself.

Of the three, Kearns knew him the best because they had taken rehab trips together in Louisville.

"It leaves you speechless," Kearns said. "You don't know what to say. I hope his family is OK. I pray for [his family]. That's all you can do. He was a good dude."

Injury report: The Nationals are expecting to activate shortstop Cristian Guzman no later than May 7, which is the start of a three-game series against the Brewers. He is playing extended spring games and isn't having any problems with his left hamstring.

Washington is also looking to take center fielder Nook Logan off disabled list at the same time, but he is not playing his first extended spring game until Monday. Logan is on the DL because of a left foot strain.

Sick bay: Catcher Jesus Flores started his second consecutive game on Sunday against the Mets because Brian Schneider has flu-like symptoms. Acta said Schneider was feeling worse than he did on Saturday. Schneider will fly with the team to San Diego on Sunday evening.

Send in your question: The Nationals mailbag appears this Monday. Send in your questions now, and make sure to include "Mailbag" in the subject line.

Stat of the day: Opposing teams have outscored the Nationals in every inning except for the ninth. Entering Sunday, Washington has scored 10 runs, while opposing teams have scored eight in that inning.

Did you know? Since the 2005 season, the Nationals are 11-8 in rubber games at RFK Stadium.

Coming up: The Nationals travel to San Diego to play a three-game series against the Padres starting Monday night at 10:05 ET. In Game 1, Washington right-hander John Patterson will face Padres right-hander Jake Peavy.