"The Washington Nationals sent Elijah Dukes to Class AAA Syracuse on Wednesday morning, saying Dukes was not a "finished product" and needed to play every day rather than sit on the bench in the majors.

The move came in response to the team's acquisition Tuesday of middle reliever Sean Burnett and center fielder Nyjer Morgan in a trade that sent Lastings Milledge and Joel Hanrahan to the Pittsburgh Pirates.

"I don't think we're going to be doing him any help by just sitting him here," Acta said before Wednesday's game against the Florida Marlins at Land Shark Stadium.

Acting general manager Mike Rizzo called the demotion of Dukes "a pure baseball decision" designed to ensure Dukes would get enough at-bats and playing time to continue to develop, but the move also seemed to signal a loss of confidence in a player once considered among the organization's top prospects.

Dukes and Milledge had, as recently as this spring, been considered Washington's outfielders of the future.

"I didn't see the consistent at-bats I wanted Elijah to have," Rizzo said. "I think he understands this is a developmental process. . . . He can use this time to right himself down there." "