The Nationals have placed outfielder Ben Revere on the 15-day DL with a right oblique strain and recalled outfielder Matt den Dekker from Syracuse to take his place on the 25-man roster.
Revere, who was acquired in January in the trade that sent Drew Storen to Toronto, was supposed to solidify the top of the order for Washington, which struggled last season after losing leadoff man Denard Span to injury. In Monday's season opener in Atlanta, Revere was the starting center fielder and leadoff hitter, but he was pulled in the fourth inning.
"It was on my first swing of the season," Revere said after Monday's game. "After I struck out, I kind of felt it."
Revere said his side continued to bother him over the next couple of innings, most noticeably when he caught a third-inning line drive off the bat of Jace Peterson.
"It was kind of tough for me going over there running because it was tough for me to breathe," he said.
One inning later, Revere was replaced by Michael Taylor.
Revere, a 27-year-old speedster and contact hitter whose 10.1 percent strikeout rate was the seventh-lowest in the majors last year, has played at least 150 games in each of the past two seasons. His 176 stolen bases since the start of 2011 are the third-most in baseball in that span.
On Wednesday against the Braves, Taylor will bat leadoff and play center field. Following a strong rookie season in which he clubbed 14 home runs and drove in 63 runs, Taylor posted a 1.340 OPS during spring training, second-best in the majors.