“Shoot, I think I saw Difo make one out,” Baker said. “He’s the MVP of that game.”

Baker’s assessment was partly in jest — if Grapefruit League games don’t matter, simulated minor leagues are a step or two below that — but it was notable just a few days after he had criticized Difo’s performance in Grapefruit League play.

“We love Difo, but we don’t like mistakes,” Baker said last week. “And so far it’s been mistakes on the bases. It’s happened more than a couple times, so it’s like we’re in the process of trying to round him out to be a ballplayer.”

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That process isn’t recent. It’s what the Nationals have been trying to accomplish with Difo, a multi-tool infielder whose flash has often dwarfed substance, long before Baker arrived last season. When Difo was relayed Baker’s assessment, he said he had been talked to about getting caught in a rundown, but nothing else.

“That was the only baserunning mistake I’ve made until now,” Difo said in Spanish late last week. “After that, I don’t know what other baserunning mistake I’ve made. But he’s the manager. He’s the head. I don’t have control of what he says.”

Difo signed out of the Dominican Republic for $20,000 in 2010 as an 18-year-old, later than when most Dominican prospects are plucked. The opportunity to become an established major leaguer will come, if it does, later than most, too. Difo has appeared in 48 career major league games, including two in the postseason last October, and turns 25 on April 2, the day before the Nationals open their season likely without him on the roster. He would’ve been a prime candidate for the utility infielder spot, but the Nationals re-signed Stephen Drew in late January to retain the role, leaving him to likely begin the season in the minors.

But there’s an outside chance he finds himself on the big league roster through another avenue: as an outfielder. Difo has never played in the outfield in a meaningful game as a professional, spending most of his time at shortstop and second base before adding third base to his résumé last season. Baker said Difo was supposed to play in the outfield in the Dominican winter league, but he didn’t and was introduced to the outfield for the first time this spring. Difo, who is 11 for 27 in 15 games this spring, has made appearances in the outfield in two exhibitions so far, both in center field.

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“This is adding to his potential value,” Baker said. “That is a valuable, valuable person. Any time you can move guys around and not lose anything defensively, that is a big, big, big plus.”

The Nationals believe in the 5-foot-11 Difo’s skill set, but mental mishaps and immaturity have admittedly plagued him over the years. He insisted he has grown on and off the field. He said his English has improved, to the point he can go to a restaurant and order food without relying on hand signals, though he’s still reluctant to conduct interviews in the language. But he also maintained he is who he is, energetic, boisterous, eccentric.

“That’s my game. That’s my personality. That’s who I am,” Difo said. “I’m an aggressive person, always happy and I’m always up for the situation. That’s me. I’m not going to change. That’s me. If I change, then things are going to change. You have to be you. If you change your personality, you’re not going to feel the same.”

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But last week, on the advice of teammates and coaches, Difo did make an adjustment with perception in mind: he cut off his braids.

“You have to have a good image,” Difo said. “And that’ll grow. It’s hair.”

The Nationals have Brian Goodwin and Michael A. Taylor, who is enjoying another standout spring, as more-experienced options for the fourth outfield spot, which will probably go to someone who can patrol center field. They are likelier candidates. But Difo is ready and willing. He capitalized when a vendor from his glove company visited the Nationals clubhouse a couple weeks ago and requested a black outfield glove. It was his first one and it’s already broken in.

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“The tools are here,” Difo said. “I just need the chance.”

● Tanner Roark will remain with Team USA for the second round of the World Baseball Classic, according to MLB.com. The Nationals right-hander was eligible to be removed from the roster because he’s in the designated pitcher pool.

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● Nationals left-hander Enny Romero sat 98-99 mph over 1 2/3 perfect innings for the Dominican Republic in its 3-1 loss to Puerto Rico in the second round of the WBC on Wednesday. Washington traded 21-year-old right-hander Jeffrey Rosa, who signed out of the Dominican Republic for $10,000 and hasn’t pitched above the Gulf Coast League, for the 26-year-old Romero, who possesses electric stuff but has had his command hinder his major league career.