WASHINGTON -- Right-hander Luis Ayala was hurt in a hunting accident recently, but he's expected to be ready for Spring Training, according to the Nationals and Ayala's agent, Joe Longo.

Ayala was on a hunting trip with a friend in Mexico on Dec. 26. According to Longo, Ayala's friend's "quick-triggered gun" accidentally went off and the bullet grazed Ayala's left biceps. Ayala immediately went to the hospital to stop the bleeding, and he contacted the Nationals' training staff. He flew to Los Angeles to visit Dr. Lewis Yocum and Dr. Steven Shin at the Kerlan-Jobe Orthopedic Clinic.

The exam revealed a bruised nerve in Ayala's biceps. The righty is currently experiencing a slight tingling sensation that is common with a nerve contusion to this area of the body; this tingling sensation is improving daily. X-rays of Ayala's arm show that small fragments of the pellet currently reside in the arm, but those will not be touched because they have caused no problems. This is standard protocol for this type of injury, assuming an infection does not arise.

"Everything is fine," Longo said by phone. "The biceps has a little trauma, so he has a hole where [the fragments] went in. [The arm] is healing fine. Luis is very lucky. Had it severed any nerves, it would have been a problem. If the bullet went a few inches [to the right], then we would have been talking about the chest area. Shin said he is very lucky."

Dr. Yocum's exam noted no artery damage, and Ayala's nerve is intact and his motor function is normal.