DETROIT — When is a picture NOT worth a thousand words?

When the image captured doesn’t represent reality — or at least doesn’t represent anything meaningful.

Saturday, Nick Castellanos slipped over to third base, and took some grounders with the infielders, including Miguel Cabrera, the guy who blocked his path to the majors at that position.

The official Detroit Tigers Twitter account posted a picture of the scene (see below), and set people speculating.

Really, though, it wasn’t much of anything.

“Yeah, if you noticed, I also took grounders at short, too, but I’m not going there,” joked the 21-year-old rookie, and former high school shortstop.

“That’s me having fun with Miguel. That’s it. I got my early work done in the outfield before batting practice. I saw Miguel, by himself, taking grounders at third base, so I just went over to help him out.”

Drafted as a third baseman, Castellanos was moved to the outfield in the minors last season, and spent all of this season as a left fielder. He was called up to the Tigers when the rosters expanded in September, and he’s played no other position but left field. If he makes the postseason roster, it would likely be as an extra outfielder, to platoon with the left-handed Andy Dirks.

It won’t be as a third baseman.

“Oh, he’s just messing around, taking a shift. He was just spending some time at an old spot, fiddling around a little bit,” manager Jim Leyland said. “We have a third baseman.”

Nick Castellanos and Miguel Cabrera are taking grounders together before tonight's game s KC. #Tigers pic.twitter.com/0FwHF4vzDm
— Detroit Tigers (@tigers) September 14, 2013