Joe Mauer was placed on the 15-day disabled list with a strained left quadriceps muscle Sunday. The reigning AL batting champ had an MRI exam on Sunday morning and missed his second straight game against Boston. The test revealed a strain so Minnesota recalled catcher Chris Heintz from Triple-A Rochester to the roster spot. The injury has plagued him all season long but flared up bad on Friday. "It's tough," Mauer said. "Nobody wants to be on the disabled list. You want to go out there and help your teammates. It's not really something I'm used to." Mike Redmond started in his place again on Sunday and will handle the bulk of the catching duties while Mauer recovers. The 36-year-old backup hit .341 last year and is worth picking up in AL-only leagues the next couple weeks.
The Athletics placed DH Mike Piazza on the DL because of a sprained right shoulder Friday and purchased the contract of outfielder-DH Jack Cust from Triple-A Sacramento. Piazza is expected to miss four-to-six weeks. Cust was acquired from San Diego on Thursday for a player to be named or cash. He was hitting .295 with eight homers and 19 RBIs in 24 games for Triple-A Portland. Center fielder Nick Swisher was back in the lineup as the designated hitter Friday for the first time since straining his left hamstring on April 24. Milton Bradley (wrist, hamstring) is scheduled to see a hand specialist Saturday. Mark Kotsay, who had back surgery in March, has been cleared to resume baseball activities. He’s expected to start working out this week.
The Rangers are scheduled to get Eric Gagne (hip) back on Tuesday. The former Cy Young winner threw 27 pitches in a simulated game Sunday, his second in three days. "I threw all my pitches and didn't have any problems," said Gagne. "I'm ready to go." Manager Ron Washington was impressed with his closer, saying "the ball came out of his hand good. He had sharp stuff. His stuff had good life to it." Akinori Otsuka, who earned his fourth save of the season Sunday, will regain his setup role.
Sometimes, $40 million gets you just five wins. As a Yankee, Carl Pavano won four times in 2005 and just one the past two seasons because of vast array of injuries, including shoulder, back, buttocks, elbow and rib injuries maladies. The Southington, CT native could need elbow surgery that would sideline him for most if not all of the remainder of his four-year contract. He was examined Friday by Dr. James Andrews. The elbow ligament was not torn, but recovery time for elbow ligament surgery usually is 12 to 18 months. Overall, he is 5-7 in 19 starts with the Yankees. The Bombers also demoted Kei Igawa (2-1, 7.63 ERA) on Monday.
Tom Gordon also landed on the DL due to inflammation in the rotator cuff of his throwing arm, retroactive to May 2. Opening day starter Brett Myers, who was moved from the rotation to help prop up a struggling bullpen, will continue to be the closer in Gordon's absence. Myers picked up his first career save in a 9-7 win over the San Francisco Giants on Thursday. Gordon has five saves in eight opportunities this season, going 1-1 with a 4.82 ERA in nine games.
After going into the seventh inning with a no-hitter in his second career start, Phil Hughes (hamstring) was placed on the DL list Thursday, the seventh Yankees pitcher to go on the DL this season. It marked the Yankees' fourth hamstring injury this season and led general manager Brian Cashman to fire strength and conditioning coach Marty Miller on Wednesday. He’s expected to miss 4-6 weeks with the injury.
Tigers reliever Joel Zumaya is expected to be out for three months because of a ruptured tendon in his middle right finger. He hurt himself warming up Saturday night at Kansas City and was examined Monday in New York by Dr. Charles Melone, who was scheduled to perform surgery Thursday. Zumaya said he felt a "shocking pain" after sustaining the injury. "I thought maybe my knuckle cracked," he said. "I went to a curveball and I couldn't even grip the ball. I threw another fastball and it popped again, and a sharp pain ran through my finger. I called down and said, `I need a trainer quick."' Todd Jones (12 S. 2.84 ERA) will obviously continue to close, but expect Jose Mesa and Fernando Rodney to get more innings in the seventh and eighth.
Jake Westbrook was stashed on the shelf Monday because of a strained left abdominal muscle and Cleveland called up Fausto Carmona to take his place in the rotation. Westbrook is 1-2 with a 7.90 ERA. Carmona was sent to Triple-A Buffalo last Tuesday when Cliff Lee was activated from the DL. Carmona went 2-1 with a 3.76 ERA in four starts. He started Monday against Baltimore.
The Cardinals placed Preston Wilson (knee) on the 15-day disabled list Sunday, and called up Ryan Ludwick, St. Louis best outfielder prospect. He was batting a team-leading .340 with eight home runs, and his 36 RBIs and 27 runs led the Pacific Coast League. The Cardinals are last in the NL in runs, so they definitely needed to shake it up. He played right field, batted sixth and went 0-for-4 with a run-scoring groundout. Wilson was batting .219 with one homer and five RBIs in 64 at-bats.
Florida put Cody Ross on the 15-day disabled list Sunday with a strained left hamstring. They recalled Eric Reed, who was optioned Friday to Triple-A Albuquerque but hadn't left Miami yet. Marlins manager Fredi Gonzalez said it's uncertain whether Ross will be sidelined longer than two weeks. Ross was hitting .302 with four home runs in 53 at-bats as the Marlins' fourth outfielder.
The Rangers placed Kevin Millwood (hamstring) on the 15-day disabled list retroactive to April 29. He was just 2-3 with a 5.88 ERA in six starts. He missed his scheduled start Thursday against the New York Yankees after being injured shagging fly balls the day prior. Wes Littleton was called up from Triple-A Oklahoma to take Millwood's roster spot. He will miss at least one more start, but expects to be ready next weekend against the Angels.
The Angels stashed Garret Anderson (hip flexor) on the 15-day disabled list Friday, retroactive to April 28. He hurt himself running out a grounder against the White Sox and could miss up to a month. He is hitting .263 with one homer and 10 RBIs in 23 games this season. The Angels also put Maicer Izturis (hamstring) on the shelf, retroactive to April 30, and recalled infielder Brandon Wood from Triple-A Salt Lake.
Adam Loewen is expected to miss the majority of the season with a stress fracture in his pitching elbow and was placed on the 15-day DL Friday. The fourth overall pick in the 2002 amateur draft left on Thursday with elbow pain. Loewen is 2-0 with a 3.56 ERA in six starts. "My arm felt great in spring training," Loewen said. "Over the last couple of weeks it's been getting a little worse and a little worse. It wasn't huge pain for me, so I think in looking at it that way, recovery time won't be a huge problem. I think it will heal up fine."
The Padres placed Clay Hensley on the shelf Friday because of a strained groin. They recalled LHP Justin Hampson from Triple-A Portland to take his roster spot. He left Wednesday's game against Washington in the top of the third inning after going just 1-3 with a 7.62 ERA.
Russ Ortiz landed on the DL Thursday because of an inflamed nerve in his right elbow. He was rocked for eight runs and nine the night before. He’s expected to be back in late May to early June.