Randy Johnson was placed on the 15-day disabled list by the Diamondbacks on Friday night with muscle tightness. It is the second time this season he has landed on the shelf. The 43-year-old started the year on the DL while recovering from offseason back surgery. He will be replaced on the roster by Enrique Gonzalez. Johnson felt tightness in his buttocks muscle while playing catch, said manager Bob Melvin. He was scheduled to pitch against the Orioles on Saturday, but was scratched before the game Friday night. Johnson is 4-2 with a 3.52 ERA and 70 strikeouts in nine starts this season. He expects to be activated right when he’s eligible in late June.
Jason Schmidt is also going back on the disabled list because of a right shoulder problem. The former ace was ineffective Saturday in his third start since missing 45 games because of bursitis in his shoulder, and conceded that he still wasn’t healthy. "I just haven't felt like myself," he said. Marlon Anderson, who underwent arthroscopic elbow surgery last month, will be activated for Tuesday’s game in Toronto. Schmidt, who signed a three-year, $47 million free-agent contract during the offseason, was placed on the disabled list in April after going 1-2 with a 7.36 ERA in three starts. He returned June 5 and threw six shutout innings in San Diego, consistently reaching 89 mph and topping out at 91. However, his velocity was down again his past two starts and he’s complaining of a dead arm. He gave up five hits and three runs in 4 2/3 innings Saturday, walking four and striking out two to leave him with a 1-4 record and a 6.31 ERA.
Manager Jim Leyland said that if Kenny Rogers (shoulder) tells him he's ready to pitch after his bullpen session on Monday, he'll start Friday night against the Braves. Rogers pitched effectively Friday night in his second rehab start in the minor leagues. The 42-year-old southpaw took the loss in for Class A West Michigan, allowing three runs, one earned, on seven hits and two walks in five innings. The Gambler threw three-plus innings of shutout ball for Triple-A Toledo in the Mud Hens' 2-1 win over Norfolk on June 10. "It was impressive," Rogers said. "It's amazing the support the Tigers franchise has. You can tell these fans are into baseball." Rogers has been on the DL all season after having surgery March 30 to remove a blood clot from his left shoulder and repair arteries. Rogers went 17-8 with a 3.48 ERA last year and won all three of his postseason starts while not allowing a run in 23 innings for the AL champions. Before surgery, he was 2-0 with a 2.05 ERA in five exhibition starts during spring training. If he’s available in your league now, scoop him up while you still can.
Josh Johnson was activated from the DL in time to make his first start of the season Monday night against the White Sox. Johnson, 12-7 with a 3.10 ERA last year, missed the first 10 weeks of this season with an irritated ulnar nerve in his right elbow. To make room on the roster, Lee Gardner was optioned to Triple-A Albuquerque. Gardner was 1-2 with a 3.86 ERA in 23 games for Florida.
Joe Crede is expected to miss at least three months after back surgery Tuesday, and possibly the remainder of the season. Crede was placed on the shelf because of lower back inflammation. He had a disk repair operation, known as a microdiscectomy.. "When you have surgery right now, it's like nothing," manager Ozzie Guillen said. "You go through a couple months of rehab on your way back and sometimes you feel better. It's a shame we had to wait this long to make that happen because if he did it when he was supposed to do it, then right now we'd have a different surgery." The third baseman was hitting .216 with four homers and 22 RBIs, a major dip in production from last year when he batted .283 with 30 homers and 94 RBI. Rookie Josh Fields has replaced Crede as the regular third baseman. He was batting .283 with 10 homers and 37 RBIs at Triple-A Charlotte, and enters week 12 with three straight multi-hit contests.
Preston Wilson underwent surgery on his right knee Tuesday and will be out the rest of the season. The procedure to repair the articular cartilage. The former 30/30 club member batted .219 in 25 games with one home run and five RBI this year.
Aramis Ramirez was put on the 15-day disabled list Monday because of tendinitis in his left knee. Ramirez, who is batting .299 with 13 homers and 39 RBIs, was hurt running to first base in a game at Milwaukee on June 6 and was placed on the DL retroactive to June 7. "Our doctors felt that just putting him on the DL and giving him full rest and treatment would be the best for the player," manager Lou Piniella said.
A.J. Burnett felt pain in his right shoulder during a throwing session Sunday and was scratched from his next scheduled start, June 23 against Colorado. "He was a little tender so he won't make that one," Blue Jays manager John Gibbons said. "We'll probably throw him on the DL. We'll know something Tuesday." Burnett, who did not speak to reporters, is 5-6 with a 4.00 ERA in 14 starts this season. He left a start in San Francisco last Tuesday after 4 2/3 innings because of pain in his shoulder. Burnett, who had two stints on the disabled list last season, had been the only Toronto starter to make all of his starts this season. Josh Towers pitched in Burnett's place against Washington Sunday.
Jim Edmonds and Braden Looper were placed on the 15-day DL Monday by the Cardinals. Edmonds' injury was diagnosed as a pinched nerve in his lower back. He said the problems extend to the high hamstring area and after not being in the lineup Saturday and Sunday he approached the team, joking at first that he was not hurt. "I've been playing hurt since opening day," Edmonds said. "Some days I was feeling decent. Some days, I was feeling really bad. Some of the days that were my worst were days you would never even know." Edmonds is batting .238 with seven home runs and 24 RBIs in 56 games. He was placed on the DL retroactive to June 16 after sitting the past two games. Looper complained of shoulder stiffness after his last start on Friday. The right-hander, who entered the year with 572 career relief appearances and zero starts, is 6-6 with a 4.66 ERA in 14 appearances over 83 innings, nearly 10 more than he threw all last season.
The Athletics have decided to bring Mike Piazza back from his stint on the disabled list as a catcher and a DH, postponing the scheduled start of his rehab assignment Sunday with Triple-A Sacramento to give him more time to get his arm in shape. He has been sidelined since May 3 with a sprained right shoulder, missing his 41st game Sunday against St. Louis. “It's something we had talked about for a while," manager Bob Geren said. "Part of it is the emergence of Jack and the importance of having Mike and have him contributing. Mike's great (with the decision)." Geren said he expects it will take Piazza an additional two to three weeks to be ready to catch in a game, though he has been working to strengthen his legs under the direction of bench coach Bob Schaefer. Geren isn't ready to call Piazza the backup to durable starting catcher Jason Kendall, who has caught at least 143 games in each of the past seven seasons and 150 or more in four of those years.
Rickie Weeks returned from the 15-day disabled list on Monday and the Brewers deomoted Tony Gwynn Jr. to Triple-A Nashville on Monday. Manager Ned Yost said Weeks would initially bat eighth because of Corey Hart's recent production in the leadoff slot. "We want Rickie in that lineup, but Corey's really been doing a nice job and because (Weeks) didn't have the benefit of a rehab to sharpen up, we'll start there and see what happens," Yost said. "We can do a lot of things that we like to do" with Weeks batting eighth. Weeks received a cortisone injection in the tendon sheath of his wrist to alleviate the pain and was held out of baseball activities for several days. Yost has said Weeks likely will have soreness at times throughout the season after first injuring the wrist wagging a bat in the dugout on July 25.
Ryan Freel spent 30 minutes peddling on the exercise bike, shortly after being cleared to work out for the first time since he suffered a frightening concussion nearly three weeks ago. "I barely broke a sweat," he said, following his first 15-minute session. "I felt pretty good. Everything went well." Freel said his mental functions have improved in the last few days. He was examined again Friday by a specialist and given permission to start light workouts after his score on a memory test improved. "I was always optimistic," he said. "I never even tried to think about my career being ended from the concussion. I stayed positive. Now I feel it's all coming back together." Freel will be limited to riding the bike for now. There is no timetable for when he can resume more strenuous activity or start swinging a bat.
The Reds put Mike Stanton on the DL Sunday, a day after the reliever pulled a hamstring running out a ground ball. The Reds called up left-hander Michael Gosling from Triple-A Louisville to take his place. Gosling was 5-3 with a 3.00 ERA in 13 starts for Louisville.
The Red Sox placed Brendan Donnelly on the DL with a strained right forearm on Sunday and recalled Manny Delcarmen from Triple-A Pawtucket. Donnelly was 2-1 with a 3.05 ERA in 20 2-3 innings over 27 starts. He last pitched on June 11 and will be eligible to be activated on June 26. Delcarmen pitched one scoreless inning against the Yankees on May 21, his only appearance for Boston.
David Eckstein was placed on the 15-day disabled list Saturday with a lower back strain, and the Cardinals called up Brendan Ryan from Triple-A Memphis to start in his place. Eckstein left Wednesday's game at Kansas City with tightness in his lower back and sat out Thursday against the Royals and again in Friday's series opener with Oakland. "We are really encouraged," manager Tony La Russa said. "He's feeling better, but he's got enough bumps and bruises that if we don't give him an extended period, he's going to have a lot of lingering aches." St. Louis also brought up Anthony Reyes and optioned Kelvin Jimenez to Memphis. Reyes won the World Series opener for the Cardinals last fall but has lost 10 straight regular-season decisions and was demoted to the minors. Eckstein, who also was bothered by tightness in his lower back late last month, is not expected to need a rehab assignment before rejoining the Cardinals. "He's experienced enough that when he gets closer, in a week or 10-to-12 days, he will have an extensive workout and be ready," La Russa said. Eckstein is hitting .313 with two homers and 12 RBIs in 192 at-bats.
The Orioles retooled their ineffective bullpen Saturday, placing Danys Baez on the shelf, releasing Todd Williams and bringing up rookies Corey Doyne and Jim Hoey from Triple-A Norfolk. Baez (0-4, 6.52 ERA) was shelved with tendinitis in his right forearm. Doyne was 0-1 with a 1.99 ERA at Norfolk and Hoey was 0-0 in six games after being unscored upon at the Double-A level. "I think we needed to do something to help the ballclub out," NOW FORMER manager Sam Perlozzo said. "Hoey and Doyne have done tremendous jobs down there. Hopefully they can carry that over and give us a little bit of a boost." Entering Saturday's game against Arizona, Baltimore's bullpen had yielded runs in nine of 11 games and was 0-7 with a 9.11 ERA in that span. Perlozzo got the ax for the franchise's latest cold streak Monday night.
Mark Grudzielanek will have surgery on his left knee for the second time since March, and the team doesn't know how long he'll be out. The Royals also said Thursday that Brandon Duckworth had joined Grudzielanek on the disabled list because of a strained muscle in his side. He was hurt while pitching against St. Louis on Wednesday night. The team called up lefty Neal Musser and outfielder Shane Costa from Triple-A Omaha. Costa had just been sent down the day before.
Ian Snell will miss his scheduled start Tuesday with a burn blister on his right index finger. Snell burned his finger while grilling chicken for a salad he was preparing for himself. He thought he'd be able to pitch Tuesday anyway, but the Pirates aren't going to take any chances. With the off day Monday, he can easily be pushed back to Saturday. Tom Gorzelanny will be moved up to get the start on Tuesday.
Garret Anderson is going back on the disabled list after aggravating his hip injury on Saturday. Reggie Willits will play everyday in leftfield in his absence. It’s the second time Anderson has gone on the shelf in less than a month. He’s hoping to be return sometime in early July.
The Brewers placed Chris Capuano on the DL because of a strained groin Thursday and purchased Yovani Gallardo's contract from Triple-A Nashville. Capuano was injured while warming up for his scheduled start Wednesday and his move to the disabled list is retroactive to Saturday. The 21-year-old Gallardo was 8-2 with a 2.98 ERA and 98 strikeouts in 71 2-3 innings for Nashville.
Vance Wilson had season-ending elbow surgery Wednesday and could be sidelined well into next season. Wilson, who has been on the disabled list the entire season, had Tommy John surgery and is expected to be out for nine months to a year. He went on the DL at the end of spring training, then re-injured the elbow earlier this month while on a rehab assignment at Triple-A Toledo. Mike Rabelo, who began the season with one game of major league experience, is hitting .283 in 18 games as Rodriguez's backup.
Freddy Garcia has decided on having season-ending surgery after all. The two-time All-Star right-hander is out indefinitely with a shoulder injury, and it's uncertain whether he'll pitch again for the Phillies. Garcia was examined by renowned surgeon Dr. James Andrews for a second opinion after an MRI exam showed fraying in his rotator cuff and a problem in the labrum. The 31-year-old was hoping to avoid surgery. For now, he's going to rest. "Both the Phillies' medical staff and Dr. Andrews are in complete agreement that a conservative approach should be taken," assistant general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. said Thursday. Garcia will be shut down for "several" weeks, before he can begin a tossing program. Garcia was 17-9 with a 4.53 ERA for the White Sox last season and pitched more than 200 innings for the seventh time in his career. He struggled much of the year, but was outstanding during the final month. Garcia went 4-1 with a 2.49 ERA in his last six starts. He allowed just 15 hits and five runs in 30 innings over his last four outings - all wins.
The Devil Rays placed B.J. Upton on the shelf because of a strained left quadriceps Wednesday. Upton hadn’t played since he was hurt last Friday while running to first. The Devil Rays hope Upton will be ready to rejoin the team around June 23. "It's been getting better every day," Upton said. "Take a week or so off and see how it feels." Upton is hitting .320 with nine homers and 30 RBIs. An exam Wednesday showed more inflammation than the team anticipated, prompting the DL move.
The Giants placed Rich Aurilia on the DL due to a neck injury. He has received multiple injections in the past few weeks to help alleviate the pain that's bothered him since last month. He needed some time to get this neck issue to clear up so we went ahead and put him on the disabled list for at least 15 days to see if we could get this right," manager Bruce Bochy said. San Francisco called up Luis Figueroa from Triple-A Fresno. Figueroa has appeared in 12 major league games, with the Blue Jays last season and the Pirates in 2001. Bochy said Figueroa will take on a utility role with the Giants. The 35-year-old Aurilia is batting .236 with two home runs and 19 RBIs in his second stint with San Francisco, but hasn't homered since connecting May 20 off Joe Kennedy of the Athletics.