Melvin Mora (foot) was placed on the 15-day disabled list Saturday by the Orioles. He was hurt during a play at the plate on July 1 against the Angels. The third baseman missed six straight games, then received one at-bat as a pinch-hitter the day before the All-Star break. He started Thursday night but left after one inning. After undergoing an examination Friday, Mora said he would be out for at least a week. Instead of biding their time while he worked to return, the Orioles thought it best to place him on the DL. Mora is batting .265 with a team-high 12 homers and 41 RBIs. To fill the spot on the roster, the Orioles recalled outfielder Jon Knott from Triple-A Norfolk. Knott played in three games during two earlier stints with Baltimore this season, going 3-for-6 with three RBIs. At Norfolk, Knott was batting .231, but he hit .333 in nine games in July.
Mark Teixeira was activated from the disabled list on Friday after being sidelined since June 9 because of a strained left quadriceps muscle. Teixeira is hitting .302 with 12 homers and 41 RBIs in 61 games. The injury ended his franchise-record streak of 507 consecutive games played. At the time, it was the second-longest among active players behind Miguel Tejada, whose streak ended at 1,152 games on June 22 - two days afterwards. To make room on the roster for Teixeira, the Rangers optioned outfielder Victor Diaz to Triple-A Oklahoma. Diaz batted .240 in 37 games with 25 RBIs and nine home runs, including a pair of grand slams.
After being sidelined for more than a month with a left quad strain, the Devil Rays activated B.J. Upton. He is batting a team-leading .320 with nine homers and 30 RBI as the club's primary second baseman when he was injured. With Rocco Baldelli on the 60-day DL with a left hamstring strain and Elijah Dukes on the minor league inactive list because of off-the-field issues, Upton becomes the team's regular center fielder. To make room on the roster, left-hander J.P. Howell was optioned to Triple-A Durham last Sunday. The Devil Rays won't need a fifth starter until a July 21 doubleheader at New York, when Howell is expected to be recalled.
Throwing off a mound for the first time since going on the shelf, Curt Schilling (right shoulder tendinitis) threw 55 pitches and worked on his entire repertoire. Schilling was originally set to go 30-35 pitches, but felt strong in the workout. "I feel better than I've felt, so I'm taking that as a positive and go from there," Schilling said. "I stopped because they told me to stop, not because I needed to." The six-time All-Star is scheduled to throw another bullpen session and face batters Monday. Red Sox manager Terry Francona was pleased with the workout, but said Schilling would have to do a rehab start before coming off the DL. "It didn't look like there was a whole lot of effort behind it to get the ball to come out of his hand well," Francona said. "He has worked really hard and I think it shows. We're actually kind of proud of him." Schilling is 6-4 with a 4.20 ERA in 15 starts this season, but was roughed up in his final two starts before going on the DL. He gave up five runs in five innings in a 12-2 loss to Colorado, and six runs in 4 1-3 innings in Boston's 9-4 loss to Atlanta.
The Rockies put former closer Brian Fuentes on the 15-day disabled list retroactive to July 4 for a mild back strain. Fuentes had 20 saves in 26 opportunities but blew his past four save opportunities before being moved to the setup man. He last pitched July 3 against the Mets, retiring all three batters he faced, two by strikeouts. He could be activated from the DL on Thursday. Fuentes, who has a 4.06 ERA in 40 appearances, was selected to the NL All-Star roster for the third consecutive year but did not play. To take Fuentes' roster spot, Colorado called up infielder Omar Quintanilla from Triple-A Colorado Springs.
Joel Zumaya (finger) and Fernando Rodney (biceps) were each able to play catch last week, the first time Zumaya has thrown in over two months. "Feels good, man," said Zumaya, who slept with his glove the night before because of such anticipation. The two hard throwers threw from a distance of 20 feet for about 10 minutes – both hope to return by September 1st. "I'm excited," manager Jim Leyland said. "But am I going to watch like a little kid while they throw about 20 feet apart? No." Zumaya has been on the DL since May 3 after dislocating a tendon in the middle finger of his right, pitching hand. Rodney, who took over the setup job when Zumaya went down, joined him on the DL June 26 with tendinitis in his right shoulder. Detroit expects Rodney, who also was on the DL from May 21 to June 5 with biceps tendinitis, to be back before Zumaya.
The Blue Jays activated Lyle Overbay from the shelf on Thursday and put him in the lineup against the Boston Red Sox. Overbay was placed on the DL on June 5 with a broken right hand. He was batting .256 with 8 homers and 27 RBI in 55 games. The first baseman went 3-for-3 with a double and walk Sunday, and finished 6-for-14 with a hit in all four games against Boston.
Rich Harden went back on the disabled list Thursday with a strained right shoulder, and there’s a chance he could be lost for the season. He has the same injury that landed him on the DL for the first time this year - from April 16 to June 21. "It's frustrating, but I think it's as frustrating for Rich as anyone," assistant general manager David Forst said Thursday. "He told us after he pitched Saturday that he wants to be out there pitching and feeling good, and he just doesn't. We just have to wait for him to be 100 percent pain-free. We have no timetable. We'll take our cues from Rich. We'll try to get him back sometime this year." He will go to Class A Vancouver for "some rest and rehab." The ace made three relief appearances after coming off the DL the first time this season, throwing four scoreless innings before making a start Saturday against Seattle. He allowed four runs in 2 2/3 innings and took the loss.
David Eckstein (back) was activated from the DL on Thursday after spending the past month on the shelf. "Everything's looking good," Eckstein said. "I'm so anxious, I just want to get back on the field and be a contributor. The trainers want me on the field as soon as possible because I've become a bit of a pest." Eckstein, batting .313 with two home runs and 12 RBI, has been on the DL since June 14 with a knot in the middle of his back that has cleared up after anti-inflammatory injections early last week. Also teammate Jim Edmonds is close enough to returning that he'll accompany the team on its 10-game trip to start the second half. The oft-injured veteran arrived for the workout expecting to make the trip. "The fact he's making progress is exciting," manager Tony La Russa said. "He knew how he felt. I came to the park expecting to have an open mind." Edmonds, batting .238 with seven homers and 24 RBI, has been on the DL since June 16 with a pinched nerve in his lower back related to offseason surgery on his shoulder and foot. The Cardinals had been anticipating he'd return later in the month but the timetable has been moved up after Edmonds' successful workout on Thursday.
Danys Baez (0-4 with a 6.52 ERA in 31 games) came off the shelf Thursday after making three rehab appearances at Double-A Bowie, allowing one run and three hits in four innings. "The most important thing is I feel more confident now with my pitches," he said. "No pain, no tightness, no soreness, anything. Everything feels good in my arm." Interim manager Dave Trembley hopes Baez can return to the form he displayed over the previous six seasons, when he had 111 saves and a 3.79 ERA for Cleveland, Tampa Bay, the Los Angeles Dodgers and Atlanta Braves. To make room for Baez, the Orioles sent left-hander Kurt Birkins to Triple-A Norfolk. Birkins is 0-1 with a 10.00 ERA in three stints with Baltimore this season.
Al Reyes (shoulder) is scheduled to pitch one inning Monday at Class A Vero Beach, has Tuesday off and will be activated from the 15-day disabled list on Wednesday. "I feel very good," Reyes said after throwing 27 pitches - mixing in his changeup and slider - to Rays hitters Jorge Cantu, Josh Wilson, Dioner Navarro and Dustan Mohr. "I'm ready to go Monday down at Vero Beach." Gary Glover will return to setup duties.
David Wells was suspended for seven games and fined $3,000 Thursday by the commissioner's office for his animated argument with an umpire last weekend. Bob Watson, baseball's disciplinarian, cited Wells' "violent and aggressive actions," including throwing a baseball at the backstop as he left the field. The Hefty Lefty criticized Watson and said the game is changing so much that "pretty soon we'll all put skirts on and we're all going to play softball." "To get a seven-game suspension I think is absolutely crazy," Wells said. "There have been worse situations like that and nobody's ever gotten a seven-game suspension. That's terrible." Teammate Chris Young is currently serving a five-game suspension for his role in a bench-clearing brawl against the Cubs on June 16. The Padres tweaked their rotation so that Young didn't miss a start. He started Wednesday night, dropped his appeal the next day and sat out the final four games before the break. He'll also sit out Friday's game at Arizona. That is so ridiculous that a pitcher can avoid a suspension like that.
The Pirates placed 3B Jose Bautista on the DL and recalled Salomon Torres (elbow) from a rehab assignment Sunday. They also purchased the contract of rookie infielder Don Kelly from Triple-A Indianapolis and designated reliever John Wasdin for assignment. Bautista, who is hitting .258 with seven homers and 33 RBI, needed stitches in his left hand after sliding into the spikes of Chipper Jones Saturday. Jose Castillo started in Bautista's place Sunday. Torres has a team-high 12 saves, but Matt Capps, with nine, is now the Pittsburgh closer.
The Mets activated Oliver Perez (back) from the DL prior to Sunday's game against the Reds. Perez started against Cincy, allowing two runs and six hits in six strong innings, earning the win. He improved to 8-6 with a respectable 3.13 ERA. The Mets designated lefty Dave Williams for assignment to make room for Perez. Williams was activated from the DL and made one start on July 8 against the Houston Astros. He took the loss, allowing 8 runs and 10 hits in 3 1/3 innings for a 21.60 ERA. He said he would accept a minor league assignment if he cleared waivers. Teammate Jorge Sosa is also expected to come off the shelf this week.