photo: Adam Wainwright (USA TODAY Sports Images)
Sunday’s starting pitcher Adam Wainwright was activated off the 10-day disabled list by the St. Louis Cardinals, with reliever John Brebbia returned to Triple-A Memphis. Class-A Peoria also placed shortstop Edwin Figuera on the DL.
St. Louis Cardinals press release
The St. Louis Cardinals announced prior to today’s (Sunday’s) game that they have activated right-handed pitcher Adam Wainwright (right elbow inflammation) from the 10-day disabled list and optioned right-handed pitcher John Brebbia to Memphis (AAA).
Wainwright is slated to start this afternoon’s game in San Diego, his first appearance since winning a 5-3 decision on April 17 over the Chicago Cubs. He missed 19 games while on the disabled list, and made an injury rehabilitation assignment for the Springfield Cardinals (AA) on May 7, posting 5.0 scoreless innings against Tulsa.
Wainwright, 36, is 1-2 with a 3.45 ERA in his three starts this season.
Brebbia was charged with the loss in the Cardinals 2-1 defeat in 13 innings last night at PETCO Park, despite striking out four in his 2.0 innings of relief. He’s 0-1 with a 2.70 ERA in six relief appearances, striking out 14 in 10.0 innings pitched.
Wainwright is the second pitcher the Cardinals have returned from the disabled list this weekend, joining reliever Brett Cecil who was activated on Friday. Prior to the weekend series, the Cardinals placed pitchers Carlos Martínez (right lat strain) and Tyler Lyons (mid back stain) on the 10-day disabled list.
Brian Walton’s take
This marks the end of Wainwright’s team-leading second DL stint of 2018. He was also on the shelf from March 28 until April 5 due to a hamstring injury. As the miles rack up on his body, the veteran missed time last season due to a sore back and an elbow problem that led to a fall procedure, which is why the recurrence of elbow soreness is concerning to me.
As detailed below, Wainwright has adjusted his arm slot to compensate for the discomfort. Other than the one Double-A rehab start, we do not yet have a good reading on how his results may be affected.
Mike Matheny on Adam Wainwright altering his arm slot: "You do what you have to do to go out and compete. … If you can find a way to do it and make it work, that's what you do. Adam has done that a number of times."#STLCards pic.twitter.com/lWc5xOydee
— Bally Sports Midwest (@BallySportsMW) May 13, 2018
Of course, Wainwright’s move was pre-announced, but the identity of the player to come off the roster may not have been totally clear until Brebbia threw 43 pitches and took the loss in Saturday night’s 13-inning game in San Diego.
Though Brebbia had been down to Memphis and back up once in the interim, he was the player added to the 25-man roster when Wainwright was placed on the DL on April 22. This time, Brebbia was with St. Louis for just five days, as the reliever roulette wheel spins again.
Memphis had been one player down on its active roster, so another transaction to make room for Brebbia is not required. However, given his heavy work Saturday night, he may be unavailable for the next few days, anyway.
Cardinals minors moves
Figuera falls
In minor league moves on Sunday, the Class-A Peoria Chiefs placed shortstop Edwin Figuera on the seven-day disabled list. The 20-year old injured his left ankle during Saturday night’s action. In the seventh inning, while legging out an infield RBI single, the Venezuelan native stepped on the leg of the first baseman covering the bag.
In his month with the Chiefs, the right-handed hitter has been solid offensively, with six multi-hit games on the way to a credible line of .304/.360/.348/.708. Despite usually batting ninth, Figuera has scored 11 runs in 20 games and is 4-for-6 in stolen base attempts.
Figuera, who was promoted from extended spring training to the Midwest League on April 13, has not been immediately replaced on Peoria’s active roster. With the Chiefs off Sunday, the organization has an extra day to dispatch a new recruit from their Florida camp. Candidates may include Wood Myers and Imeldo Diaz.
Siomkin released
One player who will not be rejoining the Class-A Chiefs is reliever Keaton Siomkin, who was given his release by the organization. The right-hander, who turns 26 next month, was originally signed as a non-drafted free agent in June 2016.
After pitching for Johnson City that summer, he opened with State College and quickly was promoted to Peoria at the end of June. Three weeks later, his season ended due to injury.
Siomkin did not make a full-season club out of spring training and had been working in Cardinals extended spring training camp in Jupiter, Florida.
In his two seasons with the organization, the California native threw just 32 1/3 innings over 17 games, posting a 3.34 ERA. He struck out 40 and walked just nine.
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Brian Walton can be reached via email at brian@thecardinalnation.com. Follow Brian on Twitter.
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