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| Thursday, July 3 Twins parent, farm teams swap Australian pitchers Associated Press |
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Daal complained of soreness in his left shoulder earlier this week, and an MRI revealed tendinitis in his rotator cuff. He hasn't pitched since June 27, when he allowed three runs in three innings against the Toronto Blue Jays. "It started to bother me after the game last Friday. The next day I was feeling sore," Daal said. "It's nothing serious. I feel bad because I won't help the team for 15 days, but I'm happy the MRI just showed tendinitis." Signed as a free agent during the offseason, Daal is 4-10 with a 5.86 ERA in 16 games, including 15 starts. He was demoted to the bullpen after yielding eight earned runs and 10 hits over 2 1-3 innings in a loss to Toronto on June 23. "I haven't been doing great for the last three months,'' he conceded. Bauer began the season with the Orioles before being optioned to Ottawa on June 14. He is 0-0 with a 5.03 ERA in 23 relief appearances for the Orioles and was 1-1 with a 3.07 ERA in three starts for Ottawa. "I loved starting. It felt good, natural,'' he said. ``I got up to 100 pitches; the more I threw, the better it got. I've always loved starting." But he will work long relief with Baltimore, at least initially, according to Orioles manager Mike Hargrove. Bauer expects better results this time around. "I got to pitch more and work on things I was struggling with," he said. "Of course, the competition is a lot harder up here. We'll see how the adjustment goes and see how things work out." In another move, the Orioles signed outfielder Ruben Rivera to a minor league contract. Rivera has played parts of nine seasons in the majors, hitting .216 with 64 homers and 203 RBI. In 31 games with the San Francisco Giants this year, Rivera hit .180 with two homers. He will report to Double-A Bowie on Saturday.
Nakamura, a native of Japan who was raised in Australia, gave up 11 runs in 12 2-3 innings in his first stint in the majors. Nakamura, who has a side-arm delivery, had a 7.82 ERA in 12 relief appearances. Balfour, a native of Australia, was 2-0 with a 1.47 ERA and five saves in 43 innings for Rochester. He had six starts and nine relief appearances. He pitched two games for the Twins in 2001.
Trainer Nick Swartz said Sweeney got out of bed and felt a sudden, sharp pain down his left arm. Now he's going to begin taking cortisone injections and consult a specialist in Los Angeles.
"Mike woke up today and had increased irritation in that neck region," Swartz said. "When he made a movement he felt a sharp sensation down the (left arm) like he did when he did it on the swing."
Sweeney, among the league leaders in average and RBIs when he went out, will see Dr. Robert Watkins, a sports spine specialist. Sweeney's progress had seemed encouraging. "I don't anticipate Mike Sweeney doing much of anything on the upcoming road trip," Swartz said. "Just looking at the big picture, our biggest concern is getting him ready by the 17th of July when we start on the second phase of our season."
Snyder's move was made retroactive to July 1. He's 1-4 with a 4.62 ERA, and has been slowed by various injuries all season. Right-hander Brad Voyles was recalled from Triple-A Omaha to take Snyder's place. At the same time, the Royals purchased the contracts of infielder Julius Matos and third baseman Jarrod Patterson from Omaha. Optioned to Omaha were second baseman Brent Abernathy and left-hander Les Walrond. First baseman Morgan Burkhart was designated for assignment. Third baseman Joe Randa, who left Wednesday night's game with tightness in his right said, was held out of Thursday night's lineup as well. Also Thursday, right-handed reliever Curtis Leskanic joined the club after being acquired the day before in a trade with Milwaukee. He'll be used to bolster middle relief, which has been the biggest problem in the first half of a season which has seen the Royals move into first place in the AL Central. "Everybody knows we've been suffering a lot in the bullpen,'' said manager Tony Pena. "We are overworked. He's a veteran, a guy who's been in that role a log time. He can help us big-time." He'll provide much-needed rest for Jason Grimsley, who's made 45 appearances. "It gives us two guys we can count on,'' Pena said. "Before, we had Jason Grimsley and I felt we were going to kill Jason Grimsley." Leskanic was 4-0 with a 2.70 ERA in 26 games for the Brewers. In 26 2-3 innings, he has allowed eight earned runs and one home run, holding opponents to a .227 average. "I kind of knew I was going to be traded, but you're always shocked when they tell you,'' Leskanic said. ``I was a little surprised when they said Kansas City, but I'm excited. "I feel like I'm making my major league debut.'' After sitting out last year following shoulder surgery, Leskanic and the Royals feel he's back to his old self. "My velocity has picked up and my slider has been working like I like it to,'' he said. Patterson has played with six organizations and was 11-for-41 with two home runs and six RBIs in 13 major league games with Detroit in 2001. He was hitting .259 with 23 doubles and 13 home runs and 65 RBIs in 82 games at Omaha. Matos batted .292 with six home runs and 41 RBIs in 80 games at Omaha.
The right-hander, who's 2-2 with a 5.26 ERA in 32 games, will be replaced by Bryan Hebson, the Expos' first draft pick in 1997, on Friday. Hebson, the 44th player selected that year, is 6-0 with six saves and a 4.36 ERA in 30 games for Triple-A Edmonton. Montreal now has five pitchers on the disabled list. Starters Orlando Hernandez (shoulder), Tony Armas Jr. (rotator cuff) and Zach Day (shoulder) and reliever Luis Ayala have missed a combined 195 games this year.
As expected, the club also optioned right-hander Jason Young to Triple-A Colorado Springs and recalled right-hander Aaron Cook to start Friday in Milwaukee. Young was recalled Wednesday to help an overworked Rockies bullpen. In Thursday night's 8-4 loss to Arizona, he pitched four innings -- the longest stint by a Rockies reliever since John Wasdin worked four innings on May 7, 2001 -- and allowed five hits and one run. Cook will make the start originally scheduled for 11-game winner Shawn Chacon, who went on the disabled list Tuesday. Roa had been at Triple-A Indianapolis in Milwaukee's organization. He had a clause in his contract that allowed him to be released if he had a chance to sign a major league deal. The right-hander started the season with the Philadelphia Phillies.
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