Boston Red Sox pitcher Daisuke Matsuzaka's injured rotator cuff is going to require time on the 15-disabled list to recover fully. Dice-K will be eligible on June 12th to come off the DL and the team expects him back close to that date. Temporarily, first baseman/outfielder Jeff Bailey was recalled from Triple-A Pawtucket.
Matsuzaka's move to the DL was a short-term pain/long-term gain decision to ensure he was ready for the rest of the season. Through 11 starts, Dice-K is 8-0 with a 2.53 ERA.
Bailey should be available through the Baltimore series but is expected to return to Pawtucket when Daisuke's spot in the rotation comes up. While no decision has been made, the front-runner for that call-up is prospect and designated spot starter Justin Masterson. Masterson is 1-0 in two spot starts during two previous trips to the Major League club.
The waiting game for Mark Kotsay's back to improve is over in Atlanta and the Braves have made the move to place him on the 15-day disabled list. While Kotsay recovers, outfielder Josh Anderson from Triple-A Richmond will give the Braves some outfield depth.
Kotsay's injury opens the door for Gregor Blanco to see playing time and Anderson will pick up some of Matt Diaz's time as he is also on the DL. The 25-year-old Anderson has quicks - he stole 13 bases with Richmond and hit .282 before the call-up.
Saint Louis Cardinals outfielder Chris Duncan suffered a hernia mid-season in 2007 and has not been the same player since. His poor second half performance has carried into '08 and now Duncan is headed to Triple-A Memphis to work on his hitting. The decision was made easier by a hot bat being available in Louisville in outfielder Joe Mather.
Duncan played 47 games and hit .252 with four homers and 16 RBI and .368 slugging percentage, well off his career numbers. The big concern with Duncan was manager Tony LaRussa expected to cut back his playing time and there was concern that would not allow him to get enough at-bats to fix his hitting problems.
In Mather, the Cardinals get a hitter who dominated Pacific Coast League pitching so far this season. Mather comes to the Major League team hitting .315 with a .406 on-base percentage and .671 slugging percentage. He has 12 home runs in 143 at-bats so the 25-year-old could provide Saint Louis with some pop which they could use since they are 11th in the National League in homers.