One day after acquiring catcher Brayan Pena off of waivers from Atlanta, the Kansas City Royals designated him for assignment to make room for Kyle Davies on the 25-man roster. Davies was need to start Saturday's game making Pena the odd man out.
On Monday, teams will have a 72-hour window to claim Pena on his second trip on the waiver wire in a week. The 26-year-old switch hitter is expected to join the Kansas City Minor League system if he makes it through waivers. That was also the plan in Atlanta before Kansas City scooped him up.
San Diego Padres pitcher Shawn Estes suffered an injury during Friday night's game and he didn't even play in the game. During their 7-3 win over the Giants in San Francisco, Estes stepped wrong, fell down the dugout steps and fractured the tip of his left thumb. The injury sends Estes to the 15-day disabled list where he joins Jake Peavy and Chris Young already missing from the rotation due to injury.
To replace Estes, San Diego activated pitcher Carlos Guevara from the 15-day disabled list. Estes was 1-1 in four starts with a 3.33 ERA.
Estes' spot in the rotation is due up on Monday and manager Bud Black has not made a decision on who will replace him. MLB.com reporter Corey Brock reported that recently acquired Cha Seung Baek would be the most likely candidate.
On Friday, Twins infielder Nick Punto's wife had a baby. On Saturday, Punto came off the 15-day disabled list fresh off of a rehab stint in Florida to mend a strained hamstring. Infielder Howie Clark was designated for assignment to make room for Punto.
Punto's last action came on May 7 and the 30-year-old hit .265 in 20 games before going down with the injured hamstring. In his fifth season with the Twins, the 21st round draft pick of the Phillies in 1998 played at least 100 games in the past three seasons.
The Twins have 10 days to trade, release or try to push Clark through waivers. The 34-year-old utilityman went 2-for-8 in four games.
Punto's wife, Natalie, gave birth at 2:51 pm central time on Friday. Mother and daughter, Nicole Jayne, were reportedly doing fine despite minor complications requiring a C-section during the birth. It is the couple's first child.
Red Sox pitcher Clay Buchholz started the season as a member of their starting rotation. In eight starts, he was 2-3 with a 5.53 ERA and was sidelined by a broken nail on his right middle finger on May 12. Ready to return, Buchholz was activated and informed that he would be staying at Triple-A Pawtucket where he already made two rehab starts.
Veteran Bartolo Colon went 2-0 in his first two starts in Buchholz's place and despite Daisuke Matsuzaka's injury, manager Terry Francona felt that Buchholz could use more seasoning in the Minors citing Buchholz's inconsistency with his fastball. The setback is expected to be short-term for the 23-year-old first round draft pick of the Red Sox in 2005.