By Chris Brown / STL Baseball Today | @cbrown_STLBBT | July 6, 2016, 5:19 pm CT
Just three days after Eric Fryer was claimed off waivers by the Pirates, the player who bumped him off the Cardinals roster is now sidelined once again, as the Cardinals announced Wednesday afternoon that veteran catcher Brayan Pena has been placed on the 15-day disabled list due to inflammation in his surgically repaired left knee. The club purchased the contract of rookie backstop Alberto Rosario from AAA Memphis to take Pena’s place on the 25-man roster.
Signed to a two-year, $5 million contract this past winter, Pena opened the season on the disabled list and missed 75 games after undergoing surgery to remove loose bodies in his left knee. The 34-year-old was activated from the DL on June 29 after a maximum-length rehab stint, and made two starts for the Cardinals, picking up his first hit of the season Tuesday night.
Pena said he experienced discomfort in the knee during Tuesday’s contest and informed Mike Matheny after the game.
“We’ll re-evaluate after two weeks and see what happens,” Pena told reporters, including Stu Durando of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. “Right now I really can’t tell because it’s one of those processes I don’t know if I’m going to stay here or go to Jupiter. I have to be careful because I don’t want to embarrass myself and don’t want to embarrass my team.”
Rosario has appeared in 39 games for the AAA Memphis Redbirds, hitting .281 with 13 RBIs in 114 at-bats. Signed by the Cardinals as a minor league free agent in December 2014, the 29-year-old will be making his big-league debut when he gets into a game. Rosario will wear uniform number 68 and is expected to be available for Wednesday’s game against the Pirates, the team announced.
As previously noted, the circumstances surrounding this development are certainly unfortunate for the redbirds, who designated Fryer for assignment just over a week ago to activate Pena. While the club hoped that Fryer, who was out of minor league options, would pass through waivers unclaimed, the Pirates claimed the journeyman catcher on Sunday. Fryer contributed three RBIs in Pittsburgh’s 5-2 victory over the Cardinals Tuesday night.
(Video: Mark Saxon / ESPN.com)
