REDS BLOG

Reds place Devin Mesoraco on DL; Cueto examined

C. Trent Rosecrans
crosecrans@enquirer.com
Reds catcher Devin Mesoraco

The Reds placed catcher Devin Mesoraco on the 15-day disabled list and activated left-hander Manny Parra before Monday's game with the Rockies.

Mesoraco has been dealing with a left hip impingement since April 12, but this is his first trip to the disabled list. The move is retroactive to Thursday.

While Mesoraco had been able to DH and pinch-hit, Price said the team's attempts to get him back to catching took a larger toll on his body and took away that option.

"We're through, we don't have another series where we can DH until June, he's not near 100 percent, he wasn't getting better even though it looked like he was and then the catching stuff took him back a ways," Reds manager Bryan Price said. "It just made a lot of sense — we've got a guy who is hobbled, we've got a few guys who are hobbled around here and we've got to get some healthy bodies who can come in and perform at a higher level."

Mesoraco said at this point no decision on surgery has been made. The Reds have just two more road games on the schedule with the designated hitter, but Mesoraco said he doesn't see that as a factor in what happens next.

"Right now we haven't made any decisions, but I wouldn't anticipate coming off the DL for two interleague games," Mesoraco said. "We don't have anything ironed out quite yet."

Before Monday's game, Reds manager Bryan Price had said the team was still examining options for Mesoraco, who had tested his hip earlier this week in Cleveland, only to have a setback.

"We're going to look at some different options, we've kind of opened up everything to look at with him, we'd certainly like to have his offensive influence on our lineup," Price said before the game, before the move was announced. "It doesn't look like it'll be behind the plate anytime soon, so there's our Catch-22 right there ... how do we utilize his offense on a National League team when he's not behind the plate? We're trying to figure that out."

Parra made two rehab appearances at Triple-A Louisville, allowing a hit and two walks in 2 2/3 innings with six strikeouts.

"A healthy Manny Parra as another left-handed option for some earlier game situations would be a nice bonus for us and getting him back to pitching like he did in 2013," Price said before the game. "That was an impact left-hander in our bullpen, especially not having Sean (Marshall). That would be a lift for us if he could get back to where he was, and I think that will be soon."

CUETO EXAMINED: After Monday's game, Price said he was cautiously optimistic that Johnny Cueto's absence from the rotation wouldn't be long.

Cueto was seen by team medical director Dr. Timothy Kremchek and initial reports were positive, Price said.

"We don't think it's a serious injury. We did all the stuff that we need to do just to verify that everything's OK," Price said. "We should have a pretty good idea by (Tuesday) afternoon of what all the tests suggest. I think right now, we've got a medical staff that feels very good that it's nothing — I don't want to say significant — but nothing that's going to put him on the shelf for a long time. Hopefully he'll miss one start and be back the next time."