The Arizona Diamondbacks placed Gold Glove catcher Gabriel Moreno on the 10-day injured list Saturday due to a sprained left thumb.
Moreno departed the Diamondbacks’ 5-4 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies on Friday in the bottom of the sixth inning due to the injury. His thumb was hit by Cristian Pache’s foul tip in the third inning and he initially remained in the game.
X-rays were negative Friday but Moreno woke up Saturday saying the thumb was stiff and sore.
“Tough break for Gabby, but just 10 days of rest, we feel, will do him very good,” Arizona manager Torey Lovullo said before his team’s 12-1 loss to Philadelphia on Saturday.
Moreno went 2-for-3 with a homer and two RBIs before exiting the game Friday.
Arizona recalled catcher Jose Herrera from Triple-A Reno on Saturday. Tucker Barnhart was the starting catcher on Saturday.
The Diamondbacks reached the World Series last season but they also struggled when Moreno wasn’t in the lineup. His ailments included spending three weeks on the injured list with a shoulder injury sustained after the All-Star break.
“I’m very aware of our record when he was here last year,” Lovullo said. “We know the importance of having him in the lineup and he knows the importance of being in this lineup. We continue to express that to him. He is growing and learning every single day. He is going to get healthy in 10 days and he’ll be right back in there.”
Moreno, 24, is batting .230 with three homers and 26 RBIs in 61 games this season.
Herrera, 27, was batting .260 with two homers and 19 RBIs in 37 games at Reno. He played in 88 games for the Diamondbacks over the previous two seasons and batted .198 with 12 RBIs.
–Field Level Media