MLB Capsules: Aging 'El Duque' aims for one more shot in majors
VIERA, Fla. (AP) — Orlando Hernandez travels to road games now in charter buses. Private jets, luxury hotels and four-course meals don't exist here.
Not in the minors. Games are played in mostly empty ballparks and even a four-time World Series champion has to carry his own equipment. Around here, "El Duque" is just a 44-year-old pitcher trying to make it to The Show.
"It could be worse," Hernandez says, smiling, mixing English with Spanish in that thick Cuban accent. "In Cuba, we had 14-hour bus rides with no air conditioning, no food, no music, no anything.
"This?" he asks, chuckling. "This is nothing. This is fun. We get to play baseball in new shoes and clean uniforms."
The Gulf Coast League for rookies is hardly a place anybody would expect to find a pitcher of his age clamoring for one more shot in the big leagues. Much less a man who escaped persecution in Cuba, defected to the majors and pitched his way into New York Yankees lore.
But all that seems like another lifetime ago.
These days, Hernandez is toiling around where many young hopefuls begin their professional careers. But he was promoted Tuesday to the Washington Nationals' Double-A affiliate in Harrisburg, Pa.
In the minors, the ballparks are filled with gimmicks and corky music. The outfield walls are plastered with advertisements, and the majors are only a fantasy that players — most half his age — see on television or read about in books.
Hernandez has his own dreams.
On a minor-league deal with the Nationals, the opportunity — however slim — to join his half brother, Livan, in Washington provides enough motivation. He wants that chance so much he doesn't allow himself to imagine the possibility.
Something even he realizes might be improbable.
Then again, so is his life.
A phenom in his native Cuba, Hernandez was one of the best pitchers the island ever produced. But after Livan fled in 1995, authorities on the Communist island banned him from baseball, believing he conspired in his half-brother's defection and might also follow.
So he escaped by boat to the Bahamas on Christmas Day 1997, was granted a Visa to the United States — through Costa Rica — and later signed as a free agent with the Yankees. He won three titles in New York from 1998-2004 and another as reliever with the Chicago White Sox in 2005.
"That was a dream life," he says.
Now it's back to basics. Again. Hernandez struggled with his control for Triple-A Oklahoma City last year in the Texas Rangers' organization. He hasn't appeared in the majors since 2007 with the Mets, then a shell of his former self after injuries and aging took their toll.
Now Hernandez is often seen at the Nationals' workout facility before dawn, and he stills finds the energy to complete the team's exercise regiment afterward.
"He's in better shape than anybody in baseball," Livan said. "It's unbelievable."
After feet and toe surgeries derailed his career, Hernandez has rehabilitated and stayed in shape. He's as healthy as he's been in years, he says, and has more money than he'll ever need.
So why pitch? Why live away from his family in Miami, and in such anonymity? Why play at one of professional baseball's lowest levels, with only faint hope of ever making to the majors again?
"Only one reason," he says. "I love baseball."
A game he can't let go. Hernandez's fastball has lost some zip, and he no longer has pinpoint control. The high-leg kick is gone, replaced with a quick reliever's motion, and the only thing that intimidates batters is his name.
But he still hides the ball as well as anyone, still has that mind-blowing movement, still has that strong work ethic and fierce presence on the mound.
"He was one of the most intense competitors I've ever been around," said Dodgers manager Joe Torre, who was with Hernandez in New York. "He was a guy you basically trusted with the ball out there because he never shirked away from the competition of the game.
"Even when we played against him when he was with the Mets or something, you were always a little skeptical out there because you knew there may have been something up his sleeve."
Hernandez's age isn't unheard of for a pitcher. Phillies pitcher Jamie Moyer is 47, Randy Johnson pitched for San Francisco at 45 last season and Roger Clemens turned 45 in his final year in the majors in 2007.
None, however, were in the rookie league then. Hernandez has been pitching one or two innings in relief — the only role he might have left in the majors. He is still announced as "El Duque," a nickname he shared with his father Arnaldo, and even players on opposing teams are on the top steps when he pitches.
The recognition goes beyond the baseball diamond to places he frequents around the Gulf Coast League. People often ask for autographs. Sometimes even players.
"People look at me and I can see them thinking. 'Yes, no, yes, no, maybe,'" he says. "I just smile and laugh, 'Yeah, it's me.'"
Hernandez's other task comes with helping young players.
The Nationals, for instance, optioned fellow Cuban right-hander Yunesky Maya to Viera almost certainly to benefit from Hernandez's guidance. And perhaps Hernandez, too, can learn from a younger generation.
The best chance Hernandez has of pitching in the majors this season, he figures, is when rosters expand from 25 to 40 in September. So even he has to endure that other minor-league tradition: waiting for a call that might not ever come.
"If it was up to me, I'm ready," he says. "I never tire. I can pitch forever, at least I'll try."
American League
Wakamatsu stays above Mariners fray
SEATTLE (AP) — Less than two years ago, new general manager Jack Zduriencik called his hiring of Don Wakamatsu "the crown jewel" of his Mariners' remodeling.
He got rid of the jewel Monday.
Zduriencik fired his first big Seattle hire a week after he had proclaimed "Don's our manager." The move came hours before a game, following a rare series win and with just weeks left in a season lost long ago.
"I was a little surprised by the timing," Wakamatsu said Tuesday in a telephone interview, a little more than a day after the last-place Mariners, who haven't been to the playoffs since 2001, fired him and three coaches. "But I thought there was probably a move coming."
The 47-year-old Wakamatsu said he's not bitter about anything — even though he lasted only one great season and about half of a terrible one.
Wakamatsu, who was still in Seattle, thanked the Mariners for giving him his first job as a major league manager — he had not managed above Double A before. He thanked his coaches. He thanked Seattle's fans. He even thanked the media.
He also said he can't wait to get home to the Dallas-Fort Worth area and watch his sons play football starting late this month.
First he'll stop this week in Hood River, Ore. His birthplace is still home to his grandparents, James Wakamatsu and wife Ruth. Now in their early 90s, they were hardworking fruit growers in Oregon's Willamette Valley before the Japanese Americans were sent to a World War II internment camp. As a child, Wakamatsu lived in the barracks in which his grandparents were once interned.
He can take more time on this trip.
"The organization makes the decision to move on, and I respect that. I respect that they gave me the opportunity," Wakamatsu said.
"My whole thing is that I will have a measure of disappointment in not being able to (win)."
Wakamatsu declined to discuss the events that turned him from a first-year wonder into a second-year dismissal, saying "I really don't want to get into any of that stuff."
The Mariners expected Wakamatsu to lead them into the postseason following a 24-win turnaround in 2009.
But they were a divided mess and 28 games under .500 when they canned the majors' first Japanese-American manager.
Wakamatsu thinks he will get another chance in the big leagues.
"There will be opportunities in the future, and I look forward to that," he said.
The Mariners hired him in November 2008 as a relative unknown, a former bench coach and third-base coach in Texas and bench coach for Oakland.
His task was to reverse the culture and performance of a team that in 2008 became the first to lose 100 games with a $100 million payroll.
He succeeded in 2009. Ken Griffey Jr. bonded with Wakamatsu and transformed the team's previously fractured, bickering clubhouse. Griffey even had ties made with Wakamatsu's likeness for the team to wear on a midseason road trip.
Seattle went from 61-101 to 85-77. Fans gave the team a roaring send off on that season's final day. Griffey and Ichiro Suzuki even got carried from the field on teammates' shoulders.
"That connection with the fans was pretty special," Wakamatsu said Tuesday. "That moment, that time, will probably sit with me for the rest of my life."
The vibe was fleeting. Griffey had a second left knee surgery in two offseasons. Then he turned 40. And instead of going out grandly with that moment last October, he signed to return for one more farewell season with Seattle.
That proved to be destructive — and may have helped cost Wakamatsu his job.
The manager watched Griffey slip to a .200 hitter with no homers before he finally benched him. Griffey was offended, feeling he deserved better treatment as a player of his stature. He retired in early June, driving home to Florida without saying goodbye to most in Seattle.
Those weeks irreparably divided the team into factions — those, among them prominent veterans, aligned with Griffey, and those loyal to Wakamatsu. It was effectively 2008 again inside the clubhouse.
The team sank so far so fast that Zduriencik traded ace Cliff Lee to division-rival Texas in July for four players currently in the minors. Months earlier, the GM had plucked the 2008 AL Cy Young Award winner from Philadelphia in a heralded trade that made Seattle a trendy pick for the playoffs.
The Mariners finished July 6-22, tied for their worst month ever. Now Triple-A manager Daren Brown is Wakamatsu's interim replacement.
"I understood," Wakamatsu said. "It all comes back to the manager and wins and losses, and it's unfortunate. We set with a year and a half ago to build something here long term.
"There's a lot of disappointment, certainly on my part. The club was not playing up to the expectations of what should be the caliber of baseball here in Seattle."
-- Gregg Bell
Teixeira out of Yankees lineup after birth of son
ARLINGTON (AP) — Mark Teixeira was not in the New York Yankees lineup Tuesday night and won't even be in Texas for the two-game set against the AL West-leading Rangers.
Teixeira remained home in the New York area after his wife gave birth to the couple's third child earlier Tuesday.
"Tex and Leigh had a baby boy today and we're all happy for him," manager Joe Girardi said.
Lance Berkman, acquired from Houston last month, started at first base and played for the first time in his home state wearing a uniform other than the Astros. It was only his second start at first base for the Yankees after six starts as the designated hitter.
New York also opened the short series matching division leaders without second baseman Robinson Cano, whose .329 batting average was fifth in the American League, in the starting lineup.
When he arrived at the ballpark, Cano told Girardi that he was sick and was taken out of the original lineup. Ramiro Pena started in his place, but Cano pinch-hit for him in the sixth inning and stayed in the game.
Before the game, Cano said he took some medicine and would see how he felt later.
Girardi said Teixeira, who now has two sons and a daughter, would rejoin the Yankees sometime during their series at Kansas City that begins Thursday. That means Teixeira will have to wait until mid-September to play in Texas, where he began his career with the Rangers from 2003-07.
Berkman was born in Waco, Texas, went to college at Rice University in Houston and was the first-round pick by the Astros in 1997. He made his major league debut in 1999 and was a five-time All-Star with full no-trade rights. He approved the deal to go to the Yankees.
"If I was going to have to leave Houston, I wanted it to be a unique opportunity," the 34-year-old Berkman said. "It was like getting called up. It's great to get a chance to play for the Yankees. ... It felt a lot like when I walked into the clubhouse in the Astrodome in '99, when I didn't know anybody and wanted to feel like I was part of the team."
Berkman said his father was a big Yankee fan but that he wouldn't characterize himself that way while growing up in central Texas.
"I was a Don Mattingly fan," Berkman said. "I didn't have a team I followed, but Don Mattingly was a player I followed."
When Astros general manager Ed Wade called Berkman about the possibility of a trade, there were eight teams on the list. Berkman said no to San Francisco, the Los Angeles Angels, Detroit and the Chicago White Sox. Beside the Yankees, he said he would have considered Boston, San Diego and the Rangers.
'It was an unreal experience. I never thought it would be a reality. I didn't think they'd trade Roy (Oswalt). So this was like a death in the family," he said. "I could have said I didn't want to be traded. But the reality was maybe I was in a little bit of a rut mentally in Houston because we were having such a poor season. ... I felt it would be good to come to a place where there was a high standard of excellence."
-- Stephen Hawkins
Pedroia runs at full speed, could return next week
TORONTO (AP) — Boston Red Sox infielder Dustin Pedroia ran at full speed before Tuesday's game at Toronto and could begin a minor league rehab assignment this weekend.
Pedroia is expected to work out again Wednesday, including making some cuts when he runs, and run again Thursday before visiting a doctor in Boston on Friday.
"He did great. Today was by far the best day," manager Terry Francona said. "I'd say he was close to 100 percent speed-wise. There was no limp, there was no favoring it. He had that little burst. It was very exciting."
If all goes well, Pedroia will play at least two rehab games at Triple-A Pawtucket this weekend, either at second base or designated hitter, and could return to Boston's lineup for an Aug. 17 game against the Los Angeles Angels.
The 2008 AL MVP fractured his left foot when fouled a ball off his leg during a June 25 loss to San Francisco. Pedroia is batting .292 with 12 homers and 41 RBIs in 73 games this year.
Pedroia said he still feels weakness in the foot but had no problems defensively.
"Ground balls is fine, the only thing that's tough is running," he said. "I'll be smart about it during the game and pick and choose when I need to run."
This is the first stint on the DL in the big leagues for the 26-year-old Pedroia, who was rewarded by the Red Sox with a $40.5 million, six-year contract before the 2009 season.
"I know the rest of the way is going to be tough but we're at a point right now where we're trying to make a run and get in the playoffs," Pedroia said. "I know I'm not going to be as fast as I was earlier in the year but I'll make that up in the offseason."
Pedroia, who ran in spikes for the first time Tuesday, said he will wear extra padding inside his shoes at all times and special protection on the outside of his shoes when he bats.
Catcher Jason Varitek, who broke a bone when he fouled a ball off his right foot on June 30, also ran Tuesday and is about seven to 10 days behind Pedroia, Francona said.
Left-hander Hideki Okajima, out since Aug. 6 with a strained right hamstring, was set to begin a throwing program Tuesday, while outfielder Mike Cameron, who has not played since July 30 with a torn abdominal muscle, took batting practice before the game.
Guillen: White Sox deserve more respect
CHICAGO (AP) — White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen apparently thinks his team isn't getting enough respect.
The outspoken skipper went off on another tangent before Tuesday's game against the Minnesota Twins, the first of three between the AL Central co-leaders, saying his team deserves more credit and doesn't "feel the support" in Chicago.
"Everybody asks, 'What do you think about the Minnesota Twins this year?' Well, that's the team that's supposed to be here today," he said. "That's all it is."
Guillen dismissed headlines hyping the arrival Twins and said when his wife mentioned Minnesota visiting, he responded by saying, "Good, you dating somebody from there?"
Guillen went on to say he feels "more proud of this ballclub than any team I ever managed" and even vowed to write a book about this season.
The White Sox had just lost three of four at Baltimore to fall into a tie for the division lead, yet the notion of them even contending seemed far-fetched at one point.
They were 9½ games out in early June before winning 25 of 30 before the All-Star break to leap into first place. That eased ill will between Guillen and general manager Ken Williams, who were at odds over the manager opening a Twitter account in spring training. There was more tension when the White Sox drafted Guillen's son Ozney in the 22nd round.
The latest episode came nine days after Ozzie Guillen said Asian players are given privileges in the United States that Latinos are not afforded, which led to the White Sox issuing a statement saying they disagreed.
-- Andrew Seligman
Morrow to get extra rest before next start
TORONTO (AP) — Toronto Blue Jays right-hander Brandon Morrow will get extra rest before his next start after throwing a career-high 137 pitches in his last outing, a one-hit, 17-strikeout victory over the Tampa Bay Rays.
Morrow, 9-6 with a 4.45 ERA, lost a no-hitter with two outs in the ninth inning Sunday when Evan Longoria grounded an infield single off the glove of second baseman Aaron Hill. Morrow struck out Dan Johnson for the final out of the 1-0 victory.
It was the first career complete game and first shutout for Morrow, who will get eight days off before his next start, Aug. 17 at Oakland.
Left-hander Brett Cecil is also being pushed back from Thursday to Saturday after needing three stitches to close a cut on his right knee. He fell on a staircase Sunday. Cecil is 9-5 with a 3.62 ERA.
Left-hander Brad Mills will start Thursday against Boston and will be optioned to Triple-A Las Vegas after the game, with fellow lefty Marc Rzepczynski called up to start Friday against the Los Angeles Angels.
White Sox hold Beckham out of lineup
CHICAGO (AP) — Chicago White Sox second baseman Gordon Beckham expects to be back in the lineup on Wednesday after being held out for a second straight game.
Beckham, who has a strained right groin, says he was available to pinch-hit Tuesday against the Minnesota Twins in the opener of a three-game series between the AL Central co-leaders. He hurt himself Sunday in Baltimore and left that game.
National League
Phillips in middle of Cards, Reds brawl
CINCINNATI (AP) — Outspoken Brandon Phillips was in the middle of a first-inning altercation between the Cincinnati Reds and St. Louis Cardinals, who evidently don't appreciate being called complainers.
The second baseman had words with Cardinals catcher Yadier Molina when he came to bat in the bottom of the first inning Tuesday night. Phillips removed his helmet, and Molina took off his mask as their exchange escalated.
Both benches and bullpens emptied, but there was nothing more than shoving initially. Cardinals manager Tony La Russa and Reds manager Dusty Baker exchanged words in the middle of the crowd.
Reds third baseman Scott Rolen went after Cardinals pitcher Chris Carpenter near the edge of the crowd, and the two wound up crunched against the backstop. Carpenter, who got the win in a 7-3 victory Monday night, got shoved into the backstop screen.
Reds starting pitcher Johnny Cueto ended up with his back against the backstop, kicking furiously to free himself from the mob.
The altercation ended after seven minutes. Rolen went up to Carpenter to make amends. Both managers were ejected but no players.
Phillips continued his at-bat and grounded out, leaving him 0 for 6 in the series without a ball hit out of the infield. Molina had a pleasing moment in the top of the second, hitting a solo homer off Cueto. He pumped his arm before crossing the plate, then pointed at the sky and celebrated with teammates in the dugout.
Phillips got the showdown series started with a little animosity on Monday by saying he hated the Cardinals, whom he called complainers. Baker talked to him about the comments before the game on Tuesday, saying he wished the second baseman had kept his feelings to himself.
Phillips was more diplomatic after his talk with Baker, but didn't back down.
"Everybody, they respect me for what I said," Phillips said before Tuesday's game. "Those are my comments. A lot of people feel that way all throughout the league. Many people feel that way."
La Russa wasn't happy with Phillips' comment and mentioned it to Reds general manager Walt Jocketty, who worked with him in St. Louis.
The teams have a recent history of raw feelings. The Cardinals complained last season and again on opening day that the baseballs weren't properly rubbed up for the game in Cincinnati, leaving them slippery.
There's also a playoff subtext. The Cardinals are defending NL Central champs, but have been locked in a back-and-forth race with the upstart Reds since May. Cincinnati hasn't had a winning record since 2000 and hasn't been to the playoffs since 1995.
The Reds had a one-game lead going into the second game of their series. They play one more time, a three-game series in St. Louis from Sept. 3-5.
-- Joe Kay
Baker talks to Phillips about Cards comment
CINCINNATI (AP) — Reds manager Dusty Baker talked to second baseman Brandon Phillips on Tuesday about his critical comments regarding the St. Louis Cardinals.
Phillips said before the start of their three-game series that he hates the Cardinals, whom he called complainers. Baker said Tuesday he wished Phillips hadn't made the comments, and told him so.
"Brandon knows what he's saying," Baker said before the second game of their series. "It doesn't make it right, but he knows what he's saying and that's his opinion.
"I talked to him about it and put a little pressure on him to play better personally. The Cardinals have given him a pretty rough time historically."
Phillips criticized the Cardinals before the start of their showdown series. The Reds lead the Cardinals by a game in the NL Central. The two teams have been within a few games of each other since May.
Phillips was more diplomatic when talking about the Cardinals on Tuesday, after his talk with Baker.
"Everybody, they respect me for what I said," Phillips said. "Those are my comments. A lot of people feel that way all throughout the league. Many people feel that way."
The Cardinals noticed. Manager Tony La Russa mentioned Phillips' remarks to Reds general manager Walt Jocketty, who was with La Russa in St. Louis. La Russa pointed out that several current Reds played for the Cardinals.
"It is critical that it is handled by his boss and his teammates," La Russa said. "It doesn't involve us, so I'm not worried about it."
Phillips' comments got some attention in the media, but didn't affect the opening game. St. Louis won 7-3 on Monday night, with Phillips going 0 for 5 and failing to get the ball out of the infield.
Braves' Chipper Jones injured
HOUSTON (AP) — Atlanta third baseman Chipper Jones isn't sure how severely he injured his left knee fielding a ground ball in the sixth inning against the Houston Astros on Tuesday night.
The team called it a sprain, but Jones said after the game that he wasn't sure what was wrong.
"It's hurt," he said. "I heard a distinct pop. I don't think it's my ACL because when I did it before it sounded like my knee exploded. It sounded like the whole stadium could hear it pop. While I did hear it pop, it wasn't the same pop."
Jones grabbed a grounder hit by Hunter Pence and jumped in the air as he made the throw to first base to get Pence out.
He then fell to the ground where he remained for several minutes while trainers and coaches crowded around him. He was helped to his feet and walked gingerly off under his own power. He was replaced by Brooks Conrad.
The 38-year-old Jones, who is hitting .265 this season, had a double on Tuesday.
He will have an MRI on Thursday in Atlanta.
Jones had the knee covered in a bandage after the game, but said it wasn't very swollen, which he believes is a good sign. Still, he's worried about what he'll find out when he returns to Atlanta.
"I've got a very distinct pain on the lower left side of my knee," he said. "I don't know what that means. Hopefully it's just a sprain. (We) just got to wait for the MRI."
-- Kristie Rieken
Expos-Nationals honor Dawson, other past stars
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Expos-turned-Nationals are celebrating Andre Dawson's induction into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.
The franchise that moved from Montreal to Washington before the 2005 season also is unveiling what it's calling a Hall of Fame Ring of Honor at Nationals Park before Tuesday's game against the Florida Marlins.
The team says the ring recognizes players who are in the Hall of Fame and spent "significant years" with the Expos, the Nationals, the Senators or the Negro Leagues' Homestead Grays.
Among those whose names are now lining the facade above the lower bowl behind home plate at the stadium: Dawson, Gary Carter, Walter Johnson, Harmon Killebrew, Josh Gibson, James "Cool Papa" Bell, Joe Cronin, Early Wynn and Clark Griffith.
Brewers Hart, Braun miss second consecutive game
MILWAUKEE (AP) — Milwaukee Brewers outfielders Corey Hart and Ryan Braun were out of the starting lineup again for Tuesday night's game against the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Hart, the right fielder, has a sore lower back. Braun, the left fielder, has a left wrist strain. Both missed Monday night's game as the Brewers lost 7-4 in 10 innings in the opener of the four-game series.
Brewers manager Ken Macha said that while both are day-to-day, Braun could pinch run and Hart could pinch hit like he did in the ninth inning of Monday night's game. Hart ran at less than full speed when he ground out to third.
Braun singled to short in the fourth during Sunday's game against the Houston Astros and appeared to hit his left wrist against Astros first baseman Brett Wallace on a play at the bag.
Nationals RHP Strasburg has rough return from DL
WASHINGTON (AP) — Nationals right-hander Stephen Strasburg has allowed a career-high six runs in a career-low 4 1-3 innings in his first start since returning from the disabled list.
The Nationals reinstated the rookie from the 15-day DL before their game against the Florida Marlins on Tuesday night. He last pitched July 21.
Strasburg was scratched minutes before his scheduled start against Atlanta on July 27, because he had trouble getting loose in the bullpen before the game. It was later diagnosed as inflammation in his pitching shoulder.
Entering Tuesday, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2009 amateur draft was 5-2 with a 2.32 ERA, 75 strikeouts and 15 walks in 54 1-3 innings. His ERA rose to 3.07 Tuesday.
Reds' RHP Bailey moved into relief
CINCINNATI (AP) — The Reds will see if right-hander Homer Bailey can pitch out of the bullpen.
The former first-round draft pick is on a rehabilitation assignment in the minors, working his way back from shoulder inflammation. He's been on the disabled list since May 24.
Bailey currently is pitching with Triple-A Louisville, where he has a 2.50 ERA in three starts. Pitching coach Bryan Price says his next appearance will be as a reliever. The Reds have plenty of starting pitchers, so they're trying to figure out if Bailey — a starter throughout his career — could help the bullpen.
Right-hander Aaron Harang threw a simulated game on Tuesday without problem and could start a rehab assignment over the weekend. He's been sidelined by back spasms since July 6.
Heyward out against Houston
HOUSTON (AP) — Right fielder Jason Heyward has been scratched from Atlanta's lineup for Tuesday night's game against the Houston Astros because of a sore right knee.
He was replaced in right field by Melky Cabrera.
Heyward, who turned 21 on Monday, homered in Atlanta's 10-4 loss to Houston on Monday night. He became the fourth player to homer on his 21st birthday, joining Ted Williams (1939), Frank Robinson (1956) and Alex Rodriguez (1996) according to the Elias Sports Bureau.
Street out, with wife after birth of 1st child
NEW YORK (AP) — Colorado Rockies closer Huston Street is missing the opener of a series at the New York Mets to be with his wife after the birth of their first child.
Street's wife Lacey gave birth to Ripken Ray on Monday night in Denver. The Rockies said Tuesday that Huston will likely be back with the team Wednesday.
The 27-year-old Street missed the first 69 games this season with right shoulder inflammation. He has seven saves. Manuel Corpas had 10 saves in his absence.
