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Baseball notebook: Mets send Perez to DL

Oliver Perez heads from the bullpen to the disabled list. (Associated Press)
Associated Press
Oliver Perez heads from the bullpen to the disabled list. (Associated Press)

Struggling pitcher Oliver Perez was placed on the 15-day disabled list Saturday by the New York Mets because of a sudden – and somewhat convenient – injury to his right knee.

The move was made retroactive to Tuesday, and it solved a roster problem. Left-hander Jonathon Niese came off the disabled list to start against Florida, so New York needed to open a spot for him.

By putting Perez on the 15-day DL, the Mets avoided having to send a pitcher to the minors.

In the second year of a $36 million, three-year contract, Perez lost his spot in the rotation this season and was banished to a mop-up role in the bullpen. Perez is 0-3 with a 6.28 ERA in 11 appearances, including seven starts.

Winn some, lose some

The St. Louis Cardinals signed outfielder Randy Winn looking to provide more depth to their bench.

Winn, a switch-hitter with a .285 career average, hit .213 with one homer and eight RBIs in 29 games with the New York Yankees before he was designated for assignment last month.

Winn has also had stints with Tampa Bay, where he was an All-Star in 2002, Seattle and San Francisco. The 36-year-old was in uniform and available for the Cardinals’ game against Milwaukee.

To clear roster space, the Cardinals optioned outfielder Jon Jay to Triple-A Memphis and moved right-hander Kyle Lohse from the 15- to the 60-day disabled list.

Bergesen to bullpen

Brad Bergesen was removed from the Baltimore Orioles starting rotation and assigned to provide relief to an overworked bullpen.

The move was made in part because Bergesen’s next scheduled start was Monday, a day off for the Orioles. So interim manager Juan Samuel, who used four relievers Friday night in an 11-0 loss to Boston, moved Bergesen to the pen.

“We don’t need a starter right now and I think he could help us more in the bullpen at this point,” Samuel said.

Asked how long Bergesen would remain in the bullpen, Samuel replied, “We don’t know. We’ll see. As days go by, we’ll see what’s going to happen when we will need our next (fifth) starter.”