CINCINNATI -- The Reds activated reliever Kevin Shackelford from the 10-day disabled list on Tuesday, designating reliever Kevin Quackenbush for assignment to clear a spot on the 25-man roster.
Shackelford, 29, has been out all season with a right forearm strain he sustained near the end of Spring Training. Five of his first six Cactus League appearances were scoreless, but he allowed five earned runs over his final two appearances and 2 1/3 innings before realizing he was hurt.
Last season, Shackelford posted a 4.70 ERA and a 1.40 WHIP in 26 appearances for the Reds. He spent most of the season with Triple-A Louisville, where he had a 1.53 ERA in 35 games. During his four-game rehab assignment with Louisville and Double-A Pensacola, Shackelford had a 6.23 ERA.
Quackenbush, 29, had an 11.00 ERA and a 2.11 WHIP over his 10 appearances for the Reds this season after earning a spot in camp as a non-roster invite. In nine innings, he gave up six walks and three home runs with seven strikeouts. In his final game for Cincinnati at St. Louis on Sunday, Quackenbush gave up six earned runs, four hits and two walks during a 9-2 loss.
Quackenbush's removal leaves the Reds with 39 players on their 40-man roster.
Mesoraco scratched
About 90 minutes before Tuesday's game vs. the Cardinals, the Reds scratched catcher Devin Mesoraco from the starting lineup with neck stiffness. Regular catcher Tucker Barnhart, who had been set for a night off, was plugged back into the starting lineup to replace Mesoraco.
Should Mesoraco need a few days, the Reds have no other catchers on their 40-man roster to bring up. Tony Cruz, Stuart Turner and Joe Hudson are currently catching for Louisville.
Suarez plays in rehab game
Reds third baseman Eugenio Suarez went 1-for-2 with a double, two walks and a strikeout in four plate appearances in a rehab game with Louisville on Tuesday. Suarez is working his way back from a fractured right thumb, and interim manager Jim Riggleman didn't expect him to need many more games.
"He's such a baseball rat. He's been out here working his tail off right here. He feels like he's really close," Riggleman said. "He'll have something to say about it. Sometimes, you would mandate they go down there for 'X' amount of days. But in his case, I think once he sees some pitches and he's feeling good, we'll see him real soon."
Suarez has been on the 10-day DL since April 9. The day before, vs. the Pirates, he was hit on the hand by a Jameson Taillon pitch.
The Reds' offense, which broke out in a 10-4 win over the Braves on Monday, could use Suarez's contributions. The team has used a combination of veterans Cliff Pennington and Phil Gosselin and rookie Alex Blandino.
"It's been a while, but it hasn't been a real long time," Riggleman said. "We feel like he needs to see some live pitching down there, but not a lot."
Suarez batted third for Louisville and played third base, one spot behind top prospect Nick Senzel, who manned second base.
Bullpen session next for Lorenzen
It will still be a while before injured Reds reliever Michael Lorenzen emerges from the bullpen during a Major League game. But he will throw a bullpen session before Wednesday's game, his first work off a mound since Spring Training. Lorenzen has been out since mid-March because a strained right teres major muscle near his shoulder.
"It's going to be something short, just to get me [going]," Lorenzen said on Tuesday.
After being restricted to long toss for a while, Lorenzen was glad to have graduated to a mound.
"Especially when you should have graduated a while ago," Lorenzen said. "But I'm not an expert in that field -- I am just going off based on how I feel. And it's a good thing that I feel this way."
Hernandez update
Reliever David Hernandez, who has been out since March with right shoulder inflammation, made his second rehab assignment appearance on Monday. Hernandez gave up one earned run and two hits with no walks and one strikeout while throwing 17 pitches.
"I believe he's going to throw one more. He's really close," Riggleman said.