CINCINNATI -- The Reds had hoped to give outfield prospect Jesse Winker an opportunity to get at-bats to keep proving he belongs in the Major Leagues, but a road block came on Friday. Winker was placed on the 10-day disabled list with a strained left hip flexor.
Outfielder Phillip Ervin was recalled from Triple-A Louisville. Ervin was sent down on Wednesday, but the 10-day rule of waiting in the Minors after a demotion was waived because of Winker's injury. This is Ervin's fourth big league stint this season.
"With a four-man bench, there's just no way to sit on our hands and wait 96-plus hours to find out if there's going to be a window where he'll be ready to play," Reds manager Bryan Price said, of the decision on Winker. "I do think he's going to be limited in any baseball activity for the first several days of this DL. Then we'll see how he responds to treatment."
Winker was first injured, he said, during last weekend's series at Atlanta. He didn't think it was a big deal and spent extra time having his hip stretched out to play. He exited Thursday's 4-2 win over the Cubs in the eighth inning in a double switch, but was removed specifically for the injury.
"It was one of those things I was trying to kind of push through," Winker said. "Yesterday, it just got to the point in that last at-bat running down the line, I felt some pain and decided I should probably come out."
In Winker's last 21 games, including 15 starts, he was batting .310 with four home runs. In 30 games overall, the 24-year-old is slashing .297/.402/.500 with 10 RBIs.
"He's a nice-looking player, and it's always fun to put his name in the lineup when I can," Price said. "He always finds a way to get on base and do something positive for us. Hopefully, it's just a 10-day setback and by the time we get to September, he's back and capable of playing with some regularity."
Wallach gets called up
In another transaction, backup catcher Stuart Turner was placed on a three-day paternity leave. Catcher Chad Wallach's contract was selected from Triple-A Louisville. Wallach is the son of former Major Leaguer and current Marlins bench coach Tim Wallach.
This is Wallach's first big league callup.
"The timing was perfect. It couldn't have worked out any better," Wallach said. "It's an honor to be up here and I'm excited to learn some stuff."
Wallach's fiancée took a redeye flight from California to be at Friday's game, and his mother, two brothers and best friend will arrive Saturday.
In 64 games for Louisville, Wallach hit .226 with nine homers and 18 RBIs. He could be needed again as primary catcher Tucker Barnhart and his wife, Sierra, are also expecting their first child at any time.
"For those of us who have worked with Chad in Spring Training the last few years, he's just a very mature kid," Price said. "I think our player development felt he was the most prepared to do this. There are so many guys on this team that he's already caught in Triple- or in Double-A. That familiarity certainly helped his cause to get an opportunity."