Urena candidate to spot start

ST. PETERSBURG — Jose Urena, the Miami Marlins’ long reliever, could make a short return to the rotation by the end of the week.

Manager Don Mattingly said Urena is a candidate to start Sunday against the New York Mets in place of fellow right-hander Edinson Volquez, who went on the 10-day disabled list Wednesday with a blister on his right thumb.

The Marlins called up righty reliever Nick Wittgren from Triple-A New Orleans to take Volquez’s roster spot. Volquez and Mattingly said they expect Volquez to miss only one start.

Whether Urena or someone from Triple-A — perhaps lefty Justin Nicolino — gets Sunday’s spot start depends in large part on how the next few days develop for the Miami pitching staff.

“It depends on … the need we have out of the bullpen,” Mattingly said. “Obviously Jose is a candidate for that start. We’ll make sure the guys in Triple-A that we would use would be lined up.”

Urena has a 2.51 ERA and 1.40 WHIP in 14 innings across five relief appearances this year. He pitched two innings Tuesday.

Nicolino, who has made five starts for New Orleans, has a 3.58 ERA and 1.50 WHIP with a 23-to-14 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 32 innings. He most recently pitched Tuesday, so he would be on schedule to take Volquez’s turn.

Volquez left his start Tuesday against the Tampa Bay Rays in the fifth inning with a blister on his right thumb, an issue he said he has dealt with periodically throughout his career, but never to the degree he experienced this time.

“I don’t make any decision here,” said Volquez, who noted he’ll probably still be able to play catch most days. “They decided to give me more time to recover.”

Because the disabled list means a minimum stay of 10 days this year — a departure from the 15-day requirement of seasons past — it effectively equals one missed start for a starting pitcher. If his blister heals, Volquez will return May 13 against the Atlanta Braves.

As has been the case with other health issues, the Marlins’ decision-makers opted for a cautious approach with Volquez’s iffy finger.

“We talk about the longrange approach to the season and you want to make sure he’s going to get 30 starts, not go out and not be able to pitch after two innings or something like that,” Mattingly said.

“The blister is pretty substantial. Our biggest concern was trying to make sure that the next time he goes out there, it’s not an inning and this thing blows up and we’re screwing up the whole thing. We want to really give him a chance to make sure this thing is gone.” bullpen needed a fresh arm.

In 6 innings over three major league appearances this year, Wittgren has allowed two runs (2.70 ERA), struck out seven and walked two. He also pitched five scoreless innings for New Orleans.

Dee Gordon

LYNNE SLADKY/AP Relief pitcher Jose Urena has a 2.51 ERA in 14 1/3 innings across five relief appearances this year.