Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Rays demote Hellickson
Tampa Bay pitcher Jeremy Hellickson’s struggles have landed him at Class-A Charlotte.
The Rays demoted the former American League Rookie of the Year on Tuesday, and Hellickson clearly was not happy about the demotion.
He declined to comment when he left the Rays’ clubhouse, saying only, “I’ll let someone else tell you,” the Tampa Bay Times reported.
Rays manager Joe Maddon said Hellickson will not pitch for the Stone Crabs and that the right-hander just needs a break.
“Just primarily to give him a little bit of a rest,” Maddon said. “He’s well physically; we just thought giving him a little bit of a break would be very important right now. Obviously the more recent performances have not been great. And the fact that he is not injured, we felt the next best thing was to give him a little bit of a break.”
On Monday, Hellickson struggled again, failing to pitch through the third inning. He has not made it past five innings in any of his previous six starts.
LHP Jeff Beliveau was recalled from Triple-A and will be used out of the bullpen.
Hellickson might throwa couple of bullpen sessions while in Charlotte, Maddon said. But the plan is to call him back to the big-league club in early September.
Byrd, Buck dealt
The Pittsburgh Pirates acquired outfielder Marlon Byrd and catcher John Buck from the NewYorkMets on Tuesday.
TheMets received infield prospect Dilson Herrera and a player to be named in the deal.
Byrd, 35, is batting .285 with a career-high 21 home runs and will provide immediate help for the Pirates with left fielder and leadoff man Starling Marte on the disabled list with a hand injury.
Pittsburgh (76-54) was a half-game behind St. Louis in theNational League Central but nine games ahead of Arizona for the second wild card spot.
Elsewhere
The San Diego Padres released right-hander Edinson Volquez after he passed through waivers unclaimed.
Volquez was designated for assignment by the team lastweek after a dismal start against the Chicago Cubs in which he gave up six runs in the first inning before getting an out.
Despite a season that has fallen well short of expectations, the Blue Jays will retain John Gibbons as manager next season, General Manager Alex Anthopoulos said.
Toronto entered Tuesday’s game in last place in the American League East with a 59-73 record.
“I actually think, the in game managing, he has done a great job,” Anthopoulos said, according toMLB.com. “I think it’s so easy to pin results on one person. … There’s blame to share.” Braves starting pitcher
Brandon Beachy has no structural damage in his elbow but will remain shut down for 10 days before he attempts to throw again.