A.J. Puk put on IL with elbow inflammation as Diamondbacks shuffle bullpen

CHICAGO (AP) — Left-hander A.J. Puk was put on the 15-day injured list by the Arizona Diamondbacks on Saturday with left elbow inflammation.

Puk has four saves in eight games with Arizona this season, going 0-0 with a 3.38 ERA. He’s 17-20 with a 3.53 ERA and 26 saves in 212 games over a six-year career with three teams.

Puk’s IL move was retroactive to Friday. He had Tommy John surgery in 2018.

Manager Torey Lovullo said Puk made the team aware of the injury on Thursday in Miami after he pitched the ninth inning and earned a save in the Diamondback's 6-4 win. Puk had reported elbow fatigue earlier, Lovullo added.

Puk will undergo imaging on Monday after the team returns to Arizona.

“We just feel like at this point in time it's the safest thing for him to just pull back and get him evaluated and figure out what's going on in there,” Lovullo said. “I'm going to remain optimistic. We don't know what's going on in there.”

Arizona shuffled its bullpen, recalling right-hander Drey Jameson from Reno and selecting the contracts of righties J.P. Feyereisen and Juan Morillo from their Triple-A farm team ahead of Saturday's 6-2 loss to the Chicago Cubs. Feyereisen and Morillo each pitched a scoreless inning in the game.

Infielder Grae Kessinger was designated for assignment.

Arizona optioned left-hander Joe Mantiply and right-hander Bryce Jarvis to Reno following Friday’s 13-11 loss at Chicago.

Jameson was 0-0 with a 2.70 ERA in seven games with Reno. He pitched in 19 games in the majors in 2022 and 2023 with the Diamondbacks, going 6-1 with a 2.63 ERA.

Feyereisen was 1-0 with a 0.96 ERA and seven games with Reno. The 32-year-old is 8-5 with a 2.95 ERA for his career in the majors with three teams over four seasons.

Morillo is 0-0 with a 1.42 ERA in six games with Reno. He appeared in nine major league games with Colorado and Minnesota with no record and a 13.5O ERA.

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