ST. LOUIS (AP) — The St. Louis Cardinals have put starting pitchers Michael Wacha and Jaime Garcia on the 15-day disabled list.

The Cardinals made the moves Sunday after their 5-3 win over Philadelphia.

The right-handed Wacha has a stress fracture in his pitching shoulder. He is 5-5 with a 2.79 ERA for the defending NL champions.

Garcia has re-aggravated his surgically repaired left shoulder. He is 3-1 with a 4.12 ERA.

St. Louis general manager John Mozeliak said it was too early to determine when the players will return. He said the team was aware of Garcia’s soreness, but the Wacha ailment took him by surprise.

“This was a little shocking to all of us,” Mozeliak said. “In terms of how long he’s going to be out, I don’t know that. We’re going to give him a couple weeks and see how he is and then re-evaluate.”



Padres’ Torres 1st pitcher
to wear protective cap

SAN DIEGO (AP) — Padres reliever Alex Torres is the first pitcher to wear a protective cap in a major league game.

Torres used the oversized gear when he worked the eighth inning of a 4-2 loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers on Saturday night. There was little on-field reaction.

“There really isn’t that much difference between this and a regular hat,” Torres said. “It may not look great, but I can’t feel a difference.”

Torres said he’s had the cap, approved by Major League Baseball in January, for about a month. He said he tried it on while playing catch on a few occasions before finally wearing it in Saturday night’s game.

Asked why he decided to wear it in a game, Torres said: “If it can save your life, why wouldn’t you? I’m not worried about how it looks if it works.”

Torres, 26, was with Tampa Bay last season when Rays pitcher Alex Cobb suffered a concussion when he was struck on his right ear by a line drive on June 15.

“That’s a scary thing to witness and it makes you think that could be you,” he said.