The Oakland Athletics have reinstated starting pitcher Brandon McCarthy from the disabled list after suffering from a strained shoulder muscle a few weeks ago. The injury was never believed to be serious, although clubs always take every precaution when dealing with a shoulder injury on a pitcher.
McCarthy is scheduled to start on Saturday against the Royals in Kansas City, and he is expected to have no real limitations on the mound.
Daric Barton was sent down to the Minor Leagues in order to make room for McCarthy. He was reportedly not too happy about being sent down.
Barton declines comment about being sent out. He's clearly not too happy. #Athletics
— Susan Slusser (@susanslusser) June 2, 2012
Barton was hitting just .198 with an OPS of .608 leading up to the demotion, so it really shouldn't come as too much of a surprise. He is still on the 40-man roster and will likely be called up to Oakland at some point this season, although he'll need to turn his year around in Triple-A if he hopes to have much of a role with the team moving forward.
The A's are schedule to begin their game with the Royals at 11:10 a.m. PST.
For more on the team be sure to check out Athletics Nation.