With a strained left oblique muscle, right-hander AJ Smith-Shawver was placed on the 15-day injured list by the Atlanta Braves on Friday. In addition, the team recalled left-hander Ray Kerr from Triple-A Gwinnett to start Friday night’s series opener against the Pirates in Pittsburgh.
The Braves also signed veteran Joey Wendle to a major league contract and optioned fellow infielder Luke Williams to Gwinnett. Smith-Shawver, 21, made his season debut on Thursday and shut out three hits and two walks in 4 1/3 scoreless innings before leaving the game with the Braves winning 3-0. Kerr, 29, is 1-0 with a 2.89 ERA in four relief appearances this season for Atlanta. He has struck out 10 batters and walked none in 9 1/3 innings.
After batting on Monday, Wendle, 34, was released by the New York Mets.222 with one RBI and no home homers in 18 games. He has a career.262 hitter with 4 teams in 667 games, 32 home runs, and 220 RBIs. Throughout his seven games with the Braves this season, Williams, 27, is 0-for-3 at the plate and has scored one run.
