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FINALLY, SOME ELLY DE LA NEWS REDS CALL UP TOP PROSPECT ELLY DE LA CRUZ

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Reds call up Asher Wojciechowski, place Stuart Turner on DL

Nefi Ogando hit the 60-day DL to facilitate the move.

By Wick Terrell
Houston Astros Photo Day Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images

Asher Wojciechowski is relatively new to the Cincinnati Reds system, but he’s far from an unknown quantity league-wide. A former 1st round draft pick by the Toronto Blue Jays back in 2010, he was once traded with the likes of Francisco Cordero to the Houston Astros in exchange for J.A. Happ, and even made his big league debut with Houston back in 2015. The 5 games he pitched for the Astros that season serve as his lone big league experience to date, but that’s likely about to change, as the Reds announced Saturday that he’d been called up from AAA Louisville.

The Reds picked up Wojciechowski after the Arizona Diamondbacks released him at the end of Spring Training, and in 5 starts with AAA Louisville the 28 year old was nearly flawless. He posted a 1.40 ERA and 0.86 WHIP in 25.2 IP, striking out 10.2 per 9 against just 2.1 BB/9, which is precisely the kind of stability the Reds could use on their big league pitching staff. Of course, that’s assuming he’s turned a corner since that 5 game cameo with Houston in 2015, in which time he allowed 13 ER in 16.1 IP with a 1.84 WHIP to boot.

To make room on the 25 man roster, the Reds placed a catcher with a balky hamstring on the 10-day DL. No, it wasn't Devin Mesoraco, however, who sat out most of the last week with that issue before returning to pinch hit on Friday; instead, it's Stuart Turner, the Rule 5 pick who has to either stay on the 25-man roster all year or be on the big league DL to prevent having to be offered back to the Minnesota Twins. Apparently, he's got hamstring issues, too...or this is just a pretty creative way to not carry a dead-weight third catcher any longer.

Wojciechowski wasn't on the team's 40-man roster prior to today, which meant a corresponding move had to be made to free up a spot for him. Turns out, Nefi Ogando's bum shoulder has acted up to the point where moving him from the 10-day DL to the 60-day DL was practical, which freed up a spot for both Turner and Wojciechowski to be on the 40-man.

The Reds haven't yet announced which role Wojciechowski will fill while with the Reds, though he has worked exclusively as a starter so far in 2017. In fact, in the 142 games in which he's appeared in his minors career, 131 of them have been in a starting role. But with this staff, the heavy innings often come from the bullpen, so stay tuned.

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