Indians demote former stud setup man Vinnie Pestano to Triple-A - MLB

Not so long ago Indians right-hander Vinnie Pestano was one of the best relievers in baseball, throwing 132 innings with a 2.45 ERA and 160 strikeouts between 2011 and 2012, but he struggled with elbow problems last season and is now headed back to the minors at age 29.

Pestano allowed six runs in three appearances to begin this season and his fastball averaged just 88.7 miles per hour, compared to a career average of 92.0 mph. Clearly something still isn’t right with his arm, but he’ll go to Triple-A instead of the disabled list.

Cody Allen has taken over for Pestano as the Indians’ primary setup man for closer John Axford, but getting Pestano healthy and anywhere close to his old self would be a huge boost to Cleveland’s chances in the AL Central.

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CINCINNATI — The Los Angeles Dodgers placed pitcher Noah Syndergaard on the 15-day injured list Thursday with a blister on the index finger of his right throwing hand.

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said the timetable for Syndergaard’s return is unknown despite the 15-day designation.

“The physical, the mental, the emotional part, as he’s talked about, has taken a toll on him,” Roberts said. “So, the ability to get him away from this. He left today to go back to Los Angeles to kind of get back to normalcy.”

Syndergaard allowed six runs and seven hits in three innings against the Cincinnati Reds on Tuesday night, raising his ERA to 7.16.

Syndergaard (1-4) has surrendered at least five runs in three straight starts.

Syndergaard has been trying to return to the player he was before Tommy John surgery sidelined him for the better part of the 2020 and 2021 seasons.

Roberts said Syndergaard will need at least “a few weeks” to both heal and get away from baseball and “reset.”

“I think searching and not being comfortable with where he was at in the moment is certainly evident in performance,” Roberts said. “So hopefully this time away will provide more clarity on who he is right now as a pitcher.

“Trying to perform when you’re searching at this level is extremely difficult. I applaud him from not running from it, but it’s still very difficult. Hopefully it can be a tale of two stories, two halves when he does come back.”