Notes: DL movement

Managers coming and going
By Beth Sass / hereforthesass.blogspot.com

PITTSBURGH -- The Here for the Sass team had some crazy DL movement this weekend. Since the managers are not limited to the 15-day and 60-day DL, Beth placed herself on the DL on Thursday, and was sent to Nice to check out a cold. However, doctors in Nice were unable to discover anything other than a virus, so she is expected to return to the Sass on Monday.

“It’s one of those, ‘on one hand….but on the other hand…’ moments,” Beth said just after her massage on Sunday afternoon. “On one hand, I’m not seriously ill. On the other hand, since it’s a virus, there’s nothing they can do about it.”

If Beth is still not well in a week, she may need to schedule another trip to Nice for further testing.

When Beth was placed on the DL, Dawn took herself off the DL and flew back to the U.S. to join the team. She reported that she will need to visit Nice for some treatment in August, but for now is healthy enough to be back with the team.

“Nice is a great place, but it’s nice to be back with the team again. It’s been awhile. Besides, ever since Rocco [Baldelli] left, the food hasn’t been up to the high standards. The French just don’t know how to cook,” Dawn said.

With both managers back with the team, Beth and Dawn hope that this inspires the rest of the team to avoid trips to the DL.

Return times approximated: Edwin Encarnacion and Justin Duchscherereerer are both looking at the possibility of returning from Nice as soon as Wednesday of this week.

“e.e.’s injury really was only something that was going keep him out a week, but we needed available players on our bench,” Dawn said, “He’s eligible to come off the DL on Thursday or Friday, I think. The trainers in Nice are quite positive at this point that we’ll be back.”

Justin Duchscherererer, who was out with elbow tendonitis, was a surprise. Sass translator, Sarah, was around on Sunday afternoon to translate the message from Nice which stated that in a simulated game, Justin threw 23 pitches on Saturday, but did not feel as sore as expected Sunday.

"I feel good. I feel better than I expected," Justin said.*

Justin will pitch a few innings with the Nice Guys in Nice, the Sass AA team, and if all goes well, he could be back with the team later this week.

“This is a positive sign,” Dawn said, “It seems like he’s been in Nice forever, and I know Beth was missing him here

Justin was working on trying to oust Grant Balfour from being the leader of the Chutes and Ladders competition in Nice, but Grant is still holding a firm lead, based almost entirely on his success due to being on the DL so long.

* That’s a real quote from him!

Home run competition: “I can’t keep up with him!” was the lament by Jermaine Dye on Sunday evening. Jermaine hit a home run Sunday night, but Adam pointed out that last Sunday through Wednesday he hit home runs in every game. Adam now has 23 home runs on the year, while Jermaine has 20. Behind them, Juan Encarnacion and Michael Cuddyer both have 10 home runs, and Carlos Guillen has 9.

“However, I take the moral high ground,” Jermaine said, “I have a much higher batting average than Adam.”

Adam is always the first to admit that his batting average is not high.

Adam responded, “Be fair. My mother would probably have a higher batting average than I do. I’m here to hit home runs, and that’s pretty much what I do. And it’s results that matter. I’ve scored way more runs than [Jermaine].”

Rach sent the two men to re-organize the bat rack, so she would not have to listen to their brotherly arguing anymore.

Off-day:With an off-day on Monday, the Sass will be sending out a limited number of players to play with other teams, just for some extra work. Their stats will count for their total stats, so all are encouraged to see how well they can do. Adam, Placido Polanco, and Carlos G. will all be joining a team to play today, while the Sass are also lending out four relief pitchers: Brandon Medders, Jon Rauch, Brad Halsey, and Rheal Cormier.

“Since joining the Sass, Jon and I feel like we haven’t gotten enough work in. I’d like to be at the top of my game any time I pitch with the Sass. Being a reliever, I don’t know when I’ll get into a game or not, but when I was invited, I wasn’t going to miss that opportunity,” Rheal said.

The rest of the position players will be spending extra time with hitting coach Michael Restovich. After some batting practice, the men will be having a barbeque.

“I gotta admit, I’m a bit nervous about letting these guys near a grill, looking at our injury record, but Mikey has assured me that he’s taken all precautions to avoid injury,” Dawn said.

The pitching staff will watching pitching coach Bronson Arroyo, as he will be pitching tonight.

“Watching him pitch is a sure way to get a demonstration on ‘What to do and when to do it.’ It’s better than watching a video,” Aaron Harang said.

Kat reported that all of the pitchers will be wrapped in bubblewrap before the game, to avoid the injuries of foul balls or flying bats.