BALTIMORE -- Orioles pitcher Koji Uehara is poised for another stint on the disabled list, this time with an elbow strain.
The Japanese right-hander was scratched from his scheduled start against Washington on Sunday and is expected to be replaced by rookie Dave Hernandez, who will be recalled from Class AAA Norfolk. To make room for Hernandez, Baltimore will place Uehara on the DL.
"I would say that's a likelihood that would happen," Orioles manager Dave Trembley said Saturday.
Uehara, 34, was on the disabled list from May 27 to June 10 with a strained left hamstring. In his third start since his return, on Tuesday night against the Florida Marlins, he left after throwing 76 pitches.
Uehara, the first Japanese-born player in Orioles history, is 2-4 with a 4.05 ERA. He is winless since April 13 and has pitched seven innings only once.
Trembley believes Uehara can be a productive starter with Baltimore -- but only if he's healthy.
"I talked to Koji today. This guy, he feels like he's let me down, he feels like he's let us down," Trembley said. "I had to tell him that's not the case. There's a lot of baseball to be played, there's the whole second half of the season to be played.
"What we want to do is get him 100 percent healthy and then get him out there to pitch."
While the Orioles placed Uehara on the DL, they signed top draft pick Matt Hobgood, putting pen to paper in an informal ceremony before Baltimore faced the Nationals.
"We have a deal!" exclaimed scouting director Joe Jordan before engaging in a hearty handshake with the 18-year-old.
Hobgood, a high school pitcher from California, was the fifth overall pick in baseball's amateur draft on June 9. The 6-foot-4 right-hander has a fastball that has been clocked at 95 mph and a very good curveball.
"It's going to be a great addition to a system that is improving, talent-wise," Jordan said.
Upon signing, Hobgood flashed a wide smile that showed his braces.
"Sweet!" he said. "This is where I wanted to go. I couldn't be happier."
Hobgood got to know Baltimore during a trip to the city before the draft and got reacquainted this weekend, visiting the Inner Harbor and Camden Yards with his family.
The 245-pound Hobgood went 9-0 with a 0.38 ERA during his senior season at Norco High. He was named the 2008-09 Gatorade National Baseball Player of the Year.
Rangers pitcher headed to DL for second time
ARLINGTON, Texas -- Texas Rangers left-hander Matt Harrison will be placed on the disabled list due to biceps inflammation.
Harrison, who had an MRI that showed no structural damage, said Saturday he has also been experiencing numbness in his left hand and is scheduled to visit a neurologist to rule out nerve damage.
Right-hander Tommy Hunter will start in Harrison's place Sunday night against San Diego.
Harrison went on the disabled list May 26 with shoulder inflammation and made two starts after he was activated June 17.
Phillies player confronts fan
TORONTO -- The Philadelphia Phillies confirmed Saturday that one of their players was involved in a confrontation with a fan following Thursday's game at the Tampa Bay Rays.
The Phillies did not identify the player in their statement. The Rays also confirmed the incident but did not release details.
The St. Petersburg Times reported on its Web site Saturday that Phillies reliever J.C. Romero grabbed and shoved Robert Eaton, 25, of New Port Richey, Fla., after the fan made two comments about steroids.
Romero was suspended for the first 50 games of the season after testing positive for androstenedione, a substance that Mark McGwire used in the 1990s that was later banned by baseball. Romero, who earned two wins in Philadelphia's World Series victory over Tampa Bay last year, has sued the manufacturer of an over-the-counter supplement that he said led to his positive test.
Eaton told the newspaper he called out to Romero after a couple of Phillies brushed off his requests for autographs, asking the left-hander to get him some steroids. After Romero told him to shut up and that he didn't know what he was talking about, Eaton said he replied that Romero was the one who'd been suspended recently.
"He reared back and kinda grazed my chin and grabbed me by the neck and threw me back," Eaton told the newspaper. "I was in shock."
Romero declined comment when approached by The Associated Press after Philadelphia's 10-0 victory over the Toronto Blue Jays on Saturday.
"We're disappointed to learn about the alleged incident with a Rays fan and one of our players following Thursday night's game at Tropicana Field," the Phillies said in a statement. "We are in the process of gathering all of the details surrounding the situation. Until such information is provided, it would be inappropriate for us to comment at this time."
A St. Petersburg Police Department supervisor confirmed to The Associated Press that there was a battery allegation at Tropicana Field on Thursday, but wouldn't identify who was involved. A message was left seeking comment from James Magazine, Eaton's lawyer.
Flu hits Yankees
NEW YORK -- Yankees captain Derek Jeter and left fielder Johnny Damon were out of Saturday's starting lineup against the Mets because of flu.
Jeter originally was in the starting lineup for Friday night's Subway Series, then was scratched and missed the game -- on his 35th birthday. He and Damon were not in the posted lineup for Saturday night's game, and manager Joe Girardi said they were the latest Yankees to get sick, following Chien-Ming Wang, Robinson Cano and Melky Cabrera.
"That's on him, man. I told him I could play. That's all his decision," Jeter said.
Jeter sounded congested, and said he had a headache and a cough, but no longer was feverish. Girardi said a team physician recommended that Jeter not start Saturday. Before this year, Jeter had appeared in every Subway Series game.
"I know he really wants to play today and he's not happy about being out of the lineup," Girardi said. "He was really, really sick last night, and Johnny was up all night coughing, and he's got the start of it. Had a little fever when he came in."
Girardi said that including coaches and support staff, nine people had caught flu. Jeter, he said, had the worst case.
"It's just kind of went around," Girardi said. "It's what happens when you're in a clubhouse and on airplanes together."
Jeter and Damon were available to pinch hit, according to Girardi.
Fill-in leadoff batter Brett Gardner raised his average 22 points to .303 in the Yankees' 9-1 victory Friday with a career-high five hits, including his third homer of the season and a triple. Ramiro Pena played shortstop and had two doubles and a single.
Gardner was hitting .265 on June 9 but has hit .429 (15 for 35) since then.
"That's why he's seeing more playing time," Girardi said. "If a guy's really hot, you stick with him and you find days, but that doesn't necessarily mean that one guy's lost his job. We're just riding the hot hand."
Girardi also said the Yankees planned to keep giving Alex Rodriguez days off. After hitting his 564th homer Friday night to pass Reggie Jackson and move into sole possession of 11th place, Rodriguez he had been told down to cut down his practice swings by 75 percent by Dr. Marc Philippon.
"It's not probably clear cut as the Joba rules," Girardi said, referring to restrictions in place on Joba Chamberlain when he first joined the Yankees two years ago.
With Rodriguez's stroke coming back only slowly following hip surgery in March, New York wants to limit to him to five or six games in a row, at least in theory.
"The competitiveness in a player sometimes doesn't allow them to say that I need a day, so it's our job to watch him, and we see or feel that he needs a day, we give him a day," Girardi said.
After he was kept out of the starting lineup for two games at Florida last weekend, Rodriguez went 6 for 18 with two homers and 10 RBIs, raising his average from .212 to .227. He hit only the third opposite-field homer at Citi Field -- the first by a right-handed hitter. The others were by Washington's Nick Johnson (April 24) and Adam Dunn (May 26).
"I think my legs are coming back a little bit. I think like I have more springs," Rodriguez said.
Indians shuffle players
CLEVELAND -- Reliever Jose Veras was added to the Cleveland Indians' roster on Saturday and reliever Jensen Lewis was optioned to Class AAA Columbus.
Veras, acquired on Wednesday from the Yankees for cash, went 3-1 with a 5.96 ERA in 25 appearances for New York before he was designated for assignment on June 16. He did not allow a run in nine of his last 12 appearances with the Yankees.
Lewis ended 2008 as the team's closer, converting all 13 of his save opportunities last August and September. But he is 2-3 with a 5.03 ERA this season, allowing nine home runs in 39 1-3 innings.
The Indians could be closer to getting back reliever Rafael Betancourt, who completed his third bullpen session on Saturday. He will pitch in a simulated game Monday as he continues to work his way back from a strained right groin.
Betancourt, on the 15-day disabled list since June 1, has been one of Cleveland's most consistent relievers over the last few years. He is 1-1 with a 3.71 ERA in 25 appearances this season.
"I feel pretty good, that's why I told them I want to throw a simulated game," Betancourt said. "I want to see a hitter in there and try to go a little bit harder with my pitches and see how it feels."
Reds call up pitcher
CLEVELAND -- The Cincinnati Reds recalled right-hander Homer Bailey from Class AAA Louisville to start Saturday night's game against the Cleveland Indians.
The Reds optioned infielder Adam Rosales to the same club.
Bailey was 8-5 with a 2.71 ERA in 14 starts at Louisville, including a 4-0 record and a 0.47 ERA in five June starts.
Bailey's only start with Cincinnati this season came against Cleveland on May 23 when he allowed six runs and walked six in 4 1/3 innings. He got a no-decision in the Indians' 7-6 win.
Bailey, 23, was taken by the Reds with the seventh pick in the 2004 draft. He is 4-8 with a 7.01 ERA in 18 career starts.
