MLB ROUNDUP: Yanks Granderson hurt, Cards' Berkman back from DL

New York Yankees center fielder Curtis Granderson left Saturday's game against the visiting Baltimore Orioles with a tight right hamstring and underwent an MRI.

He exited the game after striking out looking on a checked swing in the second inning.

Nick Swisher moved from first base to right field, Andruw Jones went from right field to left field, Ichiro Suzuki moved over from left field to center and Steve Pearce entered the game at first base.

Granderson is hitting .235 with 34 home runs and 79 RBI but just .176 in his last 22 games. He is tied for second in the majors with 159 strikeouts.

First baseman Mark Teixeira, out with a strained left calf, is expected to be out until at least next week. Manager Joe Girardi said third baseman Alex Rodriguez "came out all right" and "reports are good" after his first rehab game Friday in Tampa, Fla., for a fractured left hand. Left-hander Andy Pettitte, who has a fractured left ankle, threw off a mound Friday but it is uncertain when he will throw again.

---The St. Louis Cardinals activated first baseman Lance Berkman from the 15-day disabled list, MLB.com reported Saturday.

Berkman, who has had three stints on the DL this season due to right knee problems, will likely contribute mainly off the bench for the rest of the season. He has only had 75 at-bats for St. Louis.

To add depth to their bullpen, the Cardinals recalled left-handed pitcher Sam Freeman from Class AAA Memphis. Freeman made 13 appearances for the Cardinals in June. He has a 2.08 ERA in 27 outings for Memphis this year.

---The Washington Nationals recalled left-handed pitcher John Lannan, catcher Sandy Leon and outfielder Eury Perez from Class AAA Syracuse, and activated infielder Mark DeRosa from the 15-day disabled list, the club announced Saturday.

Lannan is 2-0 with a 3.46 ERA in two starts this season with the Nationals and went 9-11 with a 4.30 ERA in 24 Class AAA starts. Leon is 7-for-28 in 10 games with Washington and combined to hit .322 in the minor leagues. Perez, 22, hit .314 with 42 RBI and 51 stolen bases in the minors.

DeRosa, who missed the last 25 games with an abdominal injury, is batting .152 in 66 at-bats this year.

---The Arizona Diamondbacks activated infielder Willie Bloomquist and right-handed pitchers Josh Collmenter and Takashi Saito from the 15-day disabled list, the clubs announced Saturday.

Arizona also recalled catcher Konrad Schmidt from Class AAA Reno, selected the contract of outfielder Tyler Graham from Reno, activated infielder Cody Ransom and transferred right-handed pitcher Daniel Hudson from the 15-day to the 60-day disabled list.

---The Cleveland Indians expanded their roster to 28 players Saturday by recalling infielder Russ Cansler and left-hander Scott Barnes from Class AAA Columbus and purchasing the contract of outfielder Thomas Neal from Class AA Akron.

Canzler, 26, hit .265 with 36 doubles, 22 home runs and 79 RBI in 130 games. Barnes, 24, was 2-3 with a 3.98 ERA in 31 games for Columbus. In three previous stints with Cleveland, he was 0-0 with an 8.10 ERA in seven relief outings. Neal, 25, hit .314 with 24 doubles, 12 homers and 51 RBI in 117 games for Akron.

---The Baltimore Orioles activated infielder Wilson Betemit from the 15-day disabled list and recalled outfielder Xavier Avery, catcher Luis Exposito and infielder Steve Tolleson from Class AAA Norfolk, the club announced Saturday.

Betemit was on the DL since Aug. 12 with a right wrist injury. He is hitting .264 with 12 home runs and 37 RBI in 97 games for the Orioles this season.

Avery batted .233 in 24 games over three stints with Baltimore this year and hit .236 with 57 runs, eight home runs and 57 RBI in 102 games with Norfolk. Exposito went 1-for-17 in eight games with the Orioles earlier this season and hit .268 in 55 games with Norfolk. Tolleson batted .194 in 23 games for the Orioles in three stints this season and batted .278 in 50 games with Norfolk.

---The Chicago Cubs recalled outfielder Tony Campana, infielder Adrian Cardenas and outfielder Dave Sappelt from Class AAA Iowa, the club announced Saturday.

Campana, 26, batted .259 and stole 26 bases in 70 games for the Cubs before being optioned to Iowa on Aug. 5. He hit .280 in 37 games with Iowa. Cardenas, 24, is hitting .234 in 32 games for Chicago and batted .300 with 22 doubles and 32 RBI in 65 games with Iowa. Sappelt, 25, hit .266 with 26 doubles, seven home runs, 54 RBI and 15 stolen bases in 133 games with Iowa.

---The Minnesota Twins activated right-handed pitcher P.J. Walters from the disabled list and purchased the contract of right-hander Esmerling Vasquez from Class AAA, the club announced Saturday.

Walters missed 70 games with right shoulder inflammation. He is 2-2 with a 5.40 ERA in seven starts. Vasquez went 9-6 with a 2.78 ERA in Class AAA and is expected to start for Minnesota on Sunday.

---The Oakland A's activated right-handed pitcher A.J. Griffin and third baseman Brandon Inge from the 15-day disabled list and recalled outfielder Collin Cowgill and infielder Brandon Hicks from Class AAA Sacramento, the club announced Saturday.

Griffin went 3-0 with a 2.42 ERA in eight starts before he was placed on the DL Aug. 5 with right shoulder tightness. Inge was batting .216 with 12 home runs and 52 RBI in 82 games before he was placed on the DL Aug. 12 with a sprained right shoulder.

Cowgill hit .271 in two previous stints with Oakland and Hicks batted .183 with three home runs and seven RBI during a previous 20-game stint with the A's.

---The San Diego Padres named Billy Gasparino director of scouting, promoting him from his position as national crosschecker, the club announced Saturday.

Gasparino, 35, joined the Padres as a national crosschecker in 2010 after serving in the same role for the Toronto Blue Jays since 2007. He interned for the Cleveland Indians in 2003 and became an area scout for the Blue Jays in 2004.

"Billy has proven to be a top-flight evaluator with a passion for scouting," said Josh Byrnes, the Pares' Executive Vice President/General Manager. "We are thrilled that we were able to promote from within our organization and to reward Billy with a well-deserved promotion."

Gasparino was a 17th round draft pick of the Colorado Rockies in 1999 out of Oklahoma State. An infielder, he spent one season in their minor league system, playing for Class A Portland.