D-backs place Blanco on DL, claim Wil Nieves off waivers

The Arizona Diamondbacks placed catcher Henry Blanco on
the
15-day disabled list Monday and claimed Wil Nieves off
waivers from the Colorado Rockies to take his place.

Blanco, 40, sprained his left thumb during Sunday’s loss
to
the Phillies.

“He just woke up today and it was way swollen and way
loose,” Arizona manager Kirk Gibson said Monday about his
veteran catcher’s thumb injury.

Nieves, 34, comes to the D-backs after splitting time this
season with the Rockies and their Triple-A affiliate in
Colorado Springs. He hit .298 with one home run and five
RBI
in 16 games with big league club and .306 with three home
runs and 16 RBI in 34 minor league games.

“(Nieves) was out there and he has experience,”
Diamondbacks manager Kirk Gibson said Monday. “Part of
the challenge is bringing him up to speed. He might play
one of these games here, so we’ve got a couple days but
he’ll learn and he’ll go down to the bullpen and make sure
he catches anybody who throws any bullpens. He’ll become
familiar with the pitchers.”

Nieves is a career .226 hitter and has played for the
Padres, Yankees, Nationals, Brewers and Rockies.

Blanco was hitting .188 with one home run and seven RBI in
21 games for the D-backs before the injury.

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