Shoulder injury ends Reds' Negron's season

His arm in a sling and surgery scheduled for next week, Reds utility man Kristopher Negron still wore a smile on Wednesday, the day he learned his season was over.

In his first day after being called up from Triple-A Louisville on Tuesday, Negron suffered a torn labrum and fracture in his scapula of his left (non-throwing) shoulder. Negron was injured on a diving catch to rob the Pirates' Starling Marte in the seventh inning, just two innings after entering the game for Adam Duvall, who left after getting hit by a pitch on his left knee.

"At least it was a pretty sweet play," Negron said on Wednesday, the day an MRI showed the extent of the damage.

Negron's season is over, and rehab will take approximately five months, according to Paul Lessard, the Reds' head athletic trainer.

Negron said he was surprised the injury is as severe as it is.

"It just felt like it got really sore when I hit the ground. And then once we got in here, it started feeling a little bit worse," Negron said. "Now that I've had the MRI, it was actually worse than I thought."

It's the second time this season Negron has suffered a left shoulder injury. The first was in July, which caused a brief stint on the Louisville disabled list.

Negron was with the Reds from Opening Day until June, struggling during his time in the big leagues. He also struggled in the minors, hitting just .216/.280/.309 for the Bats. He did provide positional flexibility for the Reds after his call-up following the end of Louisville's season. On Tuesday Reds medical director Dr. Timothy Kremchek will perform surgery to replair Negron's labrum.

"It's been a rollercoaster year. It's had its ups and downs but it's just another bump in the road," Negron said. "I've come back before, and I will do it again."

One thing that won't change, Negron said, is how he plays the outfield. His shoulder injury in Lousiville came on a similar diving play he said.

"(Not diving) never crosses my mind," Negron said. "I saw that ball go up, and I was like, 'This is going to be fun.' It's just the way I play. I play hard, you guys know that. As soon as the ball went up, the one thing on my mind was to go get it."

The news was better on Duvall, who was hit on the knee by Pirates starter Francisco Liriano. While Duvall was not in the lineup on Wednesday, he said he was available if needed.

INNINGS RUNNING OUT: Michael Lorenzen may have just “one or two” more starts left this season, but Raisel Iglesias could have a couple more, Reds manager Bryan Price said on Wednesday.

The Reds still have 24 games to go after Wednesday’s game against the Pirates, but with innings limits coming up, it’s unlikely either Iglesias or Lorenzen are pitching the final week or so of the season.

Price had said earlier this year that Lorenzen would likely be limited to 150-155 innings. He’s thrown 143 2/3 innings so far between Triple-A Louisville and the big leagues. He is scheduled to start Friday against the Cardinals and next Wednesday in San Francisco.

Iglesias has thrown 119 1/3 innings between the majors and minors, but his special circumstances will likely mean his innings limit will be more nebulous. Iglesias is pitching a full season for the first time since 2012, when he was in Cuba.

“We’re not ready to put together a farewell party for Raisel from the starting rotation quite yet,” Price said.

With 24 games remaining, someone will have to start, so it’s possible both Lorenzen and Iglesias could pitch a little longer than expected.

“Also understand that, under the circumstances we’re in, that if I need another start from one of these guys – a bonus start or whatever – that I would do that,” Price said. “I don’t feel like these guys are five or seven innings from hurting themselves. We’re just trying to follow some protocols we have in place. We may have to work around those limits to a certain degree, but nothing of a significant number."

HAMILTON RETURNS: After returning from a three-game rehab assignment with Double-A Pensacola on Tuesday, Reds center fielder Billy Hamilton was back in the lineup on Wednesday.

Hamilton suffered a sprained capsule in his right shoulder on Aug. 18. He played in three games for the Blue Wahoos, going 3-for-11 with three walks. He said he also tested out his arm during the games.

“There wasn’t a play where I threw anybody out, but I just tried to throw it hard anyway to see how my shoulder felt. I had four at-bats each game, five in one. So I swung a lot, and I tested my shoulder in the outfield when I threw a couple of balls in real hard. It felt really, really good. I’m just glad to be back.”

The Blue Wahoos clinched a playoff spot on Saturday with Hamilton in the lineup.

“It just feels good to be like in a playoff thing, whether it’s the big leagues or whatever you’re doing,” Hamilton said. “I see those guys get all into it and be all about winning. It’s a good thing to be down there, and knowing it’s getting closer to me playing is a good thing. I played there in 2012, and it was kind of fun to see those guys that were there – the staff and people who run it.”

SMITH BETTER: Right-hander Josh Smith threw two scoreless innings for the Reds on Tuesday, his first day of his third stint with the Reds. Smith didn’t pitch in his first call-up, but he made three starts in June and July, going 0-2 with a 7.30 ERA before being sent back down to Double-A Pensacola.

“The first time I was up there, for me it was trying to do too much and be something I’m not,” Smith said. “But now being up here, I know I’ve gotten the opportunity for a reason and I’m just going to pitch the way I have all year, and that’s good enough to get me here, so that’s good enough to be successful here.”

Price liked what he saw out of Smith in his two innings against the Pirates.

“He took very seriously some of the discussions we had when he was departing,” Price said. “He was too good of a pitcher, he’s always been a strike thrower, and he needed to pitch in the strike zone with his stuff and trust it, and he came back and he was really pleased that he came in and threw strikes and had a much more aggressive approach. He worked ahead. He did all of the things he needed to do to be successful. I was very happy for him. “

PLAYOFF TIME: The Reds had a third minor-league affiliate qualify for the playoffs on Tuesday when rookie Billings won its final game of the season to qualify for the Pioneer League playoffs.

The Reds’ high-A Daytona team started the Florida State League playoffs on Tuesday, with lefty Amir Garrett striking out 12 and allowing just one hit and no walks over seven innings in a Game 1 victory.

Double-A Pensacola begins its Southern League playoff series with Biloxi on Thursday.