Only after Tuesday night's 3-2 loss to the Brewers did manager Bobby Cox say he had sent right-hander Tim Hudson back to the mound in the eighth inning -- with his pitch count over 100 -- because he was trying to conserve his overused bullpen.
Cox was still bothered by the short outings of both Jair Jurrjens and even the Diamondbacks' Brandon Webb, both of whom he felt had been squeezed by plate umpire Jim Reynolds, causing them to throw too many pitches. But Cox also may have been looking ahead to Wednesday's start by left-hander Jo-Jo Reyes, Thursday's start by right-hander Jorge Campillo and Saturday's start by Jurrjens because all three are battling blisters and may need to be bailed out by the bullpen.
Hence the reason behind Wednesday's roster move: outfielder Matt Diaz was placed on the 15-day disabled list with a strained posterior cruciate ligament in his left knee, while the corresponding move was not the arrival of another outfielder, but the return of right-hander Rafael Soriano, giving the Braves a 13-man pitching staff.
The Braves are already down an outfielder, theoretically, since center fielder Mark Kotsay missed his third consecutive game with a stiff back. (He says it's feeling better after aggressive treatment.)
Utility man Greg Norton can play both corner outfield positions, and infielder Omar Infante can play the outfield as well. But Norton is also the backup at first base, and Infante the backup at the other three infield positions.
Gregor Blanco started in center field once again Wednesday night, and Infante made his first career start in left.
BREWERS 1, BRAVES 0: Left-hander Jo-Jo Reyes pitched beautifully, easily his best performance to date, allowing only two hits while recording a career-high nine strikeouts and issuing only three walks in seven-plus innings. But that third walk led off the eighth, prompting manager Bobby Cox to lift Reyes for Blaine Boyer, who surrendered a two-out triple down the left field line to Rickie Weeks.
