ATLANTA (AP) - Atlanta Braves reliever Rafael Soriano said Saturday night he is still battling elbow tendinitis and won't be able to pitch this weekend.
"I'll be able to pitch," Soriano said. "I just need to rest a couple days."Manager Bobby Cox said Saturday he expected to have Soriano available to pitch in the ninth inning in a save situation Friday night. Instead, after Soriano began warming up, he told bullpen coach Eddie Perez he couldn't pitch.
"We thought he was coming in," Cox said.
Soriano, a right-hander, came off the disabled list on May 28 after missing 45 games with tendinitis in his right elbow.
The Braves lost to Philadelphia 6-2 on Saturday night, but Soriano said he wouldn't have been available to close.
Soriano appeared in back-to-back games on Monday and Tuesday, recording a save on Tuesday. He wasn't available on Wednesday night, when Manny Acosta suffered a blown save. Soriano returned to earn his third save on Thursday night, giving up one hit in one inning, before saying he couldn't pitch Friday night.
The Braves hope they'll have more options for save situations when Mike Gonzalez comes off the disabled list as early as next week.
"It'll be good to get him back," said Cox of Gonzalez, who is to report to Triple-A Richmond on Sunday for one or two games. Gonzalez is returning from Tommy John elbow ligament-replacement surgery.
