Cardinals add catchers Pena & Kelly to roster

Posted on September 4, 2016

*Brayan Pena off D.L. & rookie Carson Kelly purchased from Memphis. (WJBC File Photo)*

By WJBC Staff

ST. LOUIS, Mo.– The St. Louis Cardinals announced today that they have activated switch-hitting catcher Brayan Pena from the 60-day disabled list (left knee inflammation) and purchased rookie catcher Carson Kelly from Memphis. The team also designated Memphis infielder Dean Anna for assignment to make room for Kelly on the team’s 40- man Major League roster and transferred right-handed pitcher Seth Maness (right elbow) from the 15-day disabled list to the 60-day disabled list.

Pena, 34, has missed much of the season due to a left knee injury, appearing in just four games with St. Louis. He batted a combined .286 with a HR and 8 RBI in nine combined games with Palm Beach and the Gulf Coast League Cardinals during a recent injury rehabilitation assignment.

Kelly, 22, the Cardinals 2^nd round draft selection in 2012 out of Westview High School in Oregon, will be making his Major League debut.

The right-handed hitting Kelly, who was named a 2016 Texas League All-Star, batted a combined .289 with six home runs, 32 RBI and a .343 on-base pct. in 96 games between Springfield and Memphis this season. The 6-2, 218-pound former infielder batted .292 in 32 games for Memphis and .287 in 64 games with Springfield. He had a .370 batting mark and 14 RBI when batting with runners in scoring position while at Memphis.

Kelly, the recipient of the Rawlings Gold Glove Award in 2015 as the best defensive catcher in Minor League Baseball, has been assigned uniform no. 71. Pena wears uniform no. 33.

Blogs

Labor Day – Expanding voting rights for all

By Mike Matejka Because of COVID, there is no Labor Day Parade this year. It’s always a great event for our everyday workers to march proudly down the street and enjoys the festive crowd. If there had been a parade, this year’s Labor Day theme was to be “150 years of struggle: your right to vote.” …

Is federal mobilization the answer?

By Mike Matejka As President Donald Trump threatens to send federal marshals into Chicago, over the objections of Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker, recall another Illinois Governor who protested the incursion of armed federal personnel into the city. Those federal troops, rather than calming, escalated the situation, leading to deaths and violence. Illinois poet Vachel Lindsay…

In these troubled times, to my fellow white Americans

By Mike Matejka Our nation is at a unique watershed in human relations. African-Americans have been killed too many times in the past before George Floyd, but the response to this man’s death is international and all-encompassing. I was a grade-schooler during the Civil Rights 1960s. I watched Birmingham demonstrators hosed and the Selma – Montgomery…

Workers’ Memorial Day – Remember those whose job took their life

Looking around our community, when we say employer, most will respond to State Farm, Country, or Illinois State University. We too often forget those who are building our roads, serving our food, or our public employees. COVID-19 has made us more aware of the risk. Going to work every day for some people means…