WASHINGTON -- A mid-back strain prevented Rockies lefty reliever Jake McGee from pitching on Saturday night, which forced the club to place him on the 10-day disabled list (retroactive to Wednesday) on Sunday morning.
The Rockies recalled lefty Zachary Rosscup (2.45 ERA in three Rockies appearances) from Triple-A Albuquerque. Additionally, righty Carlos Estevez, optioned to Albuquerque on Saturday, remained as the 26th man for Sunday's doubleheader with the Nationals.
McGee (0-1, 3.27 ERA, 47 strikeouts, 12 walks in 41 1/3 innings) has operated as the primary setup man for closer Greg Holland. Righty Pat Neshek, whom the club acquired from the Phillies on Wednesday, pitched an eighth inning more suited for McGee but emerged scoreless during Saturday's 4-2 victory over the Nationals.
Even without McGee's injury, which he hopes was caught early enough to allow him to return when his time on the DL is up, the Rockies have been reportedly seeking additional bullpen help.
McGee last pitched on Tuesday, going 1 2/3 innings and taking the decision in a 3-2 loss at St. Louis. McGee was extended beyond one inning in part because of the struggles of Adam Ottavino (1-3, 5.50 ERA), who entered the year as the primary setup man but has been pitching in lower-leverage roles as he attempts to regain consistency. McGee's back began bothering him the following day.
"The last day in St. Louis, [my back] was getting stiff, although the off-day [Thursday] helped a lot," McGee said. "It felt good playing catch [on Saturday], but when I warmed up to go into the game it tightened up and locked up. So the plan was to try to catch it early, and I didn't want to go out there and make it worse."
McGee said he felt something similar before the season while pitching for Team USA in the World Baseball Classic. But it went away after 2-3 days.
McGee's injury meant Neshek's first batter in a Rockies uniform was the left-handed-hitting Adam Lind, who was 3-for-7 with a double against him. Lind sent a towering drive just foul to right, and grounded out hard behind second base.