The Boston Red Sox placed catcher/utility player Blake Swihart on the 10-day disabled list with a right hamstring strain on Friday. To take his place on the 25-man active roster, the Red Sox selected catcher Dan Butler's contract from Triple-A Pawtucket and added him to the active roster. Butler will wear number 68.
The Red Sox' 40-man roster is now at 40.
President of Baseball Operations Dave Dombrowski made the announcement.
Swihart, 26, has played 51 games for the Red Sox in 2018, batting .226 (26-for-115) with 13 runs scored, six doubles, one home run, six RBI, and three stolen bases. Since June 26, the switch-hitter has hit .366 (15-for-41) with a .959 OPS over 17 games, including a career-long 11-game hitting streak from July 6-31. Swihart recorded his first career walk-off RBI on July 30 against the Philadelphia Phillies, doubling in the game-winning run in the 13th inning. Originally selected in the first round of the 2011 June Draft (26th overall), Swihart has played 160 games over parts of four seasons with the Red Sox, batting .260 (122-for-470) with 70 runs scored, 23 doubles, six home runs, and 42 RBI. This season, he has made seven starts at behind the plate, five in right field, three at first base, one at third base, and one in left field, while also appearing in one game at second base.
Butler, 31, has played 58 games for the PawSox this season, making 57 starts at catcher and batting .202 (37-for-183) with 18 runs scored, seven doubles, five home runs, 22 RBI, and a .312 on-base percentage. He has recorded a .998 fielding percentage behind the plate, making just one error in 547 total chances and throwing out nine of 48 attempted base stealers (18.8%). Butler has spent nine of his 10 professional seasons in the Red Sox organization, batting .252 (637-for-2,525) with a .344 on-base percentage, 60 home runs, and 339 RBI over 759 career minor league games. He made his major league debut for Boston in 2014, batting .211 (4-for-19) over seven games.