Mariners place C Zunino (oblique) on DL
The Seattle Mariners placed catcher Mike Zunino on the 10-day disabled list Friday with a strained left oblique.
The move is retroactive to March 27. Catcher David Freitas was called up from Triple-A Tacoma to fill the roster spot.
Zunino sustained his injury during a team workout at Safeco Field on Wednesday and was a late scratch from the starting lineup prior to the Mariners' season-opening 2-1 win over the Cleveland Indians on Thursday. Rookie Mike Marjama filled in behind the plate in his place and is expected to remain the starter while Zunino is sidelined.
Zunino said after Thursday's game that he hoped to be behind the plate Saturday.
"I'm going to come in (Friday) and see how it feels," he said. "I feel better today than I did yesterday. I don't think it's out of the realm of possibilities. I'm going to come in tomorrow and hopefully this thing keeps progressing and feeling good."
The 27-year-old finally seized hold of the Mariners' starting catcher job when he hit .251 with 25 home runs and 64 RBIs last season. Zunino enjoyed a strong spring, homering five times and driving in 12 runs in 43 at-bats.
The No. 3 overall pick in the 2012 draft had mostly been inconsistent in his first four years in the majors, showing power but twice failing to hit above .200. His career-high batting average in a season before last year was .214 as a rookie in 2013.
Freitas, 29, appeared in six games in the majors with the Atlanta Braves last year, going 4-for-17 with two RBIs. He had a .263 batting average in 72 games with the Braves' Triple-A affiliate.
--Field Level Media
