The Pirates announced that they placed right-hander Juan Cruz on the restricted list so he can return to the Dominican Republic and attend to some personal business. The club has selected the contract of Doug Slaten from Triple-A in a related move.
Cruz, 33, signed a one-year, $1.25MM contract in February and has a 1.45 ERA with 7.7 K/9 and 3.9 BB/9 in 18 2/3 innings so far this year. Players on the restricted list do not count toward a team's 25-man or 40-man roster. They do not accrue service time and they don't always get paid.
