The Pittsburgh Pirates claimed right-handed pitcher Michael Darrell-Hicks off waivers from the Los Angeles Angels and optioned him to Triple-A Indianapolis.
Darrell-Hicks, 27, was designated for assignment on June 8.
He went 1-0 with a 9.39 ERA in six relief outings and 7 ⅔ innings with the Angels on the year.
At Triple-A Salt Lake, he went 0-2 with an 8.87 ERA in 17 relief appearances.
Darrell-Hicks is a native of Parkersburg, W.Va.
He played college baseball at Jacksonville and made his MLB April 11.
To make room for Darrell-Hicks on the 40-man roster, catcher Endy Rodriguez (right elbow inflammation) was transferred to the 60-day injured list.
This season has been injury-plagued for Rodriguez, who has been limited to 18 games, over which he’s slashed .173/.246/.250 with four doubles and two RBIs.
In mid-April, a laceration on his right hand sidelined Rodriguez for about six weeks.
Activated in late May, he appeared in only three games before landing on the 10-day injured list June 7.
Pirates manager Don Kelly told reporters in Chicago Saturday that Rodriguez received a second opinion on his elbow from Los Angeles Dodgers team physician Dr. Neal ElAtrrache and will receive a platelet-rich plasma injection.
Per Kelly, the injection will come next week, followed by four weeks of rest.
