St. Louis Cardinals starter Kyle McClellan, whose emergency conversion from the bullpen following Adam Wainwright's injury resulted in a 6-2 start to this season and a brief stint atop the National League leaderboard, will spend 15 days on the disabled list dealing with a strained hip flexor following the worst start of his career on May 30. McClellan, who's struck out 34 batters in 67 innings, allowed seven runs in four innings for his second loss of the season in the outing. He'll be replaced, on short rest, by Cardinals prospect Lance Lynn, who will make his Major League debut after putting up a 4.06 ERA through the first 10 starts of his second season at AAA Memphis.
Lynn, a first rounder in the Cardinals' 2008 draft, is a 24-year-old who was known earlier in his career for a sinker, which he's traded lately for a harder, straighter fastball that's boosted his strikeouts as he rises through the high minors. He put himself briefly on the national map by striking out 16 batters in a Pacific Coast League playoff game in 2010.
Cardinals general manager John Mozeliak noted following McClellan's exit that the Cardinals would have wanted to limit McClellan's innings at some point in the summer anyway.