By John Fay
The Cincinnati Enquirer

MIAMI - The Reds' bench, never a strength, was dealt a serious double whammy Tuesday.

Juan Castro, the defensive specialist who has hit surprisingly well, was placed on the disabled list with a strained left ribcage muscle and could miss three weeks or more.

John Vander Wal, the free agent pinch hitter the Reds were hoping might help their bench soon, has shut down his rehabilitation at Triple-A Louisville and returned home to Michigan. It's possible he could return before the year's out.

The Reds called up Felipe Lopez from Louisville to take Castro's spot on the major-league roster.

Lopez has played well at Louisville, hitting .289 with seven home runs and 33 RBI for the Bats.

Vander Wal did not play for Louisville Monday - an indication things weren't going well.

"His legs weren't bouncing back like he wanted them to," said Tim Naehring, the club's director of player development. "If you're going to compete day in and day out at whatever level, you have to be able to recover."

Vander Wal underwent surgery Jan. 28 to repair the meniscus and torn anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee suffered when he fell shoveling snow.

He was way ahead on his rehab schedule. He began extended spring training May 12, and two weeks later, he began playing with Louisville. He was 4-for-16 with one RBI for the Bats.

"There's no reason to push it in the first week of June," Naehring said. "If he gets to the point where he thinks he's ready to return, we'll cross that bridge when we get to it."

Castro injured himself swinging at a pitch Monday. He was hitting .298 with a homer and nine RBI in 84 at-bats.

"I felt it, but I thought it would go away," he said. "I did it on the second pitch. When I swung again, it really pinched. It took my air away."

Castro tried to play the field but couldn't.

"Our experience with these sort of things is that they don't go away in four or five days," trainer Mark Mann said.

Castro will refrain from baseball activity for at least a week.

"We hope after 15 days, I'll be ready," Castro said.