Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times passes along word that the Rays have placed shortstop Reid Brignac on the bereavement list and selected the contract of Felipe Lopez from Triple-A Durham.
Brignac lost his grandfather Saturday and is expected to miss four games to attend the funeral.
Lopez was designated for assignment in early May then outrighted to Triple-A Durham after batting just .222/.263/.347 with only five extra-base hits in 76 plate appearances. He also drew the ire of Rays manager Joe Maddon at one point for not hustling.
Brignac was named the Rays’ starting shortstop after a strong defensive showing at spring training, but he has hit just .170 with a brutal .370 OPS in 35 games since the start of the regular season. Elliot Johnson has begun seeing much more playing time recently and will fill in at shortstop for however long Brignac needs.
