Cincinnati Reds Injury Report: Mesoraco, Cingrani return

The Cincinnati Reds activated catcher Devin Mesoraco off the 15-day disabled list on Friday and will start left-hander Tony Cingrani on Sunday, as reported by the Cincinnati Enquirer's C. Trent Rosecrans.

Mesoraco was swinging a hot stick before going down with a strained left hamstring on April 26, batting .468/.509/.787 in 53 plate appearances, and he picked up right where he left off by hitting a three-run home run in his first at-bat on Friday. His return comes just in time for the Reds, who will be without first baseman Joey Votto for at least some time as he recovers from a quad strain. The lineup is already missing right fielder Jay Bruce, making Friday's game the first time since September 2012 that the Reds were missing Votto and Bruce from the same game, according to Rosecrans.

Meanwhile, Cingrani hasn't pitching since April 30, and he'll come back with a fresh arm after not making a single rehab start. He's gone 2-2 with a 3.34 ERA across six starts this season, and he'll rejoin a Reds rotation that has been among the best in the majors thanks to hot starts from Johnny Cueto, Mike Leake and Alfredo Simon.

The Reds designated left-hander Jeff Francis for assignment to make room on the roster for Mesoraco, while also sending reliever Nick Christiani back down to Louisville following the team's doubleheader on Thursday.