Carlos Marmol placed on restricted list by Reds

On Wednesday, the Cincinnati Reds announced that they have placed right-hander Carlos Marmol on the restricted list for "leaving the team without permission" at Triple-A Louisville. This announcement led to speculation that the veteran reliever could be retiring, but that does not appear to be the case. Marmol's agent, Paul Kinzer, spoke to MLB Daily Dish, telling us that his client is just taking a break and that he does not expect the Reds to release him.

"He decided to take a break and just focus on getting back on track. He's still healthy and should still be in his prime. His velocity was still in the mid-90's."

"I don't believe the Reds want to release him. Carlos wants to get his confidence back and take a break mentally. A lot has happened over the past year."

"I saw a couple of articles that Marmol was AWOL. I notified the Reds prior to his departure and Carlos was going to speak to the manager [at Triple-A Louisville]. They were notified that he was leaving. There wasn't a problem with the Reds. It's a personal matter with Carlos. He felt that that he needed to step back and take a break."

"They were notified. It has been a frustrating year for him. There wasn't a problem with the Reds. Carlos is frustrated and needed some personal time. His expectations for himself are high and he feels like he can still pitch at a high level. He wasn't meeting his own expectations.

There is no current timetable for Marmol's return, and it appears that he will simply step away from the game until he feels that he is 100% both mentally and physically. He could return to the Reds to provide bullpen depth later in the season, or could look to come back at full strength for 2015.

Marmol, 31, was released by the Marlins after pitching to an 0-3 record and 8.10 ERA in 13.1 innings at the beginning of the season. Cincinnati signed him to a minor league deal on May 28th before assigning him to Triple-A Louisville, where he is 0-1 with a 7.36 ERA in 3.2 innings of work.