Royals place Bruce Chen on disabled list

The Royals placed Bruce Chen on the 15-day disabled list Friday afternoon and recalled right-handed pitcher Aaron Brooks from Class AAA Omaha.

Brooks, 0-1, with a 4.80 ERA in 15 innings, got his only decision of the season in his last start. He took the loss against New Orleans on Saturday.

The left-handed Chen was scratched from his Saturday start against the Tigers because of a stiff back.

Brooks was selected by the Royals in the ninth round of the 2011 draft out of Cal State-San Bernadino. Last year, Brooks went 9-10 in 26 starts, 16 in Class AA Northwest Arkansas and 10 in Class A Wilmington.

Brooks was with the Royals from April 5-9 but didn’t appear in a game. He will be used in long relief, Royals manager Ned Yost said.

“He’s going to be here in case we need length,” Yost said.

This story was originally published May 2, 2014 at 1:04 PM with the headline "Royals place Bruce Chen on disabled list."