PHOENIX _ The Cubs announced Friday that catcher Willson Contreras has a right moderate hamstring strain that could take from four to six weeks to heal.
The Cubs put him on the 10-day disabled list (retroactive to Aug. 10). They called up Victor Caratini from Triple-A Iowa. He joins the team Friday in Arizona.
Caratini, 23, was batting .344 with 10 homers and 59 RBIs in 76 games with Iowa. He appeared in 11 games for the Cubs earlier this season, going 5 for 26 (.192) with a home run and two RBIs.
The next step for Contreras is for him to become pain free, which could take two weeks.
His rehab process will start once he becomes pain-free.
Contreras was batting .274 with 21 home runs and 70 RBIs at the time of the injury. Ben Zobrist will take over the cleanup duties Friday night at Arizona, while Alex Avila will start at catcher.
Contreras, 25, injured his hamstring while running to first base on a grounder in the eighth inning of a 3-1 loss at San Francisco on Wednesday.
