The first stint in Major League Baseball for Donald Lutz is over. The German outfielder/first baseman was sent down to Double-A Pensacola prior to Tuesday’s games, as regular starter Chris Heisey returned from a hamstring injury. Lutz was called up on April 29 and batted .241 (OBP .254/SLG .310) with a home run, a double, five runs and eight RBI in 34 games. Cincinnati Reds manager Dusty Baker used him mainly as pinch hitter in the past month, as he only started seven of the 34 games.
The 24-year-old Lutz is going back to Double-A, because the Triple-A team of the Reds already has a crowded outfield and the organization wants him to play regularly, working on a to-do list he got from Baker. It was an exciting time for the German national teamer, who became the first ever player developed in Germany to play in the big leagues, accomplishing a couple of milestones including hitting his first MLB home run.