Cardinals demote Masterson to bullpen

The St. Louis Cardinals were looking for a little more when they acquired Justin Masterson from the Cleveland Indians a month ago. 

In six starts, the hulking right-hander has posted a 2-3 record to go with a 7.90 ERA, while allowing six home runs in 27 1/3 innings. 

The string of poor performances forced Masterson to attempt to pitch completely out of the stretch on Saturday. That experiment resulted in allowing five runs in 4 1/3 innings against the lowly Chicago Cubs, forcing the Cardinals to drop the 29-year-old from the rotation. 

Masterson, who is a free agent at the end of the year, earned double-digit wins in each of his last three seasons, but hasn't managed to put it all together this season.

The seven-year veteran has made 62 career appearances in relief, but just four of those have come since 2011. In 89 1/3 innings, Masterson owns a 3.12 ERA and 1.13 WHIP.