The Red Sox have placed left-hander Eduardo Rivera on the restricted list, according to his transactions tracker at MLB.com. The southpaw had to tend to a personal matter, reports Chris Cotillo of MassLive.

The development isn’t likely to be notable for the Sox. Rivera was on optional assignment with Triple-A Worcester when he hit the seven-day minor league injured list on August 13. Per Cotillo, that IL placement is due to back inflammation. Rivera was still going to be on the IL for a few more days anyway, so this personal absence won’t impact his availability unless it continues for quite a while.

Players on the restricted list don’t take up a 40-man spot, so the Sox temporarily have an extra opening there. However, they were only using 38 spots before this transaction and now have three openings. They temporarily have some extra space for roster maneuverability but that will only come up if they make a number of waiver claims and/or call up several non-roster players before Rivera returns.

Rivera was added to Boston’s 40-man in April. Since then, he has made four big league appearances, allowing seven earned runs in ten innings. In 55 2/3 minor league innings this year, he has a 2.59 earned run average, 30% strikeout rate, 12.7% walk rate and 52% ground ball rate.

Photo courtesy of Bob DeChiara, Imagn Images