MLB Player News

Castro (shoulder) threw a 21-pitch bullpen session Tuesday, Alex Weiner of Arizona Sports reports.

He will throw another bullpen session Friday. Castro has been shelved since late April with right shoulder inflammation but would appear to be trending toward a rehab assignment sooner rather than later.

Estrada is dealing with an illness but believes he'll be available out of the bullpen Wednesday versus the Athletics, AJ Cassavell of MLB.com reports.

Estrada went unused in Tuesday's 4-3 win because of the illness. The reliever said Wednesday that he's still a bit under the weather, but he thinks he's feeling well enough to give it a go, if needed. Estrada boasts a 43.2 percent strikeout rate across 18 appearances for the Padres this season.

The Mariners recalled de Geus from Triple-A Tacoma on Wednesday.

De Geus made four appearances out of the Seattle bullpen earlier this season, allowing one run over 3.1 innings. He'll likely be used mostly in low-leverage situations while he's up with the Mariners.

The Mariners optioned Diaz to Triple-A Tacoma on Wednesday.

Diaz made a spot start in Tuesday's 4-3 loss to the White Sox in place of the injured Bryan Woo (arm), allowing three runs over 5.1 innings in a no-decision. Woo's status remains in limbo, and Diaz could be considered for a call-up if Woo ends up landing on the injured list before his next turn through the rotation comes up.

Kuhnel signed a minor-league contract with the Brewers on Tuesday.

Kuhnel was assigned to Triple-A Nashville after signing with Milwaukee, and the affiliate wasted little time in putting him to work. He appeared out of the bullpen Tuesday in Nashville's 13-9 loss to Gwinnett, covering one inning and striking out two while allowing two earned runs on two hits and one walk. Prior to joining Milwaukee, Kuhnel spent time in the big leagues this season with Houston, giving up four earned runs over two innings in his lone relief appearance.

The Athletics activated Erceg (forearm) from the 15-day injured list Wednesday.

Erceg spent the minimum amount of time on the IL and was able to skip a rehab assignment prior to being activated. He's been terrific in relief for Oakland this season, collecting a 2.86 ERA and 27:8 K:BB across 22 innings as the primary setup man ahead of closer Mason Miller.

Stewart (shoulder) threw five pitches off the mound Wednesday, Do-Hyoung Park of MLB.com reports.

Stewart threw off the bump for the first time since he went down with right shoulder tendinitis more than a month ago. He'll need to continue going through a ramp-up progression and will likely require at least a rehab appearance or two before returning from the 15-day injured list and slotting back into a setup role for the Twins.

Alexander (0-1) took the loss against the Padres on Tuesday, allowing an earned run on one hit and one walk over two-thirds of an inning.

Unfortunately for Alexander, the one hit he allowed was a walk-off solo home run to Kyle Higashioka, saddling the veteran southpaw with his first loss of the season. Alexander has now allowed an earned run in each of his last two appearances after generating four consecutive scoreless efforts of an inning apiece, but he's still carrying an acceptable 4.00 ERA and stellar 0.67 WHIP across the nine innings covering his 10 appearances.

Thornton (2-1) got the win against the White Sox on Tuesday, firing 1.2 scoreless innings while recording two strikeouts.

Thornton was rewarded for his pristine work -- he cruised through his six-out outing on 11 pitches, 10 of which found the strike zone -- when Cal Raleigh drove home the tying and go-ahead runs in the home half of the seventh inning after the reliever had thrown his last pitch. Thornton has bounced back from a rare stumble against the Angels on May 31 (three runs allowed over two-thirds of an inning) to produce scoreless efforts in three of his subsequent four appearances, a span in which he's recorded a pair of holds in addition to Tuesday's win.

Abreu didn't allow a baserunner and struck out one across a scoreless eighth inning to earn the hold Tuesday against the Giants.

Abreu turned in his fifth consecutive scoreless appearance and has earned four holds in that span. He has a team-high 15 holds this season and is also ranked inside the top five in the league with that mark. Overall, Abreu has an effective 2.88 ERA, though he has issued 20 free passes across 34.1 innings.