MLB Player News

Barria will start Monday against the Padres in San Diego, Sam Blum of The Athletic reports.

As the holder of the final slot in a six-man rotation, Barria's role and routine tend to fluctuate. The right-hander didn't see action for 10 days between a relief appearance June 18 and a start June 28, and he's now being asked to pitch on four days of rest so that Shohei Ohtani, who's dealing with a cracked fingernail, can get an extra day before his next start. Of course, four days is typical rest in many big-league rotations, and Barria tossed just 59 pitches his last time out, so he should be fresh for Monday's start.

The Astros recalled Mushinski from Triple-A Sugar Land prior to Sunday's game against the Rangers, Julia Morales of AT&T SportsNet Southwest reports.

Houston optioned Ronel Blanco to Triple-A in a corresponding move, with Mushinski set to provide the Astros with a fresh arm out of the bullpen since Blanco wasn't scheduled to make another turn through the rotation before the All-Star break anyway. Mushinski has previously made three appearances in the big leagues in 2023, covering 3.1 innings while striking out four and allowing two earned runs on five hits and two walks.

Lambert was optioned to Triple-A Albuquerque on Sunday.

Lambert covered three scoreless innings as Colorado's opening pitcher in Saturday's loss to the Tigers, but he's now being sent down in favor of a fresh arm. The 26-year-old has a 6.29 ERA, 1.63 WHIP and 36:15 K:BB across 34.1 innings with the Rockies this season, mostly while working as a reliever. According to Patrick Saunders of The Denver Post, the Rockies plan to give Lambert a longer look in the rotation following the All-Star break, but the right-hander will first get stretched out over the course of about three starts with Albuquerque.

The White Sox selected Shaw's contract from Triple-A Charlotte on Sunday.

Shaw is a veteran of 753 career regular-season appearances, but he has yet to pitch at the big-league level in 2023 after he was forced to settle for a minor-league deal with the White Sox this offseason coming off a poor season with the Guardians. The 35-year-old right-hander has pitched respectably at Charlotte this season, logging a 4.03 ERA, 1.22 WHIP and 24:14 K:BB in 22.1 innings. Look for the White Sox to limit his usage to lower-leverage spots initially, but he could eventually work his way into a setup role if he excels early on.

VerHagen (hip) was placed on the 15-day injured list Sunday with a right hip impingement.

John Denton of MLB.com reports VerHagen has been dealing with hip pain for three weeks. The right-hander tried to pitch through it, but he's given up eight runs (six earned) over his last 9.2 innings. He'll now be shelved for a minimum of two weeks. JoJo Romero was recalled from Triple-A Memphis to take VerHagen's spot in the Cardinals' bullpen.

Romero was recalled from Triple-A Memphis on Sunday.

Romero will take the place of Drew VerHagen, who landed on the 15-day injured list with a hip impingement. Since his last stint in the majors, Romero has pitched to a 3.52 ERA, 1.57 WHIP and 22:9 K:BB over 15.1 innings as a reliever for Memphis. He'll likely take on a low-leverage relief role while on the big-league roster.

Hudson was returned to Triple-A Memphis after serving as the 27th man for Saturday's doubleheader versus the Yankees.

Hudson pitched 2.2 scoreless innings in the Cardinals' 6-2 loss in Game 2 of the twin bill, allowing a hit and striking out two in relief of Matthew Liberatore. After the brief stint in the majors, Hudson will return to Memphis' rotation, where he has a lackluster 6.00 ERA, 1.85 WHIP and 39:17 K:BB over 48 innings across 11 starts.

The Marlins optioned Soriano to Triple-A Jacksonville on Sunday.

After tossing 3.2 scoreless innings of long relief in Saturday's 7-0 loss to Atlanta, Soriano will be rewarded with a demotion to the minors. The move back to Triple-A is less about the Marlins' dissatisfaction with Soriano's performance than it is a desire for the big club to add a fresh arm to the bullpen for Sunday's series finale with Atlanta. The Marlins called up right-hander Jeff Lindgren from Jacksonville to replace Soriano in the bullpen and on the 26-man active roster.

Morejon will draw the start for Sunday's game against the Reds, Kevin Acee of The San Diego Union-Tribune reports.

The Padres haven't formally clarified their pitching plans for the series finale in Cincinnati, but considering he hasn't recorded more than seven outs in any of his appearances in the majors or minors this season, Morejon likely won't be asked to cover more than 3-to-4 innings. With Yu Darvish (illness) still under the weather and unable to make a turn through the rotation this weekend, the Padres could turn to recently recalled Triple-A starter Pedro Avila to work in bulk relief behind Morejon.

The Reds optioned Salazar to Triple-A Louisville on Sunday.

Salazar tossed two innings and 36 pitches out of the bullpen in Saturday's 12-5 loss to the Padres and likely wasn't going to be available for at least a couple days, so the Reds elected to deactivate him in favor of a fresh arm in Derek Law (elbow), who was reinstated from the 15-day injured list. During his most recent stay in the big leagues, Salazar worked three innings between two appearances and was charged with five earned runs while allowing nine baserunners.