MLB Player News

Plesac will draw the start Monday versus the Brewers.

Plesac will replace Jose Soriano (abdomen) on the mound after Soriano was a late scratch with lower abdominal pain Monday. Plesac had his contract selected by Los Angeles on Monday and he'll now get his first chance to start a major-league contest in 2024. The right-hander has produced a 5.42 ERA and 1.43 WHIP with 51 strikeouts over 74.2 innings in 13 starts with Triple-A Salt Lake this season.

Soriano was scratched from his scheduled start Monday against the Brewers due to lower abdominal pain.

Soriano was expected to toe the rubber for the series opener with Milwaukee, but he'll now be forced to take a seat. The severity of his injury is unknown, but in the meantime, Zach Plesac was called up from Triple-A Salt Lake to make a spot start in Soriano's stead. Soriano had a 2.90 ERA, 1.09 WHIP and 37 strikeouts in 49.2 innings over his last eight starts. He has gone six-plus innings in four straight starts and boasts an elite 60.1 percent groundball rate on the season.

The Angels selected the contract of Plesac on Monday.

After being designated for assignment by the Angels on April 8, Plesac stayed with the organization in Triple-A after passing through waivers. Across 13 starts with Triple-A Salt Lake, Plesac holds a 3-7 record with a 5.42 ERA and 1.43 WHIP. However, over his last two starts, he's given up two runs on seven hits and two walks while striking out 11 over 15.1 innings. With Chase Silseth (elbow) close to returning from the 60-day IL, Plesac will likely operate out of the Angels' bullpen after right-hander Jose Suarez was designated for assignment in a corresponding move.

Wells (elbow) underwent a UCL revision and internal brace augmentation surgery Monday, Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com reports.

Wells avoided the second Tommy John surgery of his career, after he previously had the procedure in May 2019. However, while the internal brace procedure typically entails a shorter recovery timeline than Tommy John surgery, Wells will still miss the remainder of the 2024 campaign, and likely a few months of the 2025 season.

Blue Jays manager John Schneider confirmed that Rodriguez (back) has returned to Toronto and could be reinstated from the 15-day injured list to start Friday in Cleveland, Kaitlyn McGrath of The Athletic reports.

Rodriguez wrapped up his six-start rehab assignment at Triple-A Buffalo on Sunday, when he struck out seven while allowing two runs on three hits and three walks over three innings. He tossed 79 pitches in the outing and should be built up enough to handle a traditional starter's workload, if the Blue Jays want to give it to him. Before Rodriguez landed on the IL on April 30 with thoracic spine inflammation, the Blue Jays had been managing his usage carefully, as he worked between three and four innings in each of his four starts. Should Toronto elect to manage Rodriguez's workload again if he starts Friday, he could be deployed as part of a tandem with Bowden Francis, who had most recently served as a bulk reliever when the No. 5 spot in the rotation came up.

DeGrom (elbow) threw a 15-pitch bullpen session Monday, Kennedi Landry of MLB.com reports.

The session contained only fastballs and marked the first time deGrom has thrown off a mound since he underwent Tommy John surgery last June. Everything went according to plan, and deGrom will continue to the ramp-up process as he eyes a return from the 60-day injured list sometime in the second half of the season.

Yankees manager Aaron Boone confirmed Monday that Cole (elbow) will be activated from the 60-day injured list to make his season debut Wednesday against the Orioles, Jorge Castillo of ESPN.com reports.

Cole has been lights-out on his rehab assignment, yielding one earned run with a 19:0 K:BB over 12.1 innings covering three starts. In his final rehab outing this past Friday with Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, Cole struck out 10 while allowing just one unearned run across 4.1 frames. The right-hander has been out all season after being diagnosed in mid-March with nerve irritation and edema in his right elbow. Cole's workload will likely be curtailed initially after he had a high of 68 pitches on his rehab assignment.

Rodriguez (back) rejoined the Blue Jays following his rehab start with Triple-A Buffalo on Sunday and is expected to be reinstated from the 15-day injured list later this week, Francys Romero of BeisbolFR.com reports.

In his sixth and final rehab outing with Buffalo, Rodriguez tossed 79 pitches over three innings, striking out seven while giving up two earned runs on three hits and three walks. Per Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet.ca, Rodriguez's fastball averaged 93 miles per hour -- just one tick behind his season-long average over four starts with Toronto -- and topped out at 96. He'll likely step in as the Blue Jays' new No. 5 starter during this weekend's series in Cleveland, though manager John Schneider could choose to deploy Rodriguez as part of a tandem with Bowden Francis. In three of his previous four starts prior to landing on the IL on April 30 with thoracic spine inflammation, Rodriguez had been followed by Francis out of the bullpen and covered between three and four innings on each occasion.

Wacha (foot) will make a rehab start Monday in the rookie-level Arizona Complex League.

According to Anne Rogers of MLB.com, Royals manager Matt Quatraro said Sunday that Wacha may need only the one outing in the minors before returning from the 15-day injured list and making his next start with Kansas City this coming weekend in Arlington versus the Rangers. Wacha threw a three-inning simulated game Thursday, so he could be stretched out for close to a typical starter's workload if he's able to tack on another inning during Monday's outing. The right-hander has been on the injured list since June 2 with a non-displaced left foot fracture.

Stripling (elbow), who recently started a throwing program, is already up to a distance of 105 feet in his catch sessions, the Associated Press reports.

The veteran right-hander appears to be making some solid progress, but manager Mark Kotsay still doesn't have a timetable for Stripling to throw a bullpen session or get back on a mound. Therefore, Stripling's IL stint could conceivably last through the All-Star break, although there still appears to be a chance he'll return prior to that point even when factoring in a rehab assignment.