MLB Player News

Mahle (shoulder) has resumed throwing and is expected to toss a bullpen session Friday, Betsy Helfand of the St. Paul Pioneer Press reports.

Mahle has been on the injured list with right shoulder inflammation since Saturday, but he's making good progress in his recovery. The right-hander is eligible to return as early as Sept. 2, and it wouldn't be surprising to see him rejoin the Twins following a relatively minimal IL stint.

Cortes was placed on the 15-day injured list with a left groin strain Thursday, retroactive to Aug. 22.

Since Cortes' move to the injured list was backdated to Monday, he'll be eligible to return as early as Sept. 6. However, it's not yet clear how much time the Yankees expect him to miss. Greg Weissert was called up as part of a corresponding move, but it's possible that Clarke Schmidt claims a spot in the starting rotation until Cortes is cleared to return.

Wells (oblique) threw a bullpen session Thursday, Zachary Silver of MLB.com reports.

Wells resumed mound work with a bullpen session Tuesday, and he felt good following Thursday's throwing session. He's scheduled to throw live batting practice soon and is expected to have a better timetable for his return afterward. The Orioles aren't yet sure whether the right-hander will return as a starter or reliever.

Javier won't make his scheduled turn through the rotation this weekend against the Orioles and will be available out of the bullpen, Danielle Lerner of the Houston Chronicle reports.

The Astros have two scheduled days off Monday and Thursday next week, and Javier will be the odd man out of the six-man rotation. The 25-year-old has a 2.88 ERA, 1.00 WHIP and 146:40 K:BB across 112.1 innings this year, and he should be back in Houston's rotation before too long. Lance McCullers, Jose Urquidy and Justin Verlander will start this weekend versus Baltimore.

Eovaldi (shoulder) played catch Wednesday and could throw a bullpen session Friday, Jen McCaffrey of The Athletic reports.

Eovaldi looks to be making positive progress in his recovery from right shoulder inflammation, which kept him from pitching since Aug. 12 before he was finally placed on the 15-day injured list Tuesday. As a result of the delayed IL placement, Eovaldi won't be eligible to return until next weekend at the earliest, but that could be a realistic target for the right-hander if he continues to navigate the buildup process without any setbacks. Brayan Bello will fill Eovaldi's spot in the rotation for the time being.

Paxton (elbow) has been diagnosed with a Grade 2 left lat strain and won't return in 2022, Ian Browne of MLB.com reports.

Paxton made his first rehab start last week but exited the outing due to his lat injury. The southpaw will be unable to return over the final month of the season, and it's not yet clear whether he'll remain with the Red Sox next year. His contract includes a $13 million team option for 2023 or a $4 million player option, the latter of which Paxton can exercise if the team option is declined. Paxton hasn't pitched in the big leagues since early in the 2021 campaign since he underwent Tommy John surgery in April of that year.

The Yankees are expected to place Cortes on the 15-day injured list Thursday due to a groin injury, Lindsey Adler of The Athletic reports.

Reliever Greg Weissert will be called up from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre to take over Cortes' spot on the 26-man active roster, but the Yankees could turn to multi-inning reliever Clarke Schmidt to step in as their fifth starter while Cortes is on the shelf. Based on Cortes' recent performances, it wasn't evident that he was pitching through any injury; he's generated a 2.55 ERA, 0.83 WHIP and 38:9 K:BB in 42.1 innings over his last seven starts.

Boyd (elbow) fired two scoreless innings during which he allowed a hit and recorded three strikeouts in Triple-A Tacoma's win over Salt Lake on Tuesday.

The impressive effort, which earned Boyd the second hold of his rehab assignment, was a welcome rebound after he'd given up a pair of runs over two innings in his prior appearance with the Rainiers. The left-hander actually threw fewer pitches Tuesday (23) than in that outing (40) due to a much more efficient performance which saw Boyd pound 17 of his offerings in for strikes. The 31-year-old now has three scoreless efforts in his first four trips to the mound with Tacoma, but he's likely to still log at least one more appearance before activation is considered.

Baz (elbow) said that he's been cleared to resume a throwing program Monday and remains hopeful he'll return from the 60-day injured list before the end of the season, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

Baz is ready to begin the ramp-up process following a four-week shutdown due to a right elbow sprain. Given that Baz missed the first two months of the season after requiring an arthroscopic procedure on his elbow in late March, the Rays are likely to proceed cautiously with him during his throwing program. At this stage of the season, Baz may not have enough time to build up for a starting role, but if he avoids any setbacks during the rehab process, he could have some value to the Rays as a multi-inning arm out of the bullpen down the stretch.

Bundy (7-6) was handed the loss by Houston on Wednesday. He pitched five innings and allowed two runs on three hits and one walk without notching a strikeout.

Bundy gave up a home run to Jose Altuve on his first pitch of the contest, but he settled down from there and limited the Astros to just one additional run over the remainder of his outing. The veteran right-hander induced only one swinging strike and failed to fan a single batter, yet he kept Minnesota in the game and could have had a better fate if not for the continued excellence of opposing starter Framber Valdez. Bundy has quietly pitched well in August, allowing just five runs and 12 hits over 19.1 innings despite earning only one win.