MLB Player News

Cavalli was scratched from his scheduled start against the Rays on Friday due to an illness.

Cavalli was penciled in to start Friday's series opener but instead won't be available due to food poisoning, per Andrew Golden of TheBanner.com. The Nationals are hopeful Cavalli will be ready to start Saturday. PJ Poulin will start in Cavalli's place with Miles Mikolas set to follow in the bulk role.

Perez (thigh) gave up one run on three hits over 3.2 innings in a rehab start for Triple-A Jacksonville on Thursday. He struck out five without walking a batter.

The right-hander fired 51 pitches (37 strikes) in his first rehab outing since landing on the IL on May 29 after straining his right gracilis muscle. The initial estimate for Perez's recovery suggested he might be on the shelf until late July, but Thursday's performance was encouraging enough that a return before the All-Star break looks plausible. Perez was sitting 96-98 mph with his fastballs Thursday and topped out at 99.4 mph on a four-seamer.

Greene (elbow) struck out six over four scoreless frames Thursday in his first rehab start with the Reds' Arizona Complex League affiliate.

Greene yielded two hits, walked one and topped out at 101.1 mph on the radar gun, per Lance McAlister of 700 WLW Sports Talk. He got his pitch count up to 54, throwing 39 pitches for strikes. It's an encouraging first rehab outing for Greene, who is coming back from mid-March surgery to remove bone chips from his right elbow. It's unclear when or where Greene's next rehab start will take place, but the Reds expect the right-hander to rejoin the rotation before the All-Star break.

Liberatore (3-4) allowed seven runs (five earned) on seven hits and no walks while striking out two batters over 1.2 innings to take the loss against Kansas City on Thursday.

Liberatore got an early lead when St. Louis scored twice in the top of the first inning, but he gave one run back in the bottom of the frame on a Bobby Witt (knee) solo homer. Things got much worse for Liberatore in the second, as the Royals swarmed him for six hits -- five of which were doubles -- en route to six runs. The left-hander ultimately gave way to a reliever after retiring only two batters in that disastrous frame. It was the shortest outing of the season for Liberatore, and he hasn't been providing much depth of late, completing fewer than five frames in three straight outings. He's had a few promising starts this season, but it's mostly been a struggle for the veteran pitcher, who now has an ugly 5.23 ERA and 1.56 WHIP along with a 67:27 K:BB through 72.1 innings spanning 15 appearances.

Nola did not factor into the decision Thursday against the Mets, allowing three runs (two earned) on seven hits and one walk while striking out six over five innings.

The veteran right-hander generated 10 whiffs on 97 pitches, with most of the damage against him coming via a pair of solo homers from Juan Soto. Despite the solid strikeout total, Nola continues to search for consistency in what has been a difficult campaign. He's failed to cover more than five frames in any of his past five starts and has a 5.68 ERA during that span. Nola will carry a 5.71 ERA, 1.48 WHIP and 77:25 K:BB into his next scheduled start on the road against Washington.

Perez won't pitch against the Giants on Thursday, as the game was postponed due to rain.

Thursday's contest has been rescheduled for Aug. 31, and it's likely that Perez's next start will now come Friday against Milwaukee. The 35-year-old has been fairly consistent all season, pitching to a 2.90 ERA and 1.05 WHIP across 14 appearances (10 starts), and he's recorded a win in each of his last three outings.

Roupp and the Giants won't face Atlanta on Thursday, as the game was postponed due to inclement weather.

Thursday's game will be pushed back to Aug. 31; meanwhile, Roupp's next start is likely to come Friday during San Francisco's series opener in Miami. The 27-year-old has struggled since the beginning of June, giving up four or more runs in two of his three starts this month while failing to make it through the fifth inning on both occasions.

Ray (5-6) took the win in the resumption of Tuesday's game against Atlanta on Wednesday, allowing two hits and two walks while striking out eight across 6.1 scoreless innings in a 7-2 victory.

Adrian Houser started the contest Tuesday before it was suspended by inclement weather and resumed Wednesday. Ray entered in the second inning with a 3-2 lead and never let it go, recording his second win in his last three appearances. The 34-year-old southpaw struck out a season-high eight batters. He now owns a 4.07 ERA, 1.33 WHIP and 74:38 K:BB across 79.2 innings in 15 outings.

Priester will undergo thoracic outlet compression surgery on Monday and is expected to be sidelined 8-to-10 months, Curt Hogg of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports.

Priester has dealt with thoracic outlet symptoms since last season, and he attempted unsuccessfully to treat it with rest and rehab. After consulting with Dr. Gregory Pearl on Tuesday, the decision was made to have surgery. Priester expects to be ready to go for the beginning of next season, but the track record of pitchers coming back from this type of procedure isn't great.

Junk (shin) was able to throw a light bullpen session earlier this week and could throw a higher-intensity side session in the coming days, MLB.com reports.

Once Junk incorporates all of his pitches in a full-intensity session, he'll move on to facing hitters before eventually heading out on a rehab assignment. After landing on the 15-day injured list May 31 due to right shin bone inflammation, Junk appears to be tracking for a late-June or early-July return from the shelf.