MLB Player News

Martinez (shoulder) could be activated from the 10-day injured list as soon as next weekend, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.

Martinez is scheduled to throw at least one inning during his rehab appearance Sunday with Triple-A Memphis and will then shift his minor-league assignment to Double-A Springfield for another appearance Wednesday. Based on how he checks out physically following the latter outing, the Cardinals will determine whether Martinez is fit to join the big club ahead of Friday's series opener in Texas. The club already announced in April that Martinez will fill a bullpen role upon his reinstatement from the 10-day injured list, though the right-hander is hopeful to build up his arm enough in the weeks that follow to potentially recapture a rotation spot at some point later in the season.

Gausman dropped his appeal of a five-game suspension and will begin serving the ban Sunday.

Major League Baseball first levied the suspension on Gausman on May 6 after he was ejected from his start against the Marlins three days earlier for intentionally throwing at Miami pitcher Jose Urena. Gausman chose to fight the suspension immediately and proceeded to make a pair of starts, then dropped the appeal ahead of Monday's off day. The break in the schedule will allow the Braves to get by with a four-man rotation until Gausman is eligible to return to action for a start Saturday against the Brewers.

Gray will start Wednesday against the Cubs instead of Tuesday as previously scheduled, Bobby Nightengale of The Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

The move has nothing to do with Gray, as the team wants to keep Tanner Roark on a five-day pitching schedule since he's pitched better in his last two outings. Gray, on the other hand, has a 5.49 ERA and 1.47 WHIP while failing to complete six innings in any of his last four starts, and he's still seeking his first win of the season.

Maeda will have his next start moved up from Friday to Wednesday for a home outing against the Padres, Bill Plunkett of The Orange County Register reports.

Maeda will take the place of Rich Hill for the Dodgers' midweek contest against San Diego, with Hill now slated to start during the weekend series against the Reds. The right-hander one-hit the Nationals over six scoreless innings in his last start, so he'll look to build on that and improve on his 4.03 ERA.

Hill will have his next start pushed back, Bill Plunkett of The Orange County Register reports.

The left-hander was originally scheduled to start Wednesday against the Padres, but Kenta Maeda will now head to the mound for that contest. Hill's next outing will get pushed to the Dodgers' weekend series at the Reds, where the first chance for him to start would be Friday.

The Phillies selected Irvin's contract from Triple-A Lehigh Valley ahead of his scheduled start Sunday in Kansas City, Scott Lauber of The Philadelphia Inquirer reports.

Irvin will be making his MLB debut as a replacement in the rotation for the injured Vince Velasquez (forearm). Velasquez believes he'll only be forced to miss one start due to the injury, but Irvin could have a legitimate case for sticking in the rotation over Velasquez if he turns in an impressive outing against the Royals. Over six turns at Triple-A this season, Irvin has posted a shiny 2.25 ERA, though it has been supported by a weak 23:8 K:BB and 1.22 WHIP in 36 innings.

Syndergaard won't make his scheduled start Sunday against the Marlins after the contest was postponed due to inclement weather in New York.

The two teams will make up the contest as part of a doubleheader Aug. 5. The Mets haven't announced how the postponement will impact their pitching plans, but it's expected that Syndergaard will merely be pushed back to start the team's next game Tuesday in Washington. That assignment would put Syndergaard on track for a two-start week, with his second turn coming next weekend in Miami.

DeSclafani gave up four runs on eight hits, including one homer, over just four innings Saturday night against the Giants to get a no-decision, Mark Sheldon of MLB.com reports. "I didn't feel like he was quite as sharp tonight. He was missing a little bit in the middle of the plate with some of his pitches," manager David Bell said of DeSclafani. "Could he have gone back out and thrown two scoreless innings? Yeah, we believe in him that much. That was the decision I felt had to be made there. We had a fully rested bullpen."

The Reds' bullpen rallied to throw five scoreless innings against the Giants, and DeSclafani was let off the hook early from a loss by Eugenio Suarez's game-tying homer in the fifth inning.

Fried (hand) has been cleared to start Sunday's game against the Diamondbacks.

Fried had a rough outing Tuesday against the Dodgers cut short in the second inning, when he was struck on his pitching hand by a line drive. There had been some initial fear the injury might cost Fried a turn through the rotation, but the southpaw will stick on his normal schedule after completing a side session Thursday without any discomfort. Fried shouldn't face any limitations during his eighth start of the campaign.

Gausman (2-3) picked up the win in Saturday's 6-4 victory over the Diamondbacks, giving up one run on five hits and two walks over six innings while striking out six.

The right-hander threw 59 of 84 pitches for strikes in delivering his third quality start in eight trips to the mound. Gausman will take a 4.50 ERA and 46:17 K:BB through 42 innings into his next outing Friday, at home against the Brewers.