MLB Player News

Manager John Schneider said Saturday that he hopes Bieber (shoulder) will be cleared to throw off a mound sometime next week, Keegan Matheson of MLB.com reports.

Bieber has been on the shelf since Aug. 21 due to right teres major inflammation. He began throwing off flat ground Friday and will likely require another flat-ground session or two before he starts throwing off of a mound. With slightly more than three weeks remaining in the regular season, the 31-year-old righty will most likely have to wait until the postseason -- should Toronto earn a playoff spot -- before rejoining the Blue Jays' pitching staff.

Burke's scheduled start against the Twins on Sunday has been moved to Tuesday's series opener against the Pirates, Scott Merkin of MLB.com reports.

The White Sox have yet to name a starter for Sunday's series finale after Burke's scheduled outing was pushed back by a couple of days. Across nine starts since the All-Star break, Burke has a 2-2 record with a 2.76 ERA, 1.08 WHIP and 52:21 K:BB over 49 innings.

The Rays selected Johnson's contract from Triple-A Durham on Saturday, Ryan Bass of Rays.tv reports.

The Rays filled the spot in their bullpen vacated by Garrett Cleavinger, who was placed on the 15-day injured list due to left forearm tightness. Johnson has made 21 appearances (10 starts) in Triple-A this season, where he has a 3.03 ERA and 0.97 WHIP over 62.1 innings. His first appearance for the Rays will officially mark his major-league debut.

The Blue Jays placed Taillon on the 15-day injured list Saturday due to right elbow inflammation.

Taillon made his return from the 15-day injured list Friday against the Royals, but his night abruptly ended after just two innings and 29 pitches. Further tests revealed elbow inflammation, and the right-hander will be shelved until at least Sept. 20. Southpaw Ricky Tiedemann was recalled from Triple-A Buffalo in a corresponding move.

Sasaki (finger) indicated that he felt good following a bullpen session Friday, MLB.com reports.

The Dodgers placed Sasaki on the injured list Aug. 27, one day after he developed a blister on his right middle finger during a start in Atlanta. He'll be eligible for activation Sept. 11, and Sasaki looks like he could be on pace to return that day. Sasaki will still likely need to complete at least one throwing session against live hitters before the Dodgers reinstate him.

Matthews (9-9) picked up the loss after allowing four runs on four hits and one walk over five innings against the White Sox on Friday. He struck out four.

Matthews was burned by the long ball Friday, tying his season high in homers allowed with three. The 26-year-old gave up solo shots to Miguel Vargas and Braden Montgomery, and yielded a two-run homer to Colson Montgomery in the fourth. Matthews now owns a 4.69 ERA, 1.25 WHIP and 97:33 K:BB over 117 innings this season. The right-hander is scheduled to make his next start Friday against Cleveland.

Stone (shoulder) hasn't made a rehab appearance for Triple-A Oklahoma City since Aug. 26 due to a minor biceps injury, Jack Harris of the California Post reports.

Stone skipped out on a rehab start this week to recover from the injury, but the Dodgers are hopeful that he'll be able to make another appearance or two at Triple-A before returning from the 60-day injured list. Prior to the biceps issue cropping up, Stone had been magnificent through his first four rehab starts, posting a 1.54 ERA, 0.43 WHIP and 18:1 K:BB in 11.2 innings. Stone's stellar form at Triple-A looked to have put him in the mix to potentially enter the Dodgers' six-man rotation once activated, but the biceps injury makes it more likely that he works in relief if he's activated before the end of the regular season.

Rocker (5-11) picked up the loss Friday against the Rays, allowing six runs (five earned) on nine hits over five innings. He struck out three without a walk.

Rocker came on in the third inning after Trevor Williams and Robby Ahlstrom both recorded scoreless frames. Rocker quickly served up solo shots to Jonathan Aranda and Richie Palacios before allowing four more unanswered runs in the fifth. The 26-year-old has now recorded seven straight outings without a quality start. The right-hander has posted a 4.61 ERA, 1.44 WHIP and 127:55 K:BB over 134.2 innings this season. Rocker is lined up to make his next appearance either as a starter or bulk reliever Thursday against Seattle.

Marte struck out two and allowed three earned runs on four hits and two walks across five innings of relief in Friday's 10-6 loss to the Mets.

After tossing 4.2 innings of one-run ball as a starter in his MLB debut last Saturday in the second game of a doubleheader versus the Diamondbacks, Marte was deployed as part of a piggyback tandem with Wilkinson. Both hurlers tossed exactly 62 pitches, but Marte worked longer and more effectively than Wilkinson, who yielded seven runs (four earned) on five hits and two walks over three innings. Wilkinson has started in all four of his appearances with the Giants, but the Giants have limited him to less than four innings on three occasions. The Giants could continue to have Wilkinson and Marte work in piggyback arrangement when the fifth spot in the rotation comes up as the team looks to limit the workloads for both young pitchers down the stretch.

Stock allowed one hit and retired the other batter he faced while working out of the bullpen in Friday's 10-6 win over the Giants.

Following his promotion from Triple-A Syracuse on Aug. 2, Stock started in his first six appearances and submitted a 5.88 ERA and 1.73 WHIP across 26 innings. The Mets' decision to make him available out of the bullpen Friday suggests that he's been dropped from the rotation in favor of Jonah Tong, who will be called up from Triple-A to start Monday in Miami.