MLB Player News

Manager Torey Lovullo said Friday that it's "very likely" Kelly (shoulder) will be activated from the 60-day injured list to start Sunday's game against Philadelphia, Alex Weiner of ArizonaSports.com reports.

Kelly has been on the shelf since late April with a teres major strain of his right shoulder. After throwing 62 pitches in a four-inning rehab start for High-A Hillsboro on Tuesday, Kelly looks to have showed well enough in that outing for the Diamondbacks to bring him back. The 35-year-old was dominant before going down with the injury, logging a 2.19 ERA across 24.2 innings over four starts with Arizona. However, expectations shouldn't be too high for Kelly in his first start back, considering the lengthy absence in addition to the fact that he'll be matching up against Philadelphia's potent offense.

An MRI on Feltner's throwing shoulder came back negative Friday, Patrick Lyons of JustBaseball.com reports.

The right-hander was placed on the IL on Thursday with a strained right shoulder, but Friday's MRI confirmed he isn't dealing with any structural damage. The team is optimistic that Feltner might return after the minimum 15 days, meaning the 27-year-old could rejoin the rotation as soon as Aug. 23. In the meantime, Dakota Hudson and Tanner Gordon will hold down the back end of the Rockies' rotation.

The Rockies will select Hudson's contract from Triple-A Albuquerque and have him start Saturday's game against Atlanta, Patrick Lyons of JustBaseball.com reports.

The loss of Ryan Feltner (shoulder) created an opening in Colorado's starting rotation, and Hudson will be the choice to fill the gap until Feltner is able to return. The 29-year-old has started 17 games for the Rockies this season, but he was outrighted to Albuquerque in early July after accumulating a 5.84 ERA and 1.64 WHIP, both of which represent the worst marks of his seven-year MLB career. Cal Quantrill, who was originally slated to start Saturday's game, will have his next start pushed back to Colorado's next series in Arizona.

The Diamondbacks optioned Cecconi to Triple-A Reno on Friday.

Cecconi threw three innings of relief Thursday and allowed two runs on four hits. However, with the Diamondbacks in need of fresh arms ahead of a three-game series against the Phillies, Cecconi will cede his spot on the active roster to Scott McGough.

Giolito (elbow) was throwing in the field at Fenway Park on Friday, Jen McCaffrey of The Athletic reports.

Giolito joined the Red Sox in the offseason to be part of Boston's starting rotation. However, he never had the chance to suit up in the regular season after suffering a partial UCL tear and flexor strain in his right elbow during spring training, which required an internal brace procedure in March and a trip to the 60-day injured list. That type of procedure carries a 10-12 month recovery window, so the fact that Giolito is throwing just five months after surgery shows how well the 30-year-old is progressing in his rehab. Barring any setbacks, he could begin throwing off a mound before the end of the season.

Schwellenbach will start Sunday in Colorado, Mark Bowman of MLB.com reports.

Atlanta had previously announced that Schwellenbach's next turn in the rotation would be skipped as a means to reduce his workload. However, Atlanta has reversed course and will give the ball to the rookie Sunday after all. It's still possible Schwellenbach will have a turn skipped and/or get pushed back in the pitching schedule at a later date since he's already far exceeded his 2023 workload.

The Phillies optioned Allard to Triple-A Lehigh Valley on Friday, Corey Seidman of NBC Sports Philadelphia reports.

Allard made two starts and one bulk relief appearance, posting a 3.46 ERA and 8:2 K:BB over 13 innings. With Taijuan Walker (finger) poised to return next week, Allard wasn't going to be needed as a rotation fill-in anymore.

Ober (12-5) earned the win in the first game of Friday's doubleheader with the Guardians, allowing two hits and two walks over six scoreless innings. He struck out nine.

It's the ninth straight quality start for Ober, who's posted a stellar 1.76 ERA in that span (61.1 innings) while logging eight or more strikeouts in six of those outings. The 29-year-old Ober's ERA is down to 3.52 on the year with a 0.97 WHIP and 137:31 K:BB across 128 innings. He'll look to keep rolling in his next start, currently scheduled for next week at home against the Royals.

The Red Sox placed Criswell on the COVID-19 injured list Friday.

Criswell will be sidelined for at least seven days due to the sickness. He was slated to start Saturday's game against the Astros, but the Red Sox will now have to look elsewhere and could turn the contest into a bullpen game. Since moving to the bullpen July 28, Criswell has made four appearances, allowing three runs over 6.2 innings. Brad Keller was recalled from Triple-A Worcester in a corresponding move.

The Red Sox placed Bello on the paternity list Friday, but he will return in time for his scheduled start Monday against Texas, Alex Speier of The Boston Globe reports.

Bello will spend his weekend away from the team for personal reasons, but the expectation is he'll be back for Monday's start. In his last six outings, Bello has a 2-0 record, though he's logged a 5.08 ERA with 38 strikeouts over 33.2 innings. Cam Booser will temporarily join the 26-man roster and supply the bullpen with an additional arm.