MLB Player News

Gray (elbow) could be cleared to begin a rehab assignment if a live batting practice session Tuesday goes well, Spencer Nusbaum of The Washington Post reports.

Gray threw 76 pitches in a live BP last week and is slated to throw around 50 pitches in Tuesday's session as he continues to ramp back up. As long as he comes out of Tuesday's throwing session with no concerns, he'll likely be sent to a minor-league affiliate. Gray has been out since early April with a right flexor strain, but because he's already fairly stretched out, his rehab assignment might not last more than one or two starts.

Manager Rob Thomson said Monday that Suarez (hand) will play catch Tuesday and throw a bullpen session Wednesday before the Phillies decide on the left-hander's next step, Matt Gelb of The Athletic reports.

Suarez was forced out after just two innings in his most recent start against the Cardinals on Saturday, when he took a 106.1 mile-per-hour line drive off his pitching hand. X-rays cleared Suarez of any structural damage, but he's still dealing with some bruising and swelling that could present some difficulty for the southpaw in commanding his full arsenal. The upcoming bullpen session will represent an important test for Suarez in showing the Phillies' coaching and training staffs that the injury won't affect his pitching. At this stage, Thomson said that Suarez remains in play for his next turn through the rotation, which falls during the Phillies' two-game series with the Mets in London this weekend.

Means underwent successful Tommy John surgery Monday in Texas to repair a torn UCL in his left elbow, Jake Rill of MLB.com reports.

Means will need 12-to-18 months to recover from the procedure, and given that he previously had the procedure in April 2022, it's reasonable to expect him to trend toward the longer end of that timetable. The veteran southpaw has now seen three straight seasons come to an early end, as he was previously held out during the Orioles' playoff run last fall when he experienced renewed soreness in the surgically repaired elbow. Even though his elbow checked out fine over the offseason, the Orioles chose to slow play Means to begin the 2024 campaign, but it wasn't long before he experienced another flareup. Means made just four starts for the Orioles prior to landing on the 15-day injured list last Thursday with a forearm strain.

Hall is scheduled to meet with Dr. Neal ElAttrache in Los Angeles on Wednesday to have his left knee evaluated, Todd Rosiak of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports.

Hall remains in the midst of a shutdown period after he tweaked his sprained left knee during his second minor-league rehab appearance with Triple-A Nashville back on May 23. The right-hander said that Dr. ElAttrache told him that the MCL in his left knee is intact based on initial scans, but a treatment plan for Hall won't be fully mapped out until Dr. ElAttrache is able to evaluate the knee in person. Hall plans to rejoin the Brewers when their road trip shifts to Detroit this weekend, but it's unclear when he might be ready to resume a throwing program, much less head back out on a rehab assignment.

Urquidy (forearm) is expected to meet with Dr. Keith Meister this week and could be recommended to undergo the second Tommy John surgery of his career, Alden Gonzalez and Jeff Passan of ESPN.com report.

Urquidy's consultation with Dr. Meister will be a second opinion, as he previously had his forearm evaluated by a specialist when he was pulled off his rehab assignment at Triple-A Sugar Land in late May. The right-hander has spent all season on the Astros' injured list after being shut down in mid-March with a right forearm strain, but he appeared to be closing in on a return before experiencing renewed discomfort during his third rehab outing. Urquidy, who previously missed the 2017 season after undergoing Tommy John surgery, will hope to avoid another such procedure, but even if he's able to recover from the injury with additional rest and rehab, a return from the IL will still likely be several weeks down the road in a best-case scenario.

Schwellenbach is scheduled to start Wednesday's game against the Red Sox at Fenway Park.

The 24-year-old right-hander will be making his first career road start after he worked five innings and gave up three runs while taking a loss to the Nationals at Truist Park in his MLB debut last Wednesday. While making the jump from Double-A Mississippi to the big leagues, Schwellenbach acquitted himself reasonably well, as he spotted 60 of his 88 pitches for strikes while striking out five and scattering five hits and one walk. Atlanta is likely to monitor the rookie's workload carefully, but with only 48 innings under his belt between the majors and minors this season, Schwellenbach still has plenty of time to establish himself as a mainstay in the big-league rotation before the organization would consider shutting him down.

High-A Asheville placed Taylor on its 60-day injured list May 20 due to an unspecified injury.

According to Kenny Van Doren of MLB.com, Taylor sustained the injury in his May 7 start, when he left early after being visited on the mound by a trainer. The nature of the 22-year-old right-hander's injury still isn't known, but he looks like he'll be sidelined at until around the All-Star break while he recovers. Taylor had turned in a 5.27 ERA, 1.59 WHIP and 17:5 K:BB across 13.2 innings with Asheville before he was shut down.

Eovaldi will start Monday's game against the Tigers at Globe Life Field.

Eovaldi returned from the 15-day injured list last Tuesday and took back his spot in the Texas rotation, but he covered just three innings and tossed 37 pitches in the Rangers' 4-2 win over the Diamondbacks. Because Eovaldi didn't go on a minor-league rehab assignment prior to being activated, the Rangers deliberately limited his workload in what was his first start since May 2. Eovaldi didn't report any renewed discomfort with his right groin coming out of the outing against the Diamondbacks, so he should be in store for a more typical starter's workload Monday.

Quintana came away with a no-decision in Sunday's loss to the Diamondbacks, giving up three runs on four hits and three walks over four innings. He struck out four.

The veteran southpaw once again had trouble keeping the ball in the park as he served up solo homers to Ketel Marte and Lourdes Gurriel in in the first inning. Quintana has been taken deep eight times in his last five starts, leading to a 5.13 ERA despite a 1.18 WHIP over that stretch. He lines up to take the mound next during the Mets' trip to London this weekend to face the Phillies.

Sproat allowed just one hit and one walk over seven scoreless innings while striking out a career-high 10 for Double-A Binghamton on Sunday.

The 23-year-old right-hander has actually gotten better since being promoted from High-A Brooklyn in mid-May. Over four starts for Binghamton, Sproat has posted a dazzling 1.38 ERA, 0.77 WHIP and 30:6 K:BB through 26 innings, and he's lasted seven innings in three straight trips to the mound. The Mets will likely keep an eye on Sproat's workload in his first pro campaign, but the 2023 second-round pick is on track to make his Triple-A debut before the end of the season, and given how little difficulty he's having dominating minor-league hitters, a late 2024 big-league debut is starting to look at least plausible, if not exactly likely.