MLB Player News

Houck (face) could begin exercises as soon as Friday, Mac Cerullo of the Boston Herald reports.

Houck had surgery on June 27 during which small plates were inserted into his right cheek to help with the swelling that occurred from the facial fracture. He is not yet eating solid foods and has lost "like seven pounds," Red Sox manager Alex Cora said Wednesday. Houck will meet with a doctor Thursday, though, and a nutrition and exercise plan will follow. There's no timetable for Houck's return, but it's going to be a while.

Kansas City placed Greinke on the 15-day injured list Wednesday with right shoulder tendinitis.

Greinke made an early exit from his start Tuesday against the Twins after experiencing shoulder discomfort and will be sidelined until at least July 20. He's a trade candidate for the Royals, so they'd certainly like to get him back in time to prove his health before the Aug. 1 deadline. The veteran righty leaves behind a 5.44 ERA, 1.30 WHIP and 64:13 K:BB through 92.2 innings.

Stone was charged with a blown save against the Pirates on Tuesday, allowing one run on five hits and one walk while striking out three batters over two innings.

Stone was recalled from Triple-A Oklahoma City on Monday and got his first major-league look as a reliever in the fifth inning Tuesday. The right-hander gave up a pair of singles in his first frame but was able to escape trouble; however, he wasn't able to keep Pittsburgh off the scoreboard in the sixth, as the Pirates tallied a run on a trio of singles. Stone has struggled to get runners out in his first taste of the big leagues this season, posting a 12.75 ERA, 3.00 WHIP and 8:8 K:BB over 12 innings.

The Mariners selected Milone's contract from Triple-A Tacoma on Wednesday.

Darren McCaughan was optioned to Tacoma to clear room on the 26-man active roster for Milone ahead of the veteran lefty's second start of the season with the big club Wednesday versus the Giants. Over 50.1 innings at Tacoma this season, Milone has pitched to a 4.47 ERA, 1.26 WHIP and 46:18 K:BB. He'll look to parlay a strong showing Wednesday into a longer stay as the Mariners' No. 5 starter until Bryce Miller (finger) is ready to return from the 15-day injured list.

Waldichuk will serve as a bulk reliever behind opener Austin Pruitt in Wednesday's game in Detroit, Martin Gallegos of MLB.com reports.

Pruitt isn't expected to cover more than 1-to-3 innings before turning the game over to Waldichuk, who should be capable of providing Oakland with a decent amount of length after he tossed 2.2 innings in his most recent appearance out of the bullpen back on June 29. While moving between the bullpen and rotation this season, Waldichuk has compiled a 6.78 ERA and 1.91 WHIP in 66.1 innings, so he won't make for an especially appealing streaming option even though his usage as a bulk reliever theoretically gives him a better chance at qualifying for a win.

Chirinos is slated to work as a bulk reliever behind opener Zack Littell in Wednesday's home game versus the Phillies, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

Littell and Chirinos worked in tandem successfully during Chirinos' most recent turn through the rotation last Thursday against the Diamondbacks, so manager Kevin Cash will stick with the arrangement once again this week. After Littell tossed two scoreless frames in Arizona, Chirinos came on to pick up the win while striking out four and allowing one earned run on four hits and three walks over six innings out of the bullpen.

The Mariners will call up Milone from Triple-A Tacoma to start Wednesday's game in San Francisco, Daniel Kramer of MLB.com reports.

Milone will be joining the Mariners for the second time this season, as he previously made a spot start April 14 versus the Rockies before being designated for assignment shortly thereafter. He cleared waivers and has remained in the organization as a depth arm at Tacoma, where he's compiled a 4.47 ERA, 1.26 WHIP and 46:18 K:BB over 50.1 innings. The veteran southpaw will step in as the Mariners' temporary No. 5 starter after Bryce Miller (finger) recently joined Marco Gonzales (forearm) on the injured list, but whether Milone sticks around beyond Wednesday will likely hinge on how he fares versus the Giants.

The Tigers reinstated Rodriguez (finger) from the 15-day injured list ahead of his scheduled start Wednesday versus the Athletics at Comerica Park, Chris McCosky of The Detroit News reports.

Reliever Garrett Hill was optioned to Triple-A Toledo to clear room on the 26-man active roster for Rodriguez, who will be making his first start for the big club since May 28 after missing the past five weeks due to a left index finger pulley rupture. Prior to being activated, Rodriguez made a rehab start last Thursday at Triple-A Toledo and tossed 58 pitches over 4.1 scoreless frames, so he could be in store for a light workload restriction Wednesday as he re-enters the big-league rotation.

The Astros released Garcia on June 26.

Garcia made four starts in the big leagues for Detroit in 2022, but after landing in Houston in February on a minor-league deal, he never pitched well enough at Triple-A Sugar Land to earn a look with the Astros. Over his 49 innings in the Pacific Coast League, Garcia pitched to a 6.98 ERA, 2.14 WHIP and 39:45 K:BB.

Liberatore will start for the Cardinals on Wednesday in Miami, John Denton of MLB.com reports.

Prior reports suggested that the Cardinals would start Steven Matz, but they've instead decided to give the ball to Liberatore, who will be pitching on short rest. While Liberatore will be working on just three days' rest after starting Saturday versus the Yankees, he threw only 56 pitches in that outing. Liberatore hasn't gone more than 4.1 innings in any of his last three starts, holding a 6.75 ERA and 6:5 K:BB in 10.2 frames over that time.