MLB Player News

Rangers manager Skip Schumaker said that deGrom (triceps) responded "really well" to playing catch Sunday, Shawn McFarland of The Dallas Morning News reports.

DeGrom is working through right triceps fatigue, which forced him out of his most recent start in Thursday's 7-0 loss to the Angels after just two innings. With an MRI earlier in the week revealing no major red flags, deGrom looks like he could avoid a stint on the injured list, but the Rangers have yet to lock him in for his next start. The fact that he played catch without issue is a promising sign, but deGrom may need to make it through a bullpen session Monday before the Rangers confirm him for his next turn through the rotation, which comes up Wednesday against the Nationals.

McClanahan (back) will be activated from the 15-day injured list to start Monday's series finale versus the Orioles at Tropicana Field, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

McClanahan has received the green light to rejoin the Tampa Bay rotation after he struck out two batters over three perfect innings during his lone rehab start Tuesday with Triple-A Durham. Considering that McClanahan tossed just 30 pitches in that outing, he'll likely be in line for a restricted workload Monday, when he'll be making his first start for the Rays since July 30 before hitting the shelf with left mid-back tightness.

The Astros optioned Blanco to Triple-A Sugar Land on Sunday.

The 32-year-old right-hander has struggled to return to form since making his 2026 debut for the Astros in late July after completing his recovery from his June 2025 Tommy John surgery with an internal brace. After posting a 6.98 ERA and 1.34 WHIP through his first four starts with Houston, Blanco was shifted to a relief role and was promptly roughed up for five earned runs on seven hits and one walk in four innings in his first appearance out of the bullpen in Saturday's 10-5 loss to the Mariners. The Astros recalled right-hander Miguel Ullola from Triple-A to take Blanco's spot in the bullpen.

Kikuchi (shoulder) said Sunday that he expects to join the Angels on their upcoming six-game road trip and believes he'll be ready to return from the 60-day injured list during that time, Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com reports.

The veteran southpaw hasn't been informed that he's on track to be activated, but he'll meet with the Angels' brass Sunday to determine whether he'll be sent for another rehab start or not. Kikuchi certainly hasn't looked like a pitcher ready to return to the big leagues, as he was roughed up for eight earned runs over 4.2 innings in his latest outing Saturday with Single-A Rancho Cucamonga and has posted a 15.63 ERA, 2.37 WHIP and 24:8 K:BB over 12.2 innings in four starts between Single-A and Triple-A Salt Lake. If the Angels are comfortable adding Kikuchi back to the rotation during their road trip, he would likely start either Friday or Saturday in Arlington versus the Rangers.

The Cubs announced that Peterson will be moved to the bullpen after Edward Cabrera (hamstring) was reinstated from the 15-day injured list Sunday, Patrick Mooney of The Athletic reports.

Rather than shifting to a six-man rotation, manager Craig Counsell will send Peterson to the bullpen to provide the club with a multi-inning arm to replace Javier Assad, who was optioned to Triple-A Iowa on Sunday. After a disastrous run with the Mets to begin the season, Peterson had pitched more credibly since being acquired by the Cubs in late June. Over eight starts with Chicago, Peterson has gone 4-1 with a 4.19 ERA, 1.37 WHIP and 31:16 K:BB across 43 innings.

Musgrove (elbow) allowed five earned runs on nine hits and one walk while striking out five across 4.2 innings Friday in his rehab start with Triple-A El Paso.

Though he was knocked around in the third start of his rehab assignment, Musgrove built up to 70 pitches and 95.2 mph with his fastball. According to MLB.com, Padres manager Craig Stammen said Musgrove was "very positive" about how he felt during Friday's outing, but a decision has yet to be made regarding whether he'll require another rehab start or return from the 60-day injured list to make his first big-league appearance since Sept. 26, 2024. If Musgrove ends up entering the rotation during the Padres' upcoming weekend series with the Twins, he would likely be operating with a limited pitch count.

The Cubs reinstated Cabrera (hamstring) from the 15-day injured list ahead of his scheduled start Sunday versus the Cardinals at Wrigley Field, Jesse Rogers of ESPN.com reports.

Chicago optioned right-hander Javier Assad to Triple-A in a corresponding move. Cabrera will be making his first appearance since June 23 after recovering from a left hamstring strain, and the right-hander was sharp during a three-start rehab assignment, firing five no-hit innings for Double-A Knoxville on Tuesday. He built up to 64 pitches in that outing and will likely have a light workload restriction in place Sunday.

The Rangers could bring Leiter (ankle) back from the 60-day injured list during the upcoming week if Jacob deGrom (triceps) is unavailable to make his next scheduled start Wednesday versus the Nationals, Theo DeRosa of MLB.com reports.

Imaging on deGrom's injured right triceps confirmed revealed nothing concerning, but the right-hander's availability for his next turn through the rotation is still in doubt. Leiter -- who has been on the shelf June 21 while recovering from surgery to remove a loose body from his right ankle -- was able to make his first rehab start this past Thursday for Triple-A Round Rock, during which he covered 2.2 scoreless innings and 48 pitches. The Rangers had initially placed for Leiter to make at least one more rehab start and build up his pitch count before coming back from the IL, but the banged-up state of the big-league rotation -- both deGrom and Nathan Eovaldi (elbow) are recovering from injuries -- could accelerate Leiter's timeline to return.

Toronto optioned Tiedemann to Triple-A Buffalo on Sunday.

After striking out two batters and allowing one run in 1.2 innings of relief in his major-league debut during Saturday's 4-1 win over the Yankees, Tiedemann will head right back to Buffalo. He'll give up his spot on the active roster to reliever Brendon Little, who was reinstated from the paternity list. Tiedemann is likely to continue working out of the bullpen for the remainder of the season, but the Blue Jays could revisit developing the left-hander as a starter next spring.

Rangers manager Skip Schumaker said that imaging on deGrom's injured right triceps Saturday revealed encouraging news, but the right-hander may not make his next scheduled start, Theo DeRosa of MLB.com reports.

The imaging revealed nothing concerning, validating deGrom's original diagnosis of right triceps fatigue, which forced him out early in his most recent start Thursday against the Angels. While deGrom appears to have avoided any sort of major setback, the Rangers aren't yet ready to commit to him being ready to go for his next turn through the rotation, which is expected to come up Wednesday against the Nationals in Arlington. Options to replace deGrom next Wednesday would include Jack Leiter (ankle), Jordan Montgomery and Cal Quantrill.