MLB Player News

DeGrom (elbow) is slated to begin playing catch during the Rangers' May 5-14 road trip, Evan Grant of The Dallas Morning News reports.

When exactly he'll play catch during the road trip isn't clear, but it's good news that it's coming soon. DeGrom landed on the injured list last weekend with right elbow inflammation and is eligible for activation in mid-May. Whether he'll be ready to go at that time remains to be seen.

Suarez (elbow) will make the third start of his rehab assignment with Triple-A Lehigh Valley on Sunday, Corey Seidman of NBC Sports Philadelphia reports.

He'll get his pitch count up to the 70-to-75 range in what will likely be his final rehab start before he returns from the 15-day injured list. If Suarez is indeed back with the Phillies following the upcoming rehab start, he would be in line to make his 2023 big-league debut next weekend in Colorado. The left-hander has been sidelined since early March with a left elbow strain.

Syndergaard isn't scheduled to make a start this week, Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic reports.

An off day Thursday allows the Dodgers to realign their rotation, which they'll do by setting up Clayton Kershaw, Dustin May and Julio Urias to make starts this weekend in a big divisional series with San Diego. Manager Dave Roberts didn't specify whether Syndergaard will be available out of the bullpen this weekend, as the right-hander is expected to use some of his time out of the rotation to address some mechanical issues. Syndergaard owns a 6.32 ERA, 1.40 WHIP and 21:4 K:BB over 31.1 innings this season, but he managed to pick up his first win his last time out Sunday against the Cardinals.

Tampa Bay selected Anderson's contract from Triple-A Durham on Wednesday, Tricia Whitaker of Bally Sports Sun reports.

Tampa Bay acquired Anderson from the Reds for cash considerations earlier Wednesday, and though the expectation was that the veteran right-hander would report to Triple-A Durham, he'll instead move to the big club after closer Pete Fairbanks (forearm) was placed on the injured list in a corresponding move. While Anderson is up with the Rays, he'll likely serve as a multi-inning option out of the bullpen.

Espino underwent a right shoulder anterior capsule repair surgery Tuesday in Los Angeles and is expected to remain out of game action for 12-to-14 months, Mandy Bell of MLB.com reports.

The surgery was performed by renowned shoulder and elbow specialist Dr. Neal ElAttrache. It's another significant setback for Espino, a right-hander who has showcased some of the best stuff among pitching prospects in baseball when healthy, but he's been able to accumulate only 18.1 innings since the start of the 2022 season. Assuming the 12-to-14-month recovery timeline holds, Espino will be out of commission until the summer of 2024.

Perez struck out 11 batters over five innings Tuesday for Double-A Pensacola, and pitching coach Dave Eiland believes the 20-year-old is ready for a promotion to Triple-A, Ben Weinrib of MLB.com reports.

"He had his best fastball command that I've seen out of him in the year-plus that I've had him, and of course, that sets up everything else," Eiland said after the game. "That's saying a lot as well as he pitched last year. Just as far as the way he uses his pitches, the way he's commanding them all, the way they all complement one another. That's what you want to see in a young pitcher, a young prospect." Including his stint with Pensacola in 2022, Perez now sports a 3.69 ERA, 1.08 WHIP and 139:32 K:BB through 100 innings at Double-A, and the only benchmark left for him to reach before a bump up to Triple-A could be tied to his workload. He hasn't yet been allowed to take on a regular five-day schedule in the Blue Wahoos' rotation, instead taking the mound every sixth day this season.

Kaprielian started Triple-A Las Vegas' win over Sacramento on Tuesday, allowing an earned run on four hits and two walks over 3.1 innings. He struck out four and didn't factor into the decision.

Kaprielian's location wasn't exactly at its sharpest -- he got just 43 of his 72 pitches into the strike zone -- but the outing seemingly served as a solid starting point overall to his attempted reset at the Triple-A level. Kaprielian's earned himself a trip down to the farm after opening the season by pitching to an array of concerning numbers that included a 12.94 ERA, 2.38 WHIP, 7.9 BB/9 and 2.8 HR/9 across six outings (three starts). The right-hander is likely due for an extended stint in Las Vegas that will allow him to build confidence and sharpen up his game before a return to the major-league club is considered.

The Dodgers selected Stone's contract from Triple-A Oklahoma City ahead of his scheduled start Wednesday against the Phillies in Los Angeles.

Los Angeles already had a spot open on the 40-man roster for Stone, but reliever Alex Vesia was optioned to Oklahoma City to clear room on the 26-man active roster for the 24-year-old righty, who is one of the organization's top pitching prospects. The addition of Stone gives the Dodgers six starters for the time being, but a strong debut outing could earn the rookie a more permanent spot in the rotation, given that Noah Syndergaard is on an expiring contract and has mostly struggled through his first six starts (6.32 ERA, 1.40 WHIP in 31.1 innings). Stone's numbers at Triple-A weren't eye-popping (4.74 ERA, 1.28 WHIP, 14.3 K-BB% in six starts), though it comes with the caveat that he was pitching in largely hitter-friendly venues in the Pacific Coast League.

The Diamondbacks selected Pfaadt's contract from Triple-A Reno ahead of his scheduled start Wednesday against the Rangers at Globe Life Field.

The 24-year-old right-hander will be making his much-anticipated big-league debut in Texas, stepping into a back-end rotation spot for Arizona after the team recently released Madison Bumgarner and optioned Drey Jameson to Triple-A. Pfaadt attracted attention in the minors through his gaudy strikeout rates, as he punched out 218 batters in 167 innings between Reno and Double-A Amarillo in 2022 and has struck out 30 in 25.1 innings thus far in 2023. The strikeout potential Pfaadt brings to the table makes him an intriguing speculative pickup in nearly any league where he might be available on the waiver wire.

Carrasco (elbow) will make a rehab start this weekend and could rejoin the Mets' rotation the following week, Tim Healey of Newsday reports.

The Mets had some hope that the veteran right-hander would skip a rehab assignment, but the team will instead proceed more cautiously with his recovery. Carrasco threw a multi-inning bullpen session April 30, so he could be able to handle a significant pitch count on his rehab outing. New York remains without an announced starting pitcher for this Sunday's home game against the Rockies.