MLB Player News

Smith (shoulder) threw a bullpen session Tuesday, MLB.com reports.

Smith is working his way through a throwing progression after being placed on the 15-day injured list May 22 due to right shoulder inflammation. He'll likely need to complete another side session or two before advancing to facing live hitters and then heading out on a rehab assignment. Smith is without a definitive timeline for a return, but if he steers clear of any setbacks, he'll have a shot at rejoining the Detroit bullpen before the end of June.

Perez is absent from the lineup for Thursday's game against the Rangers.

Perez was in the lineup the last two days after missing the previous two contests with a thumb injury. He will take a seat for Thursday's afternoon tilt in what looks to be a routine day off. Carter Jensen is catching and Jac Caglianone is getting a day at designated hitter for the Royals.

Verlander (hip) struck out three and allowed four earned runs on five hits and two walks across 5.2 innings in a rehab start Wednesday with Triple-A Toledo.

After tossing five shutout innings and 64 pitches in his first rehab outing with Toledo on June 2, Verlander wasn't quite as sharp in the second start of his rehab assignment. Though he was able to stretch out to 86 pitches and averaged 92.9 mph with his four-seamer during the outing, Verlander struggled to execute, particularly with his slider. He allowed four home runs in the start, three which came off sliders and traveled at least 400 feet. Despite the shaky performance, Verlander could still be cleared to return from the 60-day injured list during next week's series in Houston to make his first start with the Tigers since March 30. He's expected to throw a bullpen session in front of the Tigers' brass over the weekend before a decision is made on his next step.

Garcia is not in the lineup for Thursday's game versus the Rangers.

Garcia returned from a hamstring injury to start each of the previous four contests, but he'll grab a seat during Thursday's matinee. Nick Loftin will cover third base for the Royals.

Keaschall is absent from the lineup for Thursday's contest in Detroit.

Keaschall will receive some routine rest during Thursday's matinee. The Twins will roll out Royce Lewis at second base in the series finale.

Tigers manager A.J. Hinch said Thursday that Mize (adductor) will likely be activated from the 15-day injured list to start Sunday in Cleveland, Evan Woodbery of MLive.com reports.

Mize will need to complete a bullpen session Thursday with no issues and bounce back well Friday before officially being cleared to take the ball Sunday. The right-hander looked good during what's likely to be his lone rehab start, tossing five frames of one-run ball with five strikeouts with Single-A Lakeland on Tuesday. Mize has been out since late May with right adductor inflammation.

Tigers manager A.J. Hinch confirmed Thursday that Skubal (elbow) will rejoin the rotation Saturday in Cleveland, Jason Beck of MLB.com reports.

All told, Skubal will have been sidelined only 38 days after having surgery in early May to remove a loose body from his left elbow. The left-hander was excellent in his lone rehab start, striking out six over five scoreless frames for High-A West Michigan on Sunday. Skubal threw only 54 pitches in that outing, so he will be relatively limited from a workload perspective against the Guardians.

Vierling is absent from the lineup for Thursday's game against the Twins.

Vierling was essentially the Tigers' everyday center fielder in May, but he's started just four of nine games since the calendar flipped to June. The Tigers are going with Zach McKinstry in center field for Thursday's series finale.

Slaten allowed two runs on three hits over two-thirds of an inning in Wednesday's 7-5 loss to Tampa Bay.

Slaten's performance didn't result in him taking the loss, but it did take the starch out of a comeback bid. Boston had just closed the gap to 5-4 with four runs in the top of eighth inning before Slaten gave two of those runs back in the bottom of the frame. This was the right-hander's third harsh outing in the last five, during which he's allowed 10 runs on 11 hits and three walks over 4.1 innings (20.77 ERA). Until this stretch, Slaten could have been viewed as a closer candidate if the 27-39 Red Sox eventually trade Aroldis Chapman.

Straw went 3-for-4 with a run scored in Wednesday's loss to the Phillies.

Making his fourth start in the last five games while Daulton Varsho tends to a wrist issue, Straw set a new season high in hits while extending his run-scoring streak to a modest three contests. Since Varsho was injured June 4, Straw has gone 6-for-16 (.375) with a double, three RBI and four runs, and he should continue to see consistent playing time in the short term.