MLB Player News

Wood (oblique) is expected to be activated from the injured list Wednesday, Mark Zuckerman of NatsJournal.com reports.

Manager Blake Butera said that Wood's return is contingent on him feeling good when he wakes up Wednesday morning, but chances are that he returns to the Nationals' lineup for their series finale against Atlanta. The 23-year-old has slashed .265/.393/.535 across 535 plate appearances when healthy this season, though he owns just a .620 OPS in the 17 games he's played since the All-Star break.

The Nationals optioned Pinckney to Triple-A Rochester on Tuesday.

With James Wood (oblique) expected to return from the injured list Wednesday, the Nationals will send Pinckney down to Triple-A to free up a roster spot. The 25-year-old performed well during his first stint with the big club, going 6-for-22 with a homer, two RBI, six runs and a steal while appearing in 13 games.

Pauley went 2-for-4 with a home run, a triple, four RBI and two runs scored in Tuesday's 6-3 win over the Royals.

Recalled from Triple-A Jacksonville on Tuesday morning, Pauley drew the start at third base and made an immediate impact, launching a two-run homer off Randy Dobnak in his first plate appearance. He added a two-run triple in the seventh to establish a career high with four RBI. Pauley has struggled to find much consistency at the major-league level this season, as he is now slashing .205/.237/.357 with two homers across 47 games.

Lord will start Wednesday's game against Atlanta, Kyle Williams of TheBanner.com reports.

Jackson Kent threw 106 pitches during his last appearance, so the Nationals will buy him and the team's other starters some extra rest by starting Lord in Wednesday's series finale. The 26-year-old righty will likely remain in the game for just a couple of innings after working less than three frames during each of the three starts he made in August.

Irvin allowed two runs on five hits and one walk while striking out five across four innings in a no-decision against Atlanta on Tuesday.

Irvin gave up a solo homer to Ozzie Albies in the second inning before yielding another run in the third. Irvin was pulled in the fifth inning after giving up back-to-back singles without recording an out, and it was a second consecutive outing in which he failed to complete five innings, finishing Tuesday's outing with 86 pitches (57 strikes) and nine whiffs. Irvin is 0-4 over his last seven starts with a 6.09 ERA, 1.47 WHIP and 29:18 K:BB over 34 innings. He's lined up to face the Padres next week in what projects to be a two-start week for Irvin.

Morales went 3-for-5 with a double, a solo home run and an additional run scored during Washington's 9-5 win over Atlanta on Tuesday.

Morales was promoted from Triple-A Rochester ahead of Tuesday's game, when he served as the designated hitter. He struck out swinging in his first plate appearance in the opening frame, but he bounced back in the third, smacking the second pitch he saw from AJ Smith-Shawver deep to left-center field for a solo home run. It was an impressive big-league debut for Morales, who figures to see a fair amount of playing time the rest of this season at DH and at first and third base.

Phillips (4-6) earned the win Tuesday against the Royals, allowing one hit and two walks while striking out four over five scoreless innings.

Phillips surrendered a leadoff single to Carter Jensen in the first inning but held Kansas City without another knock the rest of the way. The one hit marked his fewest in any outing of at least five innings this season. The right-hander has now allowed two earned runs or fewer in nine of his last 10 appearances and will carry a 3.43 ERA, 1.33 WHIP and 90:47 K:BB across 110.1 innings into his next scheduled start Sunday against the Cubs.

Diaz (neck) will embark on a rehab assignment before returning from the injured list, Jack Harris of the California Post reports.

Diaz threw a simulated inning Tuesday and will do so again later this week before joining one of the Dodgers' minor-league affiliates. It's unknown how many rehab innings the 32-year-old will pitch before rejoining Los Angeles' bullpen, but once he's healthy, he is expected to pitch in lower-leverage situations until the Dodgers are comfortable moving him back into a closing role.

Manager Dave Roberts said Tuesday that Treinen (elbow) will be activated from the injured list "very soon," Jack Harris of the California Post reports.

Treinen was cleared to begin a rehab assignment Aug. 15 and has since fired 6.1 shutout innings while striking out eight batters and walking two between Single-A and Triple-A. The 38-year-old reliever has posted a 3.52 ERA and 1.35 WHIP across 23 innings in the majors this season and will likely work in middle relief once activated.

Burnes (elbow) will not return during the weekend, but he will throw in a bridge game Thursday, Jody Jackson of DBacks.tv reports.

Burnes got off to a great start to his rehab assignment with two perfect innings for Triple-A Reno. However, the Diamondbacks want him to increase his pitch count. The right-hander is throwing a bullpen Tuesday and then will throw in the bridge game Thursday.