MLB Player News

Blackburn (knee) is expected to return from the 15-day injured list to start Monday against the Dodgers in Los Angeles, Andrew Tredinnick of The Bergen Record reports.

Blackburn has been on the shelf all season while recovering from right knee inflammation, but he appears to be healthy again after completing a lengthy rehab assignment. He was especially effective over his most recent two outings at Triple-A Syracuse, covering 13.1 innings between those starts while striking out 10 and allowing two earned runs on five hits and four walks. The Mets will expand their rotation to six men to make room for Blackburn, but neither manager Carlos Mendoza nor president of baseball operations Davi Stearns were willing to say whether the six-man setup would continue beyond this week, per Garrett Stepien of SNY.tv. With that in mind, how Blackburn performs in a tough road matchup with the Dodgers could go a long way in determining whether he'll be in store for additional starts.

Allen (hand) is not in Atlanta's starting lineup against Boston on Saturday.

Allen will be out of the lineup for a second straight game after he was struck in the hand by a pitch in Game 2 of Thursday's doubleheader against the Phillies. Luke Williams will start at shortstop and bat ninth.

Pages went 2-for-4 with three RBI in Friday's 8-5 win against the Yankees.

Pages twice came through in late-game clutch situations. In the sixth inning, the outfielder knocked an RBI single to tie the game 5-5, and in the following frame he drove in two more runs with another single. Pages is finishing May on a strong note, having collected multiple hits in three of his past six games. He's in the midst of a breakout campaign with a .275/.321/.450 slash line, nine home runs, 35 RBI, 26 runs and six stolen bases over 215 plate appearances while ranking in the 95th percentile leaguewide in fielding run value.

Patrick is expected to serve as a bulk reliever behind opening pitcher Rob Zastryzny in Saturday's game against the Phillies in Philadelphia, Curt Hogg of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports.

Patrick has started in 11 of his 12 appearances on the season and owns an excellent 2.97 ERA, but he has a 2-4 record to show for it. The Brewers have typically been reluctant to let Patrick work deep into games -- he's covered five-plus innings just five times -- but working as a bulk reliever should boost his chances of coming away with a win if he ends up exiting Saturday's contest with a lead. With the Phillies typically deploying two left-handed bats (Kyle Schwarber, Bryce Harper or Bryson Stott) in the top three spots in the lineup, the Brewers will likely have the lefty Zastryzny pitch just one inning before he turns the game over to Patrick.

Brown is slated to pitch in bulk relief behind opening pitcher Drew Pomeranz in Saturday's game against the Reds in Chicago, Jared Wyllys of AllCHGO.com reports.

The left-handed-hitting TJ Friedl typically leads off for the Reds, so Cubs manager Craig Counsell will have the left-handed Pomeranz begin the game on the mound with the hope that he can keep Cincinnati off the board early. Based on comments from manager Craig Counsell, Pomeranz is likely to work just one inning before turning the ball over to Brown, who had started in each of his last 10 appearances while posting a 6.38 ERA and 1.54 WHIP in 48 innings. Another rough showing as a bulk reliever could loosen Brown's grip on a rotation spot a bit more, though the Cubs don't appear to have an obvious candidate to replace him.

The Cardinals selected Vilade's contract from Triple-A Memphis on Saturday.

Vilade has spent the entire season at Triple-A, where he owns a .280/.375/.476 slash line with five homers, 31 RBI, 33 runs scored and five stolen bases through 48 games. He'll now join the big club to help make up for the loss of Jordan Walker (wrist), though he isn't likely to crack the starting lineup often.

The Cardinals placed Walker on the 10-day injured list Saturday with left wrist inflammation, retroactive to Thursday.

Walker's wrist injury helps to explain why he was left out of the lineup Friday against Arizona. The severity of his injury is still unclear, so there's no telling if he might be able to return when eligible June 8. In the meantime, Ryan Vilade will come up from Triple-A Memphis to replenish St. Louis' outfield depth.

The Cardinals optioned Graceffo to Triple-A Memphis on Saturday.

Graceffo has struggled mightily in the big leagues this season, accumulating a 7.47 ERA and 1.40 WHIP through 15.2 innings with St. Louis. He'll now attempt to get back on track in Triple-A, and Roddery Munoz will come up to fill the vacancy in the Cardinals' bullpen.

The Cardinals recalled Munoz from Triple-A Memphis on Saturday.

Munoz has given up four earned runs in 4.2 innings with the Cardinals this season, and he also owns a 5.06 ERA through 21.1 frames in the minors. Despite his performance, he'll rejoin the big club to give St. Louis' bullpen another fresh arm, replacing Gordon Graceffo.

Zastryzny will serve as the Brewers' opening pitcher for Saturday's game against the Phillies, Curt Hogg of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports.

Zastryzny struck out two batters in a scoreless inning when the Brewers used him as an opener May 19 against Baltimore, and he'll now aim for similar success while facing off against the top of Philadelphia's order. Chad Patrick is expected to follow Zastryzny as a bulk reliever.