MLB Player News

Montgomery (knee) is on track to rejoin the Diamondbacks' rotation early next week in Kansas City after completing a three-inning, 56-pitch simulated game Thursday, Nick Piecoro of The Arizona Republic reports.

Montgomery has been shelved since late June with right knee inflammation, but a return is right around the corner. He will skip a rehab assignment, with the Diamondbacks deeming a trio of simulated games enough to get the veteran left-hander ramped back up. Montgomery holds a disappointing 6.44 ERA in 13 starts for Arizona this season.

Ritchie (elbow) was activated from the 60-day injured list July 12 and tossed five no-hit frames with one walk and seven strikeouts that night for Single-A Augusta.

Ritchie successfully made it all the way back from May 2023 Tommy John surgery. He just turned 21 in June and now has a 3.49 ERA, 0.92 WHIP and a 42:8 K:BB in 28.1 career innings at the Single-A level, so a promotion to High-A could be coming in short order.

Wicks (oblique) was transferred to the 60-day injured list Friday, Andy Martinez of Marquee Sports Network reports.

The left-hander landed on the shelf in mid-June with a Grade 2 right oblique strain, and he hasn't recovered as quickly as the Cubs had hoped. Wicks will be eligible to return in mid-August, but he may need to ramp up his throwing soon in order to have a chance of avoiding a longer absence.

The Cubs selected Tinoco's contract from Triple-A Iowa on Friday, Patrick Mooney of The Athletic reports.

Tinoco was acquired from the Royals in a trade Tuesday and will go straight onto the major-league roster rather than report to Iowa. The 29-year-old reliever holds a career 4.58 ERA and 61:47 K:BB over 57 appearances at the major-league level. He allowed nine runs over 10 innings in a stint with the Rangers earlier this season.

Williams (elbow) resumed playing catch from 60 feet earlier this month but remains without a clear timeline for a return from the 15-day injured list, MLB.com reports.

Before landing on the IL on June 4 with a right flexor muscle strain, Williams had been a pleasant surprise for the Nationals this season with a 5-0 record, 2.22 ERA, 1.08 WHIP and 47:16 K:BB in 56.2 innings. While the strong form he displayed prior to getting hurt should be enough for him to reclaim a rotation spot once he's activated from the IL, Williams' return still looks to be multiple weeks down the road. He'll eventually need to resume throwing off a mound and facing hitters in live batting practice before embarking on a minor-league rehab assignment prior to being reinstated from the IL.

The Cubs optioned Canario to Triple-A Iowa on Friday, Patrick Mooney of The Athletic reports.

The 24-year-old was called up by the Cubs just ahead of the All-Star break and will now return to Triple-A with Mike Tauchman (groin) being activated from the injured list. Canario has appeared in 15 big-league games this season and has a .280/.357/.440 slash line, but with a 39.3 percent strikeout rate.

The Cubs activated Tauchman (groin) from the 10-day injured list Friday, Patrick Mooney of The Athletic reports.

Tauchman missed a month of action with a strained left groin but has been cleared to return to action after playing in a couple rehab games. His playing-time outlook is a bit cloudy with the Cubs electing to deploy Christopher Morel at designated hitter lately, but in the short term with Cody Bellinger (finger) on the shelf, Tauchman should see at least semi-regular starts versus righties. He won't be in the lineup Friday versus right-hander Ryne Nelson and the Diamondbacks, however.

Pederson is not in the lineup for Friday's game against the Cubs.

The Cubs are sending southpaw Justin Steele to the hill, so the left-handed hitting Pederson will begin the first game of the second half on the bench. Randal Grichuk will handle designated hitter duties.

Atlanta activated Laureano (oblique) from the 10-day injured list Friday.

Laureano wound up missing more than three weeks of action with a left oblique strain. He will skip a rehab assignment and go right back onto Atlanta's active roster. Adam Duvall and Laureano could split starts in right field against righties, with both Duvall and Laureano likely to be in the lineup most days versus lefties.

Nelson will start Arizona's series opener on the road against the Cubs on Friday, Jesse Friedman of GoPHNX.com reports.

Nelson will get the ball first as the Diamondbacks come out of the All-Star break, carrying a 4.98 ERA and 6.1 K/9 over 86.2 innings in 17 appearances, including 15 starts, this season. With Jordan Montgomery (knee) returning to the rotation this week and Eduardo Rodriguez (shoulder) and Merrill Kelly (shoulder) on the horizon, Nelson may need to impress in his next few starts to solidify his spot in the team's starting rotation.