MLB Player News

Diaz (2-1) struck out one in a perfect ninth inning Thursday to pick up the win over the Marlins.

The right-hander looked good in his first appearance since May 25, topping out at 99.6 mph with his fastball. Diaz had been on the IL with a shoulder impingement before being activated Thursday, but he hadn't been his usual dominant self even before getting shut down -- so far in 2024 he has a 16.7 percent whiff rate, one of the lowest marks of his career and a massive drop from the 25.2 percent rate he delivered in 2022. While his results were impressive Thursday, Diaz managed only two swinging strikes on 15 pitches, suggesting that he may not be fully back in form yet.

Burger went 1-for-3 with a walk and a solo home run in Thursday's loss to the Mets.

The third baseman appears to be breaking out of his early season slump. Burger has hit safely in 11 of his last 12 games, slashing .333/.373/.479 over that stretch and going yard twice in the last four contests. His 31.4 percent strikeout rate during that time is still a concern, however. On the season, the 28-year-old is batting .228 with only six homers in 47 games, a far cry from the 34 in 141 games he slugged in 2023.

Almonte (shoulder) will throw a live batting practice session Friday, Andy Martinez of Marquee Sports Network reports.

It appears to be the first time he's faced hitters since going down with a right shoulder strain in early May. Almonte should be ready for a rehab assignment before long and is tracking toward a return before the end of the month.

Faucher struck out one in 1.1 perfect innings of relief to Thursday to record his fifth hold of the season in a loss to the Mets.

The 28-year-old right-hander continues to give the Marlins solid innings while seeing occasional high-leverage work. Faucher has been scored upon only twice in his last 12 appearances, posting a 2.38 ERA, 1.32 WHIP and 10:5 K:BB through 11.1 innings over that stretch. JT Chargois' return from the IL figures to bump him down another spot in the bullpen pecking order, but if Miami cleans house at the deadline and ships out relievers like Tanner Scott, there could be an opening for Faucher in the late-inning crew.

Arenado (hand) is starting at third base and batting cleanup Friday against the Cubs, Jeff Jones of the Belleville News-Democrat reports.

The 33-year-old had X-rays come back negative on his right hand after being hit by a pitch Thursday, and he's apparently fine given he's back in the lineup a day later. Arenado is 8-for-20 with two doubles and two RBI in his past five games, and he has a .273/.340/.386 slash line through 12 contests in June.

Riley went 0-for-5 with a strikeout in Thursday's win over the Orioles.

The third baseman's been dropped down to fifth in the order, even with lefty-hander Cole Irvin on the mound for Baltimore on Thursday, but it hasn't helped wake up Riley's bat. His last homer came May 3, and in 16 games since he returned from an intercostal strain he's slashing just .161/.212/.194 with two RBI and a 4:17 BB:K. Riley's track record says he will heat up at some point this summer, and his Statcast profile suggests there's a great deal of bad luck contributing to his numbers this season -- he's in the 91st percentile in max exit velocity, 90th percentile in bat speed and 82nd percentile in hard-hit rate.

Pages went 2-for-4 with a solo homer in Thursday's loss to the Rangers.

Pages singled before taking Michael Lorenzen deep for a solo shot in the seventh inning, giving the outfielder his second multi-hit performance in his last three games. He's now batting .378 in June with two homers, three RBI and eight runs scored. Pages has also walked seven times already this month after drawing just four free passes through all of May.

Wicks is slated to start Friday's game against the Cardinals at Wrigley Field.

Wicks worked out of the bullpen in last Saturday's 4-3 loss to the Reds following his return from the 15-day injured list, but he'll slot back into the rotation for Friday's series opener after Ben Brown (neck) landed on the IL. Given that he covered 3.1 innings and 52 pitches in his relief outing last weekend, Wicks should be fairly stretched out. Over his five starts prior to landing on the IL in late April, Wicks went 1-2 with a 4.70 ERA, 1.52 WHIP and 28:9 K:BB across 23 innings.

Grove (4-3) was charged with the loss against the Rangers on Thursday, allowing two runs on three hits over one inning.

Grove was deployed as an opener but wound up having little margin for error as the Dodgers' offense managed to generate only one run on the night, leaving the right-hander with his first loss since May 10. He has allowed at least one run and multiple hits in two straight appearances. He's also failed to record a strikeout in three straight outings.

The Pirates outrighted Heller to Triple-A Indianapolis on Thursday.

Heller passed through waivers unclaimed after being designated for assignment and will remain in the organization. The reliever yielded 12 runs (11 earned) over just two innings during his brief time with the Pirates this season.