MLB Player News

Steele (elbow) will throw from flat ground and then toss 20 pitches off a mound Saturday, Tony Andracki of Marquee Sports Network reports.

Steele has been sidelined all season, first as he continued his recovery from UCL revision surgery and later after suffering a flexor strain in April. The left-hander will not have enough time to get stretched out as a starting pitcher this season, but a return late in the year as a reliever is possible.

High-A Jersey Shore activated Spikerman (ankle) from the 7-day injured list Thursday.

Spikerman missed about a month of action with an ankle injury, but he's back with Jersey Shore after making a pair of rehab appearances for Single-A Clearwater. Over 125 plate appearances for the High-A club, the switch-hitting outfielder is slashing .253/.405/.337 with four doubles, two triples, nine RBI and 18 stolen bases.

Raley (5-5) picked up the win Thursday against the Marlins, allowing one hit over 1.2 scoreless innings. He struck out one.

The southpaw won his third game in July with another sharp relief effort, as Raley fired 10 of 14 pitches for strikes while serving as the bridge between starter Nolan McLean and closer Devin Williams. Through 10 appearances and 9.1 innings this month, Raley has a 0.96 ERA, 0.64 WHIP and 6:2 K:BB while also collecting three holds. With the 38-year-old on an expiring contract, he could be the next Met out of the door ahead of the trade deadline after A.J. Minter was sent to the Twins on Thursday.

Kelly is not in the lineup for Friday's contest against the Yankees.

Kelly will get a break during Friday's matinee after he started at catcher Thursday afternoon in St. Louis. Miguel Amaya is behind the dish for the Cubs in the series opener.

Suzuki is not in the lineup for Friday's game versus the Yankees.

It's the first day off since June 25 for Suzuki, who is sporting a .978 OPS since the All-Star break. The Cubs will roll out Pedro Ramirez at third base while Alex Bregman gets a designated hitter day and Michael Conforto patrols right field.

Marsee went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in Thursday's loss to the Mets.

The center fielder provided the last bit of offense for the Marlins in a 4-2 loss by taking Nolan McLean deep in the seventh inning. It was Marsee's first long ball since July 3, snapping an 18-game drought, and over 74 plate appearances on the month he's compiled a .237/.375/.356 slash line with two homers, one steal, six RBI and 11 runs.

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

The 28-year-old took Nolan McLean deep in the fourth inning to open the scoring, Stowers' third homer in the last five games. That surge comes on the heels of a 12-game power drought, as the streaky slugger shows signs of breaking out. Seven of Stowers' 15 long balls on the season have come in July, but he's managed just a .230/.306/.506 slash line on the month in 23 contests with 10 runs and 13 RBI.

Yastrzemski went 1-for-2 with a two-run home run in Thursday's win over the Nationals.

Making the start in left field and batting eighth, Yastrzemski tied the game at 3-3 when he got hold of a hanging curveball from Jake Irvin in the fifth inning and drove it into the right-field seats. Yastrzemski hadn't gone yard since July 9, but he'd seen just 20 plate appearances in nine games between homers as he tries to hang onto a consistent spot in the lineup against right-handed pitching. Through 54 PAs in July, the 35-year-old has managed a .239/.333/.478 slash line with three of his seven home runs on the season, and 11 of his 30 RBI.

The Cubs recalled Kelly from Triple-A Iowa on Friday, Taylor McGregor of Marquee Sports Network reports.

Kelly has logged a 4.02 ERA and 44:26 K:BB over 40.1 frames at the Triple-A level this season. The left-hander was acquired via trade from the Dodgers in June and will be making his major-league debut when he gets into a game.

Mederos (1-0) was credited with the win Thursday over the Nationals, giving up one run on one hit and one walk in one inning of relief. He didn't strike out a batter.

The 25-year-old right-hander got the final out of the sixth inning, making him the pitcher of record when Atlanta broke a 3-3 tie with two runs in the bottom of the frame, but Mederos nearly handed the lead back in the top of the seventh by walking James Wood and then serving up a triple to Luis Garcia. It was his first career victory in the big leagues, and over nine appearances and 13.1 innings this season he's put together a 4.05 ERA, 1.13 WHIP and 11:4 K:BB while mainly working in a low-leverage role.