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Khal Stephen SP | CLE
Guardians' Khal Stephen: Undergoes UCL surgery
Stephen (elbow) underwent surgery to repair his UCL on Monday and will be sidelined 10-to-12 months, Tim Stebbins of MLB.com reports.
As opposed to a UCL reconstruction, the repair comes with a slightly shorter recovery timeline. Stephen is obviously done for the 2026 season and likely won't see any game action until some point in the first half of the 2027 campaign. The 23-year-old was a second-round pick by the Blue Jays in 2024 and was acquired in the Shane Bieber deal last summer. Across 12 starts with Double-A Akron this season, Stephen pitched to a 3.27 ERA, 1.36 WHIP and 49:23 K:BB across 55 innings.
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Owen Caissie RF | MIA
Marlins' Owen Caissie: Likely headed to injured list
The Marlins are likely to place Caissie (calf) on the 10-day injured list prior to Thursday's game against the Mariners, Christina De Nicola of MLB.com reports.
Caissie had to be lifted from Wednesday's contest with right calf tightness. He could be dealing with a strain, but the Marlins will have more specifics on Caissie's status later Thursday. Heriberto Hernandez and Esteury Ruiz will likely see an uptick in playing time while Caissie is shelved, and Rece Hinds is expected to take Caissie's spot on the active roster.
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Carlos Rodon SP | NYY
Yankees' Carlos Rodon: Playing catch Thursday
Rodon (elbow) will play catch Thursday, Meredith Marakovits of YES Network reports.
It will be the first time Rodon has done any throwing since he landed on the 15-day injured list Friday with left elbow inflammation. The Yankees will ease Rodon back into a throwing progression and do not expect the southpaw back until at least early-to mid-August.
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Keaton Winn RP | SF
Giants' Keaton Winn: Moves rehab to Triple-A
Winn (elbow) allowed a walk while striking out one over a scoreless inning during Triple-A Sacramento's 6-1 win over Salt Lake on Wednesday.
After making rehab appearances in the rookie-level Arizona Complex League and Single-A, Winn continued his rehab assignment in Sacramento, throwing seven of his 14 pitches for strikes Wednesday. According to Evan Webeck of the California Post, Giants manager Tony Vitello said he expects the right-hander to return either just before the All-Star break or immediately afterward.
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Troy Melton SP | DET
Tigers' Troy Melton: Career-high nine Ks in win
Melton (5-1) picked up the win in Wednesday's 6-1 victory over the A's, allowing one unearned run on four hits and a walk over 5.1 innings. He struck out nine.
The nine Ks were a career high for Melton, who fired 62 of 91 pitches for strikes and racked up 15 swinging strikes while topping out at 98.7 mph with his fastball. The 25-year-old right-hander has given up one run or fewer in four straight starts since dealing with some back tightness in June, producing a 0.76 ERA, 0.59 WHIP and 27:5 K:BB through 23.2 innings during that impressive stretch. Justin Verlander (hamstring) and Jackson Jobe (elbow) could both return from the IL in early August, but it's hard to imagine Melton losing his spot in the rotation if he continues dealing.
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Paul Blackburn RP | NYY
Yankees' Paul Blackburn: Drawing start in bullpen game
Blackburn will be the Yankees' starting pitcher in Thursday's bullpen game versus the Rays.
Blackburn went 1.1 scoreless innings in Tuesday's game, so he'll be pitching on just one day of rest. The righty hasn't thrown more than 23 pitches in an outing in three weeks, so he will likely not cover more than a couple frames Thursday.
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Joshua Kuroda-Grauer 3B | ATH
Athletics' Joshua Kuroda-Grauer: Three hits in Wednesday's loss
Kuroda-Grauer went 3-for-4 in Wednesday's 6-1 loss to the Tigers.
All three knocks were singles, but the rookie infielder was still the only Athletic to collect multiple hits on the night as the team managed just seven hits in total against Detroit pitching. Kuroda-Grauer has started eight straight contests since his promotion while bouncing between second base, third base and shortstop, batting a blistering .500 (15-for-30) to begin his big-league career with three doubles, an RBI, four runs and just two strikeouts.