MLB Player News

The Cubs placed Palencia on the 15-day injured list Friday with a left oblique strain.

It's unclear when Palencia -- who hasn't pitched since Sunday -- was hurt, but the injury will knock him out at least for the next couple weeks and likely longer. The Cubs are also currently without Hunter Harvey (triceps) and Phil Maton (knee), so their late-inning bullpen depth is thin. Caleb Thielbar could be the next man up for saves, with Ben Brown also an option.

Wells struck out the only batter he faced Thursday in a 4-2 loss to the Guardians.

Wells missed the majority of 2024 and 2025 due to an elbow injury, starting seven big-league games over those two years. The 31-year-old righty excelled in four September starts to end last season, posting a 2.91 ERA, 0.88 WHIP and 18:2 K:BB across 21.2 innings, and the expectation was that Wells would be a part of the Orioles' rotation to kick off 2026. Instead, he's exclusively been used as a relief option, working 11 innings in nine appearances with a 4.91 ERA, 1.45 WHIP and 11:4 K:BB while picking up four holds.

Soto (calf) continues to progress with his baseball activities and remains on track to return from the 10-day injured list next week, Laura Albanese of Newsday reports.

Soto will undergo another MRI just to make sure his right calf strain has sufficiently healed, and as long as that comes back clean he could be activated Tuesday at the beginning of the Mets' next homestand. The 27-year-old outfielder has been sidelined for the past two weeks.

Vientos is absent from the lineup for Friday's contest versus the Cubs.

For the second straight game, the Mets will utilize Brett Baty at first base and MJ Melendez at designated hitter. Vientos is hitless over his last seven games and has seen his season OPS drop from 1.236 all the way down to .596 over that span.

Holton gave up his first earned run of the season Thursday in a 10-9 win over the Royals, allowing a solo home run in a third of an inning.

The southpaw has been a stalwart member of the Detroit bullpen the past three seasons, collecting 48 holds since 2023 with a 2.61 ERA and 0.89 WHIP while averaging 65 appearances a year. The seventh-inning shot by Salvador Perez was the first home run that Holton has given up in 7.1 innings this season after he served up 15 homers over 78.2 frames in 2025.

Manager Carlos Mendoza said Friday that the Mets are awaiting the results of an MRI on Polanco's right wrist as the veteran infielder remains sidelined due to a sore Achilles, Max Goodman of NJ.com reports.

Mendoza said that Polanco is in a "better place" with the left Achilles issue he's been battling, but now he has a new injury to deal with. There's a good chance Polanco will be placed on the 10-day injured list, but the club will make that decision after the imaging results come in. If Polanco does have to miss additional time, MJ Melendez could get regular starts at designated hitter against righties, while Ronny Mauricio would be a candidate to return to the big-league roster.

Newcomb threw 1.2 shutout innings Thursday, allowing just one hit while striking out three batters in a 5-3 loss to Tampa Bay.

The 32-year-old southpaw entered in the seventh inning, keeping the game knotted at 2-2 before Seranthony Dominguez fell apart in the ninth. Newcomb got off to a rocky start to 2026, allowing six earned runs over his first 10 innings prior to this appearance. Thursday's performance lowered his ERA to 4.38 through 12.1 innings and nine games with a 13:5 K:BB, and he has just one hold with zero wins or saves.

Lynch picked up a hold Thursday, striking out one batter in a perfect eighth inning during a 10-9 loss to Detroit.

The 29-year-old left-hander maintained a one-run lead on an efficient seven pitches (six strikes), only for Lucas Erceg to blow the save in the ninth inning. Lynch has now appeared in seven games, allowing only one earned run in 7.2 innings and recording at least one strikeout in each appearance.

Horton (elbow) underwent Tommy John surgery Thursday and is expected to be sidelined up to 16 months, Taylor McGregor of Marquee Sports Network reports.

Horton required a full Tommy John repair on his right UCL, which means he's unlikely to be ready to pitch again for the Cubs until the second half of 2027. The 24-year-old has authored a 2.66 ERA in his first 25 appearances (24 starts) at the major-league level.

Morejon secured a hold Thursday, working 1.2 perfect innings with two strikeouts in a 5-2 win over the Mariners.

Morejon has had a bumpy start to the season after his All-Star campaign in 2025, when he pitched in 75 games and had career-best marks in ERA (2.08) and WHIP (0.90). The southpaw came into the season as the set-up guy for dominant closer Mason Miller and has three holds in eight appearances so far, but Morejon allowed at least one run in four of his first six outings. San Diego seems to still have faith in him, however, given he's been used in high-leverage situations each of his past two games.