MLB Player News

Diaz (elbow) is throwing in the bullpen Friday at Dodger Stadium, reports Jack Harris of the California Post.

Diaz has been out of commission since April 20 after undergoing surgery for loose bodies in his right elbow. Manager Dave Roberts says his closer has been progressing well since the procedure was completed. The 32-year-old Diaz was recently cleared to ramp up his throwing progression.

Troy isn't in the lineup for Friday's game against the Twins, Jack Sommers of SI.com reports.

Troy will get a breather during Friday's series opener after going 2-for-4 with two RBI and a run scored during Thursday's contest. His absence will put Lourdes Gurriel in left field, giving LuJames Groover a start as Arizona's DH.

Hernandez (oblique) has started some baseball activities but remains in the early stages of his rehab, per MLB.com.

Hernandez suffered a "significant tear" of his left oblique May 26 in just his second game back after returning from a lengthy season-opening IL stint due to offseason elbow surgery. The super-utility man has been able to participate in some activities since landing on the IL for the second time, but he likely remains at least four weeks away from being able to return to big-league action.

Javier (shoulder) will make another appearance Sunday for Triple-A Sugar Land in what should be his final rehab start, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.

Javier only made three appearances for Houston before being placed on the injured list April 10. Houston believes this upcoming rehab start should be the 29-year-old's final one, so it seems the right-hander is close to being back with the big-league club after missing over two months of action.

Fried (elbow) will throw a bullpen session this weekend, Gary Phillips of the New York Daily News reports.

Fried has been out of action since mid-May due to a left elbow bone bruise. The southpaw was cleared to throw off a mound about a month later, and he tossed his first bullpen June 16. MLB.com reports that Fried's next bullpen will take place Sunday and that the veteran pitcher is currently asymptomatic. If he continues to progress without any setbacks, Fried could rejoin New York's rotation at some point in July.

Schmidt (elbow) tossed a side session Wednesday and is "a couple of weeks" away from facing live hitters, per MLB.com.

Schmidt is now almost a year out from the internal brace procedure he underwent last July. The veteran hurler began throwing from a mound in early April but has been limited to side sessions so far. If he continues his throwing program and is able to face hitters in late June or early July, Schmidt could be ready for game action at some point in August.

Giants manager Tony Vitello said Friday that Mahle (hamstring) will rejoin the rotation Wednesday against the Athletics, Shayna Rubin of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

Mahle was wild in his first and only rehab start with Triple-A Sacramento on Tuesday in issuing five walks over three innings, but he managed to escape with only one run allowed. The right-hander threw 63 pitches in the outing, so he will not be available for a full workload versus the A's. Vitello declined to reveal whose rotation spot Mahle will be taking, but it will likely be either Trevor McDonald or Adrian Houser getting the boot.

The Brewers announced that Woodruff (shoulder) will return to the pitching rotation during next week's series against Cincinnati, Adam McCalvy of MLB.com reports.

Woodruff will finally make his return to the big-league mound for the first time since the end of April. The 33-year-old most recently completed a rehab start Tuesday, allowing three runs over 5.1 innings while striking out six batters. Before going on the injured list, the right-hander posted a 3.60 ERA, 1.03 WHIP and 25:7 K:BB in 30 innings.

McCullers (shoulder) threw a 25-pitch live batting practice session Friday at Daikin Park, Chandler Rome of The Athletic reports.

It was the hurler's first time facing hitters since he was diagnosed with right shoulder inflammation in mid-May. The next step for McCullers will either be throwing another live batting practice session or going out on a rehab assignment. It seems McCullers could be back before the All-Star break if all goes well, but he still has several boxes to check.

Marlins manager Clayton McCullough said Friday that Perez's (thigh) next start could be with the Marlins, Christina De Nicola of MLB.com reports.

Perez made his first and perhaps only rehab start Thursday at Triple-A Jacksonville, striking out five over 3.2 innings of one-run ball. He sat in the 96-to-98 mph range with his fastballs and got his pitch count up to 51. Though Perez is not fully stretched back out yet, he could nonetheless rejoin the big-league rotation as soon as next week's series against the Rangers at home. That would mean a return in about four weeks, which is half the time of his initially projected eight-week timeline.