MLB Player News

Jimenez (ankle) could begin a minor-league rehab assignment next week, James Fegan of The Athletic reports.

Jimenez sprained his ankle last week but is already making encouraging progress in his recovery. The outfielder took batting practice with a brace on his ankle Wednesday before hitting off a tee Thursday. If he continues to progress without setbacks, Jimenez may not be forced to miss much more than the minimum amount of time.

Choi is out of the lineup for Thursday's game against the Royals, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

With southpaw Danny Duffy on the mound for Kansas City, Choi and fellow lefty-hitting regular Kevin Kiermaier will hit the bench in the series finale as the Rays stock up on extra right-handed bats. Choi started in both ends of Wednesday's doubleheader loss, going 0-for-4 in the early game and 1-for-3 with a solo home run and a walk in the nightcap.

Soler went 2-for-4 with two RBI, a run scored and a double in Game 2 of Wednesday's doubleheader against the Rays.

Soler went 0-for-3 in Game 1 but came alive early in Game 2, as he did all his damage through the first three innings. The 27-year-old has endured a slow start to the season and is slashing .231/.283/.479 with seven home runs and 19 RBI in 31 games.

Ohtani (elbow) told reporters Wednesday that he feels ready to return, Maria Torres of the Los Angeles Times reports.

Despite Ohtani feeling ready to rejoin the lineup, the Angels are understandably taking a cautious approach with the two-way star; they've already stated that he won't travel to Mexico this weekend for the team's two-game series against the Astros, as they want him to get more plate appearances in a controlled setting before bringing him back. The original plan was for Ohtani to get around 40 plate appearances in before returning, and he's sitting at 32 after taking seven at-bats Wednesday.

Brantley is not in the lineup Wednesday against the Twins, Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle reports.

Brantley will give way to Aledmys Diaz in left field Wednesday as the Astros go with an all right-handed-hitting lineup against southpaw Martin Perez. Through 30 games this season, Brantley is slashing .331/.380/.517 with five homers and three stolen bases.

Brantley went 3-for-5 with a double, a walk and two runs Tuesday in the Astros' 11-0 win over the Twins.

Brantley was one of four Astros to turn in a multi-hit performance in the team's top scoring performance of the season. The 31-year-old has thus far avoided the health issues that often plagued him in Cleveland and has fit in seamlessly as Houston's cleanup hitter with a career-high .897 OPS through 30 games.

Jimenez took batting practice with a brace on his sprained right ankle Wednesday, Bruce Levine of 670TheScore.com reports.

Jimenez sprained his ankle Friday and is set to be re-evaluated in mid-May, but he won't be completely shut down until then. That would seem to increase his chances of returning soon after his re-evaluation, as he won't have to wait until then to get back in hitting shape.

Canha was diagnosed with a mild sprain in his right wrist and received a cortisone injection Tuesday, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

Canha suffered the wrist sprain Sunday against the Blue Jays, and underwent an MRI on Tuesday which revealed he avoided a serious injury. The 30-year-old isn't expected to face a significant absence but doesn't have an official timeline for his return.

Manager Brad Ausmus said Ohtani (elbow) won't travel to Mexico for this weekend's two-game series versus the Astros, Jeff Fletcher of The Orange County Register reports.

Ausmus announced earlier Tuesday that Ohtani would not return during the current series against the Blue Jays, and now his absence will extend for at least two more games. According to Maria Torres of the Los Angeles Times, the 24-year-old has made 30 of his 40 originally scheduled simulated plate appearances, but may need a bit more before making his return.

Choi went 2-for-4 with a two-run double and a run in a win over the Royals on Monday.

Choi gave the Rays some breathing room with his eighth-inning two-bagger, which brought home Tommy Pham and Brandon Lowe. The 27-year-old recently dealt with a calf issue, which played a part in his five-game absence heading into Monday. His fifth multi-hit game of April boosted his season line to an impressive .299/.400/.463 across 80 plate appearances.