MLB Player News

Graveman, who fired a scoreless inning during which he allowed one hit and no walks in an extra-innings loss to the Padres on Sunday, has logged appearances in three of the past four days and on seven occasions overall since returning from a neck injury Sept. 4.

Graveman's arm was built up for a fairly heavy workload from his brief time as a starter earlier in the season, so it's not entirely surprising manager Scott Servais is utilizing him frequently down the stretch. The veteran stumbled against the Giants two outings ago by allowing three earned runs over two-thirds of an inning; however, he's otherwise been scored upon just once in six other appearances since returning to the active roster after dealing with a benign tumor in his neck.

Alvarado (shoulder) threw a 26-pitch bullpen session Monday and will throw a simulated game Thursday, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

Alvarado remains on the 45-day injured list with left shoulder inflammation and won't be eligible to return before the start of the playoffs. It appears that he has a chance to do that, though the Rays won't be sure until they see how his shoulder holds up this week.

Merryweather landed on the 10-day injured list with right elbow tendinitis Monday.

The move rules the rookie out for the year, though it was backdated to Friday, so he can still return for the start of the postseason if he's healthy that soon. He'll finish his first MLB campaign with a 4.15 ERA and a 1.31 WHIP in 13 innings of work, striking out 15 while walking six.

Romano (finger) will throw a bullpen session Tuesday, Arden Zwelling of Sportsnet.ca reports.

Romano was expected to miss between two and four weeks when he hit the injured list with a finger injury in late August. He's already nearing the back end of that timeline, though it appears that he still has a chance to return before the end of the regular season for an appearance or two.

Pearson (elbow) threw 25 pitches in a live batting practice session Monday, Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet.ca reports.

Pearson made just four starts, posting an unimpressive 6.61 ERA,1.53 WHIP and 14:12 K:BB, before being sidelined with a flexor strain in mid-August. He won't have time to build back up to a starter's workload this season, but there's a chance he returns as a reliever for the final few days of the regular season and playoffs. The Blue Jays should have a clearer picture of when he'll return once they know how his arm responded to Monday's session.

Chapman's hearing regarding his appeal of a three-game suspension will not take place until next season, Jon Heyman of MLB Network reports.

The decision may be pandemic-related, as the league is unable to gather together all the witnesses. Chapman was initially hit with a three-game ban for throwing near Mike Brosseau's head back on Sept. 1, but if he does end up missing any time, it will be at the start of next season rather than during the final week of a playoff race. That's a big boost for both the Yankees and for those who have Chapman on their fantasy teams this season.

Giles (forearm) announced Monday in a post on his personal Instagram account that he will undergo Tommy John surgery, Kaitlyn McGrath of The Athletic reports.

Giles was already believed to be done for the season after being diagnosed with a right flexor strain following his Sept. 15 relief appearance. The outing was Giles' second since being reinstated from the 45-day injured list, as he had previously been shut down for most of the season with the same injury. After receiving feedback from doctors, Giles determined that surgery was his best option to address the nagging arm injury. He'll likely be sidelined for the entire 2021 season while recovering from surgery, though he should be fully cleared for the start of spring training in 2022. With Giles set to become an unrestricted free agent this winter, a team could look to bring the right-handed reliever aboard on a low-cost, two-year deal that would allow his rehab program to be monitored more closely.

King will start Monday's game against the Blue Jays, Bryan Hoch of MLB.com reports.

King will make his fourth start of the season Monday on the road against the Blue Jays. The right-hander hasn't lasted longer than four innings in any of his eight appearances (three starts) in 2020, and he carries a 6.75 ERA and 1.46 WHIP over 24 innings.

Hernandez is slated to start Monday's game against the Cardinals.

Hernandez will be back on the mound for the first time since Sept. 12, when he gave up three runs -- all on solo home runs -- over three innings in his first MLB start. With Kansas City recently demoting Jakob Junis to the alternate site, Hernandez looks poised to remain in the rotation for the final week of the season. After Monday's outing, Hernandez will line up for another start Saturday versus Detroit.

Fleming is slated to serve as the Rays' bulk reliever behind opener Pete Fairbanks in Monday's game against the Mets.

After Fleming gave up four home runs between his previous two starts earlier this month, the Rays opted to have him work behind an opener in his most recent outing Sept. 16 against the Nationals. The experiment paid off, as Fleming tossed 3.2 scoreless frames while allowing only two hitters to reach base. Rays manager Kevin Cash will unsurprisingly choose to deploy Fleming as a primary pitcher once again, an arrangement that will likely lower the lefty's innings count but perhaps increase his chances of factoring into any decision.