MLB Player News

Bard (personal) rejoined the Rockies in Denver on Monday and could be activated from the 15-day injured list ahead of Tuesday's game against the Pirates, Patrick Saunders of The Denver Post reports.

Bard was a surprise addition to the 15-day IL in the hours leading up to Opening Day after he had experienced anxiety and struggled with his command during the Cactus League and the World Baseball Classic, but he appears to be in a better spot both physically and mentally nearly three weeks later. At least from a performance standpoint, Bard looked to be dialed in during his rehab outing at Triple-A Albuquerque on Sunday, when he recorded three punchouts and allowed one hit and no walks over a scoreless 23-pitch, 17-strike inning. Whenever Bard is activated from the IL, he could be eased back in with a low-leverage outing or two, but he'll likely supplant Pierce Johnson as the team's preferred closer sooner rather than later.

The Dodgers recalled Bruihl from Triple-A Oklahoma City on Monday, Jack Harris of the Los Angeles Times reports.

Bruihl will take the place of Andre Jackson on the roster and operate in the middle innings. The left-hander held his own in 2022 over 24 appearances with a 3.80 ERA and 1.18 WHIP over 23.2 innings.

The Dodgers optioned Jackson to Triple-A Oklahoma City on Monday, Jack Harris of the Los Angeles Times reports.

Jackson struggled in two of his four appearances with the Dodgers and heads to Triple-A with an ERA of 8.64 over 8.1 innings with the big-league club. Justin Bruihl will take the right-hander's place in the bullpen.

Wilson worked the eighth inning during Sunday's loss to Milwaukee, tossing a scoreless frame during which he allowed one walk and no hits.

This was the second time in the past week that Wilson pitched the eighth inning of a close game -- in the other instance, he picked up a hold during a 4-2 win over the Mets. The right-hander's role isn't set in stone, as in his other two outings last week he pitched once in the seventh inning and another time in the fourth and fifth frames. It seems to be clear, however, that Wilson has earned the trust of manager Bob Melvin in tight late-game situations. That trust stems from a strong start to the campaign during which Wilson has posted a 0.84 ERA, 0.84 WHIP and 11.0 K/9 over nine appearances. He's walking a few too many batters (five through 10.2 innings), and Josh Hader isn't in any danger of losing his job as San Diego's closer, but Wilson could be a worthwhile pickup in fantasy leagues that count holds even when Robert Suarez (elbow) and Drew Pomeranz (elbow/neck) return to action.

The Marlins announced Monday that Chargois (oblique) has resumed upper-body plyometric activity, but he remains on a no-throw program, Christina De Nicola of MLB.com reports.

Chargois has been on the shelf since April 10 with a right oblique strain. Though he hasn't been shut down from activity entirely, the fact that he's not yet throwing presumably takes an April return from the 15-day injured list off the table.

Okert (groin) is scheduled to make a pair of rehab appearances at Triple-A Jacksonville on back-to-back days this week before being activated from the 15-day injured list, Jordan McPherson of the Miami Herald reports.

Okert's ability to pitch on consecutive days will be the final hurdle he needs to clear before the Marlins are comfortable adding him back to the big-league bullpen. The 31-year-old should profile as one of the Marlins' top left-handed options out of the bullpen after he logged a 2.98 ERA over 51.1 innings while gathering 19 holds in 2022.

The Reds are expected to reinstate Sims (back) from the 15-day injured list prior to Wednesday's game against the Rays, Bobby Nightengale of The Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

Sims has already rejoined the Reds in Cincinnati, but he'll get a couple more days to rest up following his recent three-appearance rehab assignment at Triple-A Louisville. He covered exactly one inning in each of those outings and gave up no runs on one hit and two walks while striking out three. Once activated, Sims will likely settle back into a setup role in front of closer Alexis Diaz.

Adams (forearm) was reinstated from Triple-A Reno's 7-day injured list April 11 and has struck out four batters while allowing three earned runs on two hits and two walks across his two appearances.

Adams opened the campaign on Reno's IL while he finished up his recovery from the surgery he underwent in August to repair his right flexor tendon. The 31-year-old righty has shown flashes out excellence at the MLB level in the past, but he'll likely need to turn in several quality appearances out of the Reno bullpen before Arizona considers promoting him.

Atlanta placed Luetge on the 15-day injured list Monday with left bicep inflammation.

So long as Luetge's injury isn't anything more than the minor inflammation and he's able to resume throwing within a few days, he should be in store for a brief stint on the shelf. He had given up at least one run in all but one of his five relief appearances on the campaign, pitching to a 8.10 ERA and 1.80 WHIP across 6.2 frames.

VerHagen (1-0) allowed an unearned run without allowing a hit or a walk in one inning Sunday versus the Pirates, earning the extra-inning win.

VerHagen gave up an RBI groundout to Canaan Smith-Njigba in the top of the 10th inning, but the Cardinals rallied for a walkoff win in the bottom of the frame. Through eight appearances, VerHagen has allowed three runs (two earned) while posting an 8:1 K:BB and three holds. With John Denton of MLB.com reporting manager Oliver Marmol said Sunday that Jordan Hicks would be shifting to a low-leverage role amid his recent struggles, VerHagen could be an option to see some late-inning work. It's unlikely his usage would lead to many saves, but he's been effective enough to snag some holds.