MLB Player News

Cardinals general manager John Mozeliak said pitcher Joe Kelly should return by July at the latest, MLB.com reports.

"I don't know how close I am, I've only thrown twice and jogged a few times," Kelly said. "Nothing even strenuous or anything, so I don't know a timetable for when a rehab assignment would be."

The Nationals have recalled left-hander Xavier Cedeno from Triple-A Syracuse and optioned right-hander Blake Treinen to Syracuse, the team announced Friday.

Mets reliever Carlos Torres struggled again in extras Thursday night against the Brewers. The right-hander was charged with the loss after surrendering four runs on seven hits and one walk while striking out two in an inning of work in a 5-1 defeat. He owns a 3.54 ERA and a 1.60 WHIP in 40 2/3 innings of relief.

Nationals pitcher Blake Treinen pitched well but was unable to pick up his first win of the season Thursday afternoon against the Giants in San Francisco, dropping to 0-3 in his team's 7-1 defeat. The right-hander permitted two runs on five hits and three walks while striking out two in five innings of work.

Over his last two starts covering 11 innings, Treinen has permitted four earned runs. He will likely return to the bullpen moving forward. He owns a 2.08 ERA and a 1.45 WHIP in 30 1/3 innings.

Reds closer Aroldis Chapman allowed the tying run to hit Thursday against the Dodgers, but his strikeout pitch bailed him out.

Chapman yielded a walk and single, but struck out the last two batters he faced in fanning the side to register his 10th save of the season. He has not given up a run in his last 10 appearances dating back to May 19. He has struck out 19 in his last 10 innings pitched.

The Brewers may well stick with Marco Estrada in their starting rotation, but if they remove him, as manager Ron Roenicke hinted they may Tuesday, Jimmy Nelson would be a big reason why.

I gave my complete take on the situation in this week's Prospects Report, so you can check it out there, but to summarize, Nelson is a prospect on the rise with the way he's pitched at Triple-A Nashville of the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League. In 12 appearances, including 11 starts, he has a 1.51 ERA, 0.89 WHIP and 10.0 strikeouts per nine innings.

He did come up for a spot start in late May, pitching 5 2/3 scoreless innings at the Marlins, but if you don't pay much attention to one-and-done types and don't play in a league that emphasizes prospects, you may not have heard of Nelson until now. And look, nobody's saying he's another Taijuan Walker, but he is a prospect by some definition whose biggest flaw, his control, he appears to have eliminated at a level where flaws are usually exposed.

I could see him making a Marcus Stroman-like impact whenever he gets the call. He may even one-up him in Head-to-Head points leagues, where his relief pitcher eligibility will help set him apart.

Diamondbacks pitcher Daniel Hudson (elbow) threw another bullpen session Tuesday morning, according to MLB.com. Manager Kirk Gibson still won't announce a timetable for his return.

"I have an idea in my head, but I hate to say it," Gibson said.

Cardinals pitcher Joe Kelly has progressed to throwing off a mound and is getting closer to going out on a rehab assignment, FOX Sports Midwest reports.

Kelly has been sidelined since mid-April while recovering from a hamstring injury, and he'll likely need multiple rehab appearances before returning to the major-league team. He gave up just one earned run in 15 1/3 innings over three starts before hitting the disabled list.

Braves closer Craig Kimbrel recorded his 17th save Monday, striking out two batters and walking one in a scoreless ninth inning to finish off his team's 3-1 win over the Rockies.

Kimbrel bounced back from blowing a save in his last appearance to deliver a vintage performance Monday, though he has walked four batters in 5 1/3 innings over his last six outings. He owns a 1.90 ERA, 1.01 WHIP and 42:11 K:BB ratio in 23 2/3 innings.

Dodgers closer Kenley Jansen struck out two during a 1-2-3 ninth inning in his team's 6-2 win over the Reds Monday.

Jansen hadn't appeared in a game since the previous Monday, so the team brought him in to protect a four-run lead. He owns a 3.46 ERA and 44:10 K:BB ratio in 26 innings.