MLB Player News

Miller will serve as the Giants' opening pitcher for Thursday's game in Pittsburgh, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

Mason Black had been lined up to start Thursday, but he could be deployed as a bulk reliever in the series finale once Miller exits the contest. Miller has been used as an opener once previously this season, throwing a scoreless inning in Boston back on May 1.

Cubs manager Craig Counsell said that Brown will start Thursday's game against Atlanta at Wrigley Field, Tim Stebbins of MLB.com reports.

Brown will pick up his fifth start of the season, filling the spot in the rotation that belonged to Kyle Hendricks before the veteran right-hander was moved to the bullpen earlier this week. Because he hasn't started since May 2 and will be pitching on three days' rest after covering two frames in relief Sunday, Brown may not be asked to give the Cubs more than three or four innings as he re-enters the rotation. Hendricks hasn't been used since his last start Friday and could be called upon to piggyback Brown, but Counsell hasn't outlined his plans for when Brown exits the contest. Brown may not be in line for a lengthy stay in the rotation, as the Cubs could get Jordan Wicks (forearm) back from the injured list next week to take over as their No. 5 starter.

The Cardinals optioned Roycroft to Triple-A Memphis on Thursday.

Roycroft served as the 27th man for the Cardinals on Wednesday and didn't make an appearance. The big right-hander will rejoin the bullpen at Memphis.

Walker (4-2) pitched a perfect ninth inning and struck out one, earning the extra-inning win over the Pirates on Wednesday.

Walker kept the game tied in the ninth inning, and the Giants' offense exploded in the 10th to make him the pitcher of record. The right-hander has stumbled a little recently, allowing two runs over his last five innings, but he also has a 7:0 K:BB and three holds in that span. Walker is getting the job done with a 2.42 ERA, 0.92 WHIP and 36:4 K:BB over 26 innings this season. He's added seven holds and one blown save while not seeing a lot of late-inning work, but his elite strikeout numbers make him an interesting option in all NL-only formats and some deeper mixed leagues as well.

Scott earned the save Wednesday against Milwaukee, allowing one hit and no walks across a scoreless inning with one strikeout.

Scott is now 6-for-7 on save chances this season and has added four tallies in the win column. The 29-year-old has been charged with at least one earned run in just two of his 21 appearances, owning a 1.71 ERA with a 22:18 K:BB across 21.0 innings.

Smyly (hip) struck out five over three perfect innings in his rehab start Tuesday with High-A South Bend.

Pitching in a game for the first time in a month after landing on the 15-day injured list April 23 with a right hip impingement, Smyly looked about as good as possible while tossing 40 pitches. The lefty had been working exclusively as a reliever prior to landing on the shelf, but with the Cubs moving the struggling Kyle Hendricks to the bullpen earlier this week, Smyly could be under consideration to step in as the team's No. 5 starter if he makes it back from the IL before Jordan Wicks (forearm). If the Cubs intend to bring Smyly back in a starting role, he'll still need to get stretched out a bit further, so it wouldn't be surprising if he stuck around at South Bend or joined a higher-level affiliate for another rehab outing. Regardless of whether Smyly serves as a starter or reliever upon his return to the Cubs, manager Craig Counsell said Wednesday that he expects the 34-year-old to be activated at some point next week, per MLB.com.

Liberatore threw a bullpen session ahead of Wednesday's action against the Orioles, Jeff Jones of the Belleville News-Democrat reports.

Following last weekend's start against the Red Sox, Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol said Liberatore wasn't likely to start Saturday versus the Cubs. However, the left-hander's bullpen session could indicate a change of plan, since it wouldn't make much sense to have a regular reliever make himself unavailable on a day during which St. Louis had to complete Tuesday's suspended game in addition to Wednesday's regularly scheduled contest. It remains to be seen who actually starts for the Cardinals on Saturday, but Liberatore seems to still be in the mix, at least.

The Diamondbacks recalled Hughes from Triple-A Reno on Wednesday. He'll serve as Arizona's opening pitcher for the team's series finale in Los Angeles versus the Dodgers, Jesse Friedman of GoPHNX.com reports.

Hughes allowed four earned runs in 2.2 innings during his first stint with Arizona earlier this month, but he's thrown five innings of one-run ball since returning to Triple-A. The 28-year-old lefty is likely to only pitch an inning or two Wednesday before giving way to Ryne Nelson, who is expected to pitch the bulk of innings out of the bullpen.

Manager Craig Counsell said Wednesday that Alzolay (forearm) will be shut down from throwing for at least two weeks, Andy Martinez of Marquee Sports Network reports.

Alzolay went in for a second opinion on his right flexor strain Tuesday, and the damage appears to be serious enough to warrant a shutdown. Counsell added that Alzolay could require surgery, but his next steps will be determined after the two-week rest period.

The Padres transferred Patino (elbow) from the 15-day injured list to the 60-day IL on Wednesday.

Patino's move to the 60-day IL was fully expected at some point after he underwent Tommy John surgery April 30. With the right-hander expected to be sidelined until at least the middle of the 2025 season, he'll be a strong candidate to get non-tendered by the Padres this offseason.