MLB Player News

Pruitt will serve as the Athletics' opening pitcher in Wednesday's game against the Mariners, Ryan Divish of The Seattle Times reports.

Ken Waldichuk (calf) had been the listed starter for Oakland, but he's now instead expected to work in bulk relief. Pruitt carries a 3.38 ERA, 1.50 WHIP and 7:5 K:BB in 10.2 innings this season out of the Oakland bullpen.

Padres manager Bob Melvin said Pomeranz underwent "cleanup surgery" on his elbow Tuesday, AJ Cassavell of MLB.com reports.

It sounds like arthroscopic surgery, which carries a far shorter timetable than other elbow procedures and will keep hope alive that Pomeranz can be a contributor at some point in 2023. He hasn't appeared in a major-league game since 2021 due to a range of different injuries, the most notable of those being a flexor tendon strain.

Alexander will serve as the Giants' opening pitcher for Thursday's game against the Brewers, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

Alexander will likely work an inning or two before the Giants turn the game over to the bullpen. In 21 appearances this season, the veteran lefty has registered a 4.42 ERA with a 9:4 K:BB over 18.1 innings.

The Rays placed Littell on the 15-day injured list Wednesday with right shoulder fatigue, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

Littell last pitched Monday and gave up two runs while recording just one out in a 6-4 win over the Blue Jays. It's not clear how long he might be sidelined.

Chicago placed Burdi on the 15-day injured list Wednesday after he underwent an appendectomy earlier in the day, Jordan Bastian of MLB.com reports.

Burdi will be sidelined for at least the next couple of weeks while he recovers from the emergency procedure. The Cubs called up right-hander Javier Assad from Triple-A Iowa to take Burdi's spot in the bullpen.

Chicago recalled Assad from Triple-A Iowa on Wednesday, Bruce Levine of 670TheScore.com reports.

Assad was optioned to Triple-A earlier this month after registering a 5.09 ERA over 17.2 innings with the Cubs in one start and four relief appearances. He'll rejoin the big club as a replacement in the bullpen for Nick Burdi, who was placed on the 15-day injured list after undergoing an appendectomy earlier Wednesday.

Smith picked up the save in Wednesday's 3-2 win over the Pirates, striking out two over 1.2 perfect innings.

Smith entered with one out in the eighth inning after Jose Leclerc loaded the bases. The left-hander got Rodolfo Castro to fly out before striking out Jack Suwinski to end the frame. Smith then set down the Pirates in order in the ninth, securing a one-run victory and his ninth save. Smith has now converted his last five save opportunities across five scoreless innings. His ERA is down to 2.65 with a 0.88 WHIP and 21:5 K:BB through 17 innings this season. He's become a reliable source of saves on a first-place Rangers team.

Hollowell (forearm) has struck out four while allowing one hit and two walks over two scoreless innings in his two appearances since being activated from Triple-A Albuquerque's 7-day injured list May 16.

Hollowell missed the first month and a half of the season while recovering from right forearm tightness. The 25-year-old retains a spot on the Rockies' 40-man roster and has prior experience in the big leagues, so he could emerge as a candidate for a promotion to the Colorado bullpen if he can continue to string together quality appearances with Albuquerque.

Cincinnati designated Bracho for assignment Wednesday.

Bracho gets the boot from the 26-man and 40-man rosters to make room for Eduardo Salazar with Salazar having his contract selected from Triple-A Louisville on Wednesday. In four appearances with the Reds, Bracho registered a 5.06 ERA and 1.31 WHIP over 5.1 innings. Assuming he goes unclaimed, he could report back to Louisville as an organizational depth piece.

Tampa Bay designated Burdi for assignment Wednesday, Steve Carney of StPeteNine.com reports.

Burdi was lit up for six runs -- five earned -- in Tuesday's 20-1 loss to the Blue Jays. The transaction removes the right-hander from both the 40-man roster and the 26-man active roster to make room for reliever Ben Heller, whose contract was selected from Triple-A Durham on Wednesday. If Burdi goes unclaimed or isn't traded, he'll likely report back to Triple-A to provide bullpen depth for the Rays for the rest of 2023.