MLB Player News

Bednar (back) will require a rehab assignment prior to returning from the injured list, Justice delos Santos of MLB.com reports.

Bednar threw live batting practice Saturday and will ultimately need to spend some time in the minors before he's activated by the Pirates. The team hasn't yet determined the specifics of his rehab assignment, but it wouldn't be surprising to see the right-hander remain sidelined until at least late next week.

Johnson (elbow) was reinstated from the 60-day injured list Saturday.

Johnson was sidelined since mid-April due to an elbow injury, but he recently completed a rehab assignment in which he posted a 1.50 ERA and 0.33 WHIP in six innings over six relief appearances. The right-hander picked up five holds over six appearances to begin the season, and it's possible that he works his way into some setup duties for San Diego down the stretch.

Patino is slated to start Sunday's road game against the Yankees, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

He'll be making his second straight turn through the rotation after he called up from Triple-A Durham on Monday to step into the injured Shane McClanahan's (shoulder) spot in the rotation. Patino took a no-decision his last time out against Boston, covering five innings and allowing three runs while striking out four.

Brebbia will be the first pitcher on the mound in a bullpen game Sunday against the Cubs, Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area reports.

The Giants continue to turn to bullpen games rather than use another starter in place of Alex Wood (shoulder). Sunday's game will technically be Brebbia's fifth start of the season, but don't expect him to pitch deep into the game. He pitched exactly one inning in each of his previous four "starts" this season.

Knehr was optioned to Triple-A El Paso on Saturday, Kevin Acee of The San Diego Union-Tribune reports.

Knehr joined the Padres' bullpen last week after active rosters expanded to 28 players, but he gave up four runs on four hits and two walks while striking out two in 1.2 innings during his lone appearance following his promotion. He'll head back to the minors since Pierce Johnson (elbow) is expected to be reinstated from the 60-day injured list Saturday.

Gott (forearm) will begin a rehab assignment at High-A Wisconsin on Sunday, Todd Rosiak of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports.

Gott landed on the injured list with a right forearm strain just under a month ago, but he resumed throwing in late August. He's expected to make just one appearance at Wisconsin prior to reporting to Nashville, and it's possible that he'll be cleared to return by next weekend.

Naile was optioned to Triple-A Memphis on Saturday.

Naile was called up by the Cardinals on Sept. 1, and he allowed five runs in three innings over two appearances during his time with the big-league club. He'll head back to the minors after Packy Naughton was recalled Saturday.

Naughton was recalled from Triple-A Memphis on Saturday.

Naughton spent just over two weeks in the minors and allowed two runs (one earned) on three hits and no walks while striking out four in four innings over three relief appearances following his demotion. However, he'll rejoin the Cardinals' bullpen after James Naile was sent down Saturday.

Bautista (arm) played catch Saturday and has a chance to be available Saturday or Sunday against the Red Sox, Nathan Ruiz of The Baltimore Sun reports.

Bautista was unavailable Friday due to arm fatigue, but it looks as though he may have avoided a more serious injury. The Orioles won't know for sure until they see how his arm responds to throwing, but it's possible he's cleared to pitch right away.

Puk (3-2) was charged with the loss against the White Sox on Friday, allowing five earned runs on four hits, a walk and a hit batsman over two-thirds of an inning.

The left-hander was also charged with his fifth blown save of the season in what was a disastrous outing reminiscent of some of his troubles in past seasons. Tasked with closing out the White Sox while working with a 3-0 lead entering the ninth, Puk's frame started off encouragingly enough when he induced a Jose Abreu groundout, but an Eloy Jimenez solo home run, Andrew Vaughn RBI single and a run-scoring single and double by Romy Gonzalez and Elvis Andrus, respectively, accounted for the game-tying and go-ahead runs for Chicago. Prior to Friday's collapse, Puk had been enjoying a stellar second half of the season that had seen him forge a 1-0 record, four saves, six holds, a 2.60 ERA and a 1.27 WHIP across 17.1 innings over 18 appearances.