MLB Player News

Martin (personal) was activated from the restricted list Friday, Gordon Wittenmyer of NBC Sports Chicago reports.

The veteran right-hander landed on the bereavement list in late May and shifted to the restricted list a week later, but he's back with the Cubs ahead of Friday's series opener against the Yankees. Martin has appeared in 18 games out of the bullpen this year and has a 3.94 ERA, 1.50 WHIP and 21:4 K:BB across 16 innings.

Vasquez (ankle) was placed on the 15-day injured list Friday.

Vasquez sprained his right ankle while attempting to cover first base Wednesday against the Royals. He'll now miss at least the next two weeks and potentially more time beyond that. Jeremy Beasley was recalled to take his place in the bullpen.

Castro (3-0) earned the win over Minnesota on Thursday, pitching 1.1 scoreless innings during which he allowed one walk and struck out one batter.

Yankees ace Gerrit Cole was uncharacteristically shelled for seven runs over 2.1 innings, forcing manager Aaron Boone to go to the bullpen early. Castro was New York's third pitcher, taking over with two outs in the bottom of the fifth. He struck out Gio Urshela to end the frame, then retired three of the four batters he faced in the sixth. Castro was credited with the win when New York put up a pair of runs to take the lead in top of the following inning. The right-hander has enjoyed a strong first season as a Yankee, supplementing his three wins with six holds and a 3.24 ERA.

Lopez will serve as the opener Friday against the Rangers, James Fegan of The Athletic reports.

Lopez has 96 career major-league starts to his name, but don't expect him to pitch particularly deep in this contest even though he's listed as the starter. He's topped out at two innings so far this season and is unlikely to throw any more than that Friday before handing the ball to Davis Martin.

Graterol (2-2) pitched a scoreless inning to earn the win against the White Sox on Thursday.

Dodgers starter Tyler Anderson allowed four straight batters to reach base in the fourth inning, so the team turned to Graterol with the bases loaded to stem the tide. The right-hander began by hitting Adam Engel with a pitch to allow a run to score, and he then gave up a sacrifice fly. However, Graterol was able to retire the final two batters of the frame to limit the damage. Los Angeles responded with six runs in the top of the fifth to take the lead and put Graterol in line for the win. He has been a key cog in the team's bullpen this season with a career-high seven holds in addition to the pair of victories.

White was optioned to Triple-A Oklahoma City on Friday.

The 27-year-old made starts in his past four outings for the Dodgers and had a 3.31 ERA, 0.98 WHIP and 16:5 K:BB over 16.1 innings, but he'll head to the minors with Clayton Kershaw (pelvis) set to rejoin the rotation this weekend. White should be a candidate to for any spot starts the rest of the season for Los Angeles.

Kimbrel (personal) was activated from the paternity list Friday.

Kimbrel landed on the paternity list Tuesday and is back with the Dodgers after spending a few days with his family. The 34-year-old will reclaim the closer role from Daniel Hudson, who picked up one save during Kimbrel's absence.

Snider was optioned to Triple-A Omaha on Friday.

Snider had been on the active roster since Opening Day but didn't exactly impress in 21 innings of relief. He struggled to a 7.71 ERA and 1.76 WHIP, striking out 12.8 percent of opposing batters while walking 11.7 percent. Angel Zerpa was recalled to take his place in the bullpen.

Zerpa was recalled by the Royals on Friday.

Zerpa has spent the entirety of this season so far with Double-A Northwest Arkansas, though he's pitched at the big-league level before, throwing five scoreless innings his major-league debut at the tail end of last season. In nine starts this year, he owns an unimpressive 4.79 ERA, though his 24.5 percent strikeout rate and 6.0 percent walk rate make for a somewhat promising combination. It looks as though he'll be pitching in a bullpen role for now, as it was reliever Collin Snider who was optioned in a corresponding move.

Jackson was credited with his 10th hold in a loss to the Guardians on Thursday, allowing an earned run on a hit and a walk over one-third of an inning.

Jackson's outing wasn't exactly smooth, but after issuing a walk and allowing a single to the first two batters he faced, he was able to induce a fielder's choice groundout from Myles Straw before exiting. Even though one of the runners Jackson put on eventually scored, the Athletics escaped the frame with a tie, affording the right-hander his 10th hold. While Jackson maintains a solid 3.70 ERA, his WHIP has risen to 1.44 and he's now allowed an earned run in four of his last six appearances.