MLB Player News

Ferguson (elbow) is scheduled to make his first rehab appearance with Triple-A Oklahoma City on Thursday.

Ferguson is expected to pitch the first inning in what will mark his first appearance in affiliated ball since he underwent Tommy John surgery in September 2020. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said earlier this week that he expects Ferguson to make his return from the 10-day injured list around mid-to-late May, so the 25-year-old lefty will be in store for several appearances with Oklahoma City.

Cabrera was issued a one-game suspension for his role in a bench-clearing fight against the Mets on Wednesday, Jeff Jones of the Belleville News-Democrat reports.

Cabrera will be unavailable for Thursday's series opener against the Diamondbacks unless he chooses to appeal his suspension. In his last four appearances, he's earned a win and a hold while tossing 4.2 scoreless innings. Assuming he serves his suspension Thursday, the southpaw will return to the Cardinals' bullpen Friday.

Howard will serve as the primary pitcher behind opener Garrett Richards during Friday's game against Atlanta, Levi Weaver of The Athletic reports.

Howard worked behind an opener while returning from a finger injury Sunday against the Athletics, and he allowed two runs on two hits and no walks while striking out four across two innings to take the loss. He'll presumably attempt to increase his pitch count after tossing 39 pitches during his last outing.

Rogers earned the save during Thursday's 7-5 win over the Reds, allowing one hit and zero walks during a scoreless ninth inning. He struck out one.

Rodgers earned his seventh save of the season and his second in as many days. He currently sports a 0.00 ERA and is 7-for-8 in save opportunities, with his only blown save coming in a multiple-inning save opportunity.

Martinez (1-2) earned the victory during Thursday's 7-5 win over the Reds, allowing two runs on five hits across five innings. He struck out five and walked two.

Martinez coasted through the first four innings but got into trouble in the fifth after allowing a leadoff double to Brandon Drury. Martinez limited the damage to two runs and escaped the inning by getting back-to-back outs to end his outing. Walks remain an issue for the 31-year-old, who has walked 11 batters over his last 14.2 innings. Regardless, he currently sports a 4.12 ERA and will look to build off his solid start Thursday. However, he may soon shift to a bullpen role with Mike Clevinger (knee) nearing a return from the injured list.

Gilbert was optioned to Triple-A Reno on Thursday.

Gilbert's first major-league appearance this year came as a starter, but he tossed three innings out of the bullpen during Monday's loss to the Dodgers. He'll now head back to the minors, where he's served as a starter in each of his first two outings of the season and will pitch as a starter upon his return. Luis Frias and Tyler Holton were called up to provide additional bullpen depth.

Holton's contract was selected by the Diamondbacks on Thursday.

Holton began the year at Triple-A Reno and posted a 6.75 ERA and 2.13 WHIP in eight innings over five relief appearances. He'll be available to make his major-league debut out of the bullpen after J.B. Wendelken (undisclosed) was placed on the injured list and Tyler Gilbert was optioned to Reno. However, it seems unlikely that Holton will pitch in high-leverage situations.

Frias was recalled from Triple-A Reno on Thursday.

Frias was sent to the minors at the end of March, and he posted a 3.29 ERA and 1.14 WHIP in 13.2 innings over three minor-league starts to begin the season. He'll provide bullpen depth after J.B. Wendelken (undisclosed) was placed on the injured list and Tyler Gilbert was sent down.

Marinaccio was optioned to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on Thursday.

Marinaccio tossed 2.1 scoreless innings during his first two appearances of the season, but he allowed five runs in 1.2 innings over his last two outings. The right-hander posted a 2.03 ERA and 0.93 WHIP in 66.1 minor-league relief innings last year and will attempt to turn things around at Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.

Williams tossed a scoreless ninth earning to earn his first save of the season during Thursday's 3-2 win over the Pirates. He struck out three and didn't allow a baserunner.

Williams got his first save opportunity of the season with Josh Hader, who pitched five times over the last seven days, unavailable for Thursday's contest. The Brewers scored two runs in the top of the ninth to take a 3-2 lead, and Williams shut the door quickly by striking out the side in the bottom half of the inning. The 27-year-old righty surrendered four runs across his first four outings of the year, but he's settled in as Milwaukee's setup man with six straight scoreless outings.