MLB Player News

Lynn (knee) is throwing a bullpen session Tuesday, James Fegan of The Athletic reports.

Manager Tony La Russa said Lynn was only expected to miss one start after Lynn was placed on the injured list with right knee inflammation in late August, and Tuesday's bullpen session could be his final hurdle before rejoining the rotation. Dallas Keuchel and Reynaldo Lopez are penciled in as the respective starters for Wednesday and Thursday in Oakland, potentially leaving Lynn to make his return Friday versus Boston.

Rodon (shoulder) will play catch Tuesday, James Fegan of The Athletic reports.

Manager Tony La Russa said Tuesday that Rodon is "penciled in" to start one of the team's weekend games against the Red Sox, but a final decision on his status hasn't been reached. The White Sox will likely get a better idea of the southpaw's availability based on how he feels after Tuesday's throwing session.

Dunn (shoulder inflammation) is nearing a rehab stint and will pitch out of the bullpen if he is able to return to the big-league club this season, Ryan Divish of The Seattle Times reports.

Dunn probably doesn't have time to get fully stretched out as a starter, so the Mariners will prioritize getting him back in a relief role. He has been sidelined since June 17 and has a 3.75 ERA, 1.31 WHIP and 49 strikeouts in 50.1 innings.

Stripling (oblique) is making a rehab start Tuesday for Triple-A Buffalo, Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet.ca reports.

If things go well in this start, Stripling could be an option to pitch in Saturday's doubleheader in Baltimore on three days' rest, although he obviously wouldn't log a full starter's workload in that scenario. Either way, it seems like he will be back in the big-league rotation in short order if he avoids setbacks.

Montas (visa issues) was reinstated from the restricted list Tuesday, Martin Gallegos of MLB.com reports.

He was placed on the restricted list for the team's trip to Toronto due to visa issues but can be activated now that the A's have returned to Oakland. Montas will start Wednesday at home against the White Sox.

Civale (finger) was reinstated from the 60-day injured list ahead of Tuesday's start against Minnesota, Tom Withers of the Associated Press reports.

Civale will make his first major-league appearance since June 21 after he missed two-and-a-half months due to a sprained finger. The right-hander recently made three rehab starts and posted a 0.79 ERA and 0.71 WHIP in 11.1 innings. He tossed 71 pitches across five innings in his most recent rehab appearance, so he should be able to handle a fairly significant workload Tuesday.

Garcia was recalled from Triple-A Toledo on Tuesday.

Garcia was sent to the minors in early July, but he's been productive recently with a 0.87 ERA and 0.97 WHIP in 10.1 innings across his last seven appearances with Toledo. The right-hander has an underwhelming 7.31 ERA and 28:20 K:BB in 32 innings across 32 appearances in the majors this year, but he'll rejoin the Tigers' bullpen after Drew Carlton was sent down Monday.

The Rangers list Arihara as their scheduled starter for Wednesday's game against the Diamondbacks in Arizona.

After being activated from the 60-day injured list Sept. 1, Arihara was immediately thrust into the Texas rotation. The 29-year-old looked good in his first outing with Texas in nearly four months, tossing 3.1 innings (47 pitches) while striking out three and allowing one run on one hit (a solo home run) and no walks. Given his light workload his last time out, Arihara likely won't be asked to cover more than 4-to-5 frames Wednesday, which will hurt his chances of factoring into any decision.

Lyles is expected to piggyback starting pitcher Spencer Howard (COVID-19 injured list) in Tuesday's game against the Diamondbacks in Arizona, Evan Grant of The Dallas Morning News reports.

Texas will formally reinstate Howard from the COVID-19 IL later Tuesday and likely cap him at around 2-to-3 innings after he covered two frames (36 pitches) in a rehab start Sept. 2 with Triple-A Round Rock. Even before Howard landed on the COVID-19 IL, the Rangers had been regularly limiting his workloads in starts, so it's possible the tandem arrangement with the 25-year-old and Lyles continues beyond Tuesday. That setup won't do too much to improve Lyles' fantasy outlook, which had been especially bleak while he worked in a traditional starting role for much of the campaign. The 30-year-old right-hander has served up an MLB-high 36 home runs in 2021 while submitting a 5.63 ERA, 1.47 WHIP and 7.3 K/9 across 148.2 innings.

Dunning plans to return from the COVID-19 injured list Friday to pitch an inning in the Rangers' series opener in Oakland, Levi Weaver of The Athletic reports.

Dunning has been on the COVID-19 IL since Aug. 25, with his two-plus-week layoff suggesting that he most likely tested positive for the virus. The right-hander is in the process of regaining conditioning, and he appears to be feeling good after he tossed 23 pitches in a simulated game Monday. The Rangers' plans for Dunning over the rest of the season aren't entirely clear, but if he does in fact return Friday, he'll likely be limited to a bullpen role or working as an opener in front of Glenn Otto. Since Texas isn't sending Dunning out on a minor-league rehab assignment in which he would be able to build up his pitch count, he may not fill a traditional starting role for the remaining three weeks of September.