MLB Player News

Stroman (shoulder) threw a simulated game at Double-A New Hampshire on Monday and is expected to return from the 10-day disabled list to start Saturday against the Angels, Arden Zwelling of Sportsnet.ca reports.

Stroman had been scheduled to make his second minor-league rehab start Monday with New Hampshire, but a postponement due to rain forced him to alter his plans. While the Blue Jays probably would have liked to see Stroman pitch again in an uncontrolled setting, it appears they were satisfied with how he looked during the simulated game and are ready to integrate him back into the rotation. The return of Stroman, who submitted a 7.71 ERA and 1.71 WHIP across 37.1 innings in his seven starts prior to landing on the DL, will most likely result in Sam Gaviglio losing a rotation spot.

Cole allowed four runs on three hits and five walks with eight strikeouts in a no-decision Monday against the Rays.

Cole was nasty at times but couldn't rein in his control when he needed to. A leadoff walk in the first scored on a subsequent home run, and two of the three men Cole walked in the third inning came around to score as well. This was an extremely uncharacteristic performance, as Cole hadn't walked more than three batters all year entering Monday. Don't expect this trend to continue, but Cole now has gone two starts without a quality start for the first time all season. He'll look to right the ship Sunday against the Royals.

Gray (5-4) allowed two runs on six hits and one walk across five innings to earn the win Monday against the Nationals. He struck out seven.

Gray limited baserunners effectively apart from the second and fourth innings, when he put multiple men aboard and allowed an RBI groundout and a sacrifice fly, respectively. He pounded the strike zone at a 71 percent clip while inducing 16 swinging strikes, and six groundball outs helped him mitigate the damage. Gray is turning things around after an abysmal start and has now allowed two earned runs or fewer in four of his last six starts to bring his ERA to 4.89. He'll look to continue his recent success this weekend against the Rays.

McGuire was designated for assignment Monday, Stefan Stevenson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reports.

McGuire had been claimed by the Rangers off waivers Friday and was immediately optioned to Triple-A Round Rock. If he clears waivers, he'll likely remain at the same level. The move opens up a spot on the 40-man roster for the return of Elvis Andrus (elbow) from the 60-day disabled list.

Stroman (shoulder) is scheduled to make a rehab start at Double-A New Hampshire on Monday, Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet.ca reports.

Stroman covered 4.1 innings on 60 pitches in his first rehab start last week at High-A Dunedin, so he'll presumably work deeper into Monday's appearance in what could be his final outing on the farm before returning from the 10-day disabled list. If Stroman checks out fine physically Monday, he would likely slot back into the Toronto rotation Saturday against the Angels. Sam Gaviglio appears to be most at risk of losing his rotation spot once Stroman is formally reinstated.

Manning worked a career-high seven scoreless innings for Low-A West Michigan in its 8-0 win over Dayton on Sunday. He gave up three hits and a walk and struck out six.

Manning commanded and controlled his fastball effectively against both left- and right-handed hitters Sunday in what may have been the finest outing of his young career. The 20-year-old righty lowered his ERA to 3.70 and has generated 68 punchouts over 48.2 innings in his return trip to the Midwest League. He'll likely be in store for a promotion to High-A Lakeland within the next few weeks.

Nicasio (knee) was activated from the disabled list Monday.

Nicasio will end up spending the minimum amount of time on the disabled list. Prior to his injury, Nicasio had recorded a 5.34 ERA in 28.2 innings, though his underlying numbers indicated that he was actually pitching quite well. His strikeout rate had spiked up to an impressive 31.4 percent, while his walk rate remained an incredibly low 1.7 percent. Those numbers result in a very solid 2.53 FIP, indicating that the veteran should be able to capably fill his setup role if he keeps pitching the way he'd already been pitching.

Faedo was promoted to Double-A Erie on Monday.

The 18th overall pick in the 2017 first-year player draft, Faedo posted a 3.10 ERA and 1.02 WHIP with 51 strikeouts across 12 starts (61 innings) at High-A Lakeland this season to earn the promotion. The 22-year-old was considered a fairly polished prospect after spending three years at the University of Florida, so it's not too surprising to see the organization move him up quickly in his first season of professional baseball. At this rate, Faedo stands a decent chance of making his MLB debut sometime next year. He lines up to make his Double-A debut Tuesday, according to John Lydic of Erie News Now.

Rodriguez (9-1) got the win over Seattle on Sunday, giving up two earned runs on six hits over six innings, striking out nine and walking one in Boston's 9-3 victory.

Rodriguez just keeps piling up wins, as this was the sixth straight trip to the mound where the 25-year-old right-hander has claimed a victory. The nine wins on the season put him just one short of the career high he set back in his rookie campaign of 2015, and Rodriguez is putting up good numbers to support that total, with a 3.59 ERA, a 1.24 WHIP and a 90:24 K:BB in 77.2 innings. As long as he keeps pitching with this level of consistency, he should be able to continue to put himself in line for victories pitching for a Boston team that figures to keep offering him plenty of run support.

Heaney allowed three earned runs on three hits and a walk while striking out eight across eight innings Sunday against the Athletics. He did not factor into the decision.

This was one of Heaney's best outings of the season: He allowed only two baserunners after he coughed up a two-run home run to Mark Canha in the second inning. He exited the game with a 5-3 lead and what appeared to be his fourth win of the season locked up; however, the shaky Angels bullpen blew his chance at a win in the ninth inning. Sunday's start was a nice bounceback effort for Heaney, as he had allowed three home runs and five earned runs in his previous start.