MLB Player News

Uquidy (forearm) will make a rehab start Friday with Triple-A Sugar Land, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.

The right-hander threw 59 pitches in his previous outing Saturday with Double-A Corpus Christi and is expected to build up to 70-to-75 pitches Friday. If all goes well, Urquidy could return from the 15-day injured list and step into Houston's rotation during its four-game series in Seattle next week.

Blanco (suspension) will be added to Houston's active roster Sunday and will start in the club's series finale in Oakland that day, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.

The Astros unsurprisingly won't waste any time reinserting Blanco into the rotation upon the completion of his 10-game ban. The right-hander threw live batting practice Monday and shouldn't face any significant limitations in his first start back.

Cole (elbow) faced live hitters Tuesday and will throw another live session this weekend, Gary Phillips of the New York Daily News reports.

Cole faced hitters for the first time since being shut down with elbow inflammation. He threw about 20 pitches in what's expected to be the first of two or three total live sessions. Cole will be eligible to return from the 60-day injured list before the end of May, but he'll require a multi-start rehab assignment and is still at least a few weeks away from making his season debut, likely at some point in June.

Manager A.J. Hinch said Tuesday that Manning will start Friday's game against the Blue Jays, Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press reports.

Manning was expected to be replaced by Kenta Maeda (illness) in the Tigers' rotation after Maeda threw three innings in a rehab start Sunday. However, Detroit will give Manning another turn in the rotation despite having allowed three or more runs in each of his last four starts. As Petzold notes, Hinch doesn't plan on using a six-man rotation, so it's unlikely that Manning will stick around on a long-term basis.

Curry was recalled from Triple-A Columbus and will start Tuesday against the Mets, Mike Puma of the New York Post reports.

The 25-year-old was optioned to Columbus in mid-April but will return to Cleveland's rotation as Carlos Carrasco (neck) lands on the injured list. Curry made just one start while up with the Guardians and delivered five scoreless frames, and he should have a chance to stick in the rotation with another strong performance Tuesday.

The Guardians placed Carrasco on the 15-day injured list Tuesday due to acute neck spasms, Zack Meisel of The Athletic reports.

The veteran right-hander was scheduled to start Tuesday against the Mets but will now be sidelined for at least the next couple weeks. Carrasco had been pitching well of late with a 3.00 ERA and 1.11 WHIP in his past three starts, and it's unclear how long he's expected to be unavailable. Xzavion Curry is being called up from Triple-A Columbus to start Tuesday.

The Twins promoted Morris from High-A Cedar Rapids to Double-A Wichita on Tuesday.

Morris, 22, earned the move up a level after posting a 2.15 ERA with a 43:7 K:BB in 37.2 innings with Cedar Rapids.

Francis (forearm) will throw about 45 pitches for Triple-A Buffalo on Wednesday in what's expected to be his final rehab appearance, Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.ca reports.

The 28-year-old right-hander has looked sharp in his first two rehab outings, throwing 4.1 scoreless innings while allowing just two hits with a 5:1 K:BB. Francis began the season in the Blue Jays rotation, but he should fill a long-relief role in the big-league bullpen when he returns.

Lively (3-2) earned the win over the Mets on Monday, allowing one run on six hits and no walks while striking out seven batters over 5.2 innings.

The only run Lively allowed in the outing came via a Tomas Nido solo homer in the third inning. Lively was otherwise excellent, matching a season high with seven punchouts and falling one out shy of recording a quality start. The right-hander is in the midst of the best season of his career, posting a 2.84 ERA, 1.24 WHIP and 38:12 K:BB over 38 innings. Prior to this season Lively owned a 5.05 ERA across 208.2 career frames.

Valdez (3-2) allowed eight runs on 10 hits and a walk while striking out three over five innings to take the loss Monday versus the Angels.

Valdez followed up his start of seven shutout innings versus the Athletics with a dud Monday. He was doing fine until the Angels rallied for seven runs in the fifth, including three-run home runs by Nolan Schanuel and Logan O'Hoppe and a solo shot from Jo Adell. Valdez is now at a 4.32 ERA, 1.32 WHIP and 34:12 K:BB through 41.2 innings over seven starts this season. He's projected to make his next start on the road in Seattle.