MLB Player News

Steele (back) was placed on the restricted list Monday, Maddie Lee of the Chicago Sun-Times reports.

Steele experienced low-back tightness during Friday's start against the Brewers, and he'll be unavailable for the Cubs' three-game series in Toronto this week since he's unvaccinated. If his back injury doesn't prevent him from pitching, the southpaw will likely return to action sometime this weekend in St. Louis.

Ashcraft (biceps) was spotted playing catch on the field Monday, Charlie Goldsmith of The Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

The activity is a sign that Ashcraft isn't being shut down entirely after landing on the 15-day injured list just under a week ago, but he'll still need to advance to mound work and facing hitters in live batting practice before a potential return date will come into focus. Ashcraft is one of five starting pitchers currently residing on the IL, with Hunter Greene (shoulder), Robert Dugger (shoulder), T.J. Zeuch (back) and Connor Overton (back) also on the mend from injuries.

The Dodgers recalled Grove from Triple-A Oklahoma City on Monday, and he'll start in the Dodgers' series finale versus the Marlins, J.P. Hoornstra of the Los Angeles Daily News reports.

Grove will return to the big leagues and replace Tony Gonsolin (forearm) in the Dodgers rotation after Gonsolin was placed on the 15-day injured list Monday. The 25-year-old has appeared in two games (one start) with Los Angeles this season, surrendering three runs on seven hits and four walks while striking out three over 4.2 innings. It's unclear how long he'll remain on the major-league roster, but he'll get at least one turn through the rotation.

The Dodgers placed Gonsolin on the 15-day injured list Monday with a right forearm strain.

One of the National League's leading Cy Young Award candidates after going 16-1 with a 2.10 ERA and 0.86 WHIP over his first 23 starts, Gonsolin has already blown past his innings count from 2021 (128.1 in 2022, up from 68.1), but his move to the IL looks to be more than a means of workload management. Given his diagnosis of a forearm strain, Gonsolin could well be in danger of missing extended time, though a team source doesn't believe the injury is anything that will affect his availability for the postseason, per Jack Harris of the Los Angeles Times. On a more fortunate note for the Dodgers, Clayton Kershaw (back) looks on pace to return from the 15-day IL this week, but Los Angeles will first turn to Triple-A Oklahoma City pitcher Michael Grove to step into Gonsolin's spot in the rotation Monday in Miami.

Phillies interim manager Rob Thomson said Sunday that Eflin (kneecap) has been throwing off flat ground recently and could advance to mound work during the upcoming week, MLB.com reports.

Because Eflin has been on the shelf since June 28 and is likely at least a couple weeks away from being ready to return from the 60-day injured list, Thomson acknowledged that the right-hander will likely work out of the Philadelphia bullpen once activated. The Phillies already found a replacement in the rotation for Eflin at the trade deadline, when the team acquired Noah Syndergaard from the Angels.

Rogers (back) appears on track to return from the 15-day injured list to start Wednesday's home game against the Rays, Paige Leckie of MLB.com reports.

Rogers, who landed on the IL on July 29 with lower-back spasms, labored through his first three rehab starts, but he said he felt better than he had at any point this season during his fourth rehab outing this past Thursday. In his start for Triple-A Jacksonville, Rogers fanned 12 hitters over six no-hit innings, with a lone walk being the only blemish on his line. Rogers threw a bullpen session Sunday in front of the Marlins' staff, and assuming he felt fine coming out of that workout, he looks like he'll slot back into the rotation Wednesday.

The Brewers list Alexander as their probable starter for Tuesday's game against the Pirates.

Tuesday would have been Adrian Houser's turn through the rotation, but the Brewers could look to push back his next start or deploy him in tandem with Alexander after the 29-year-old righty labored in his return from the injured list last Wednesday, when the Dodgers knocked him around for five earned runs over 2.1 innings. In that same contest, Alexander came on to record 10 outs in relief, though he was tagged for three runs on three hits and one walk. The matchup with the Pirates is a far more favorable one on paper for Alexander, but his modest results in the big leagues to date don't make him the safest streaming option.

Lauer (10-5) gave up four earned runs on six hits and four walks while striking out one batter over five innings to earn the win in a 9-7 victory over the Cubs on Sunday.

Lauer did enough to tally his 10th win of the season, but it was not his finest effort. He needed 101 pitches to get through five innings and issued four free passes, which belabored his pitch count and got him into some trouble early on. Lauer's ERA rose to 3.58 after the game. He has now issued 51 walks in 135.2 innings this season, which is substantially weaker than the major-league average. The 27-year-old left-hander will look to show better control in his next expected time out at Arizona.

Davies gave up two earned runs on six hits and two walks while striking out five over 5.2 innings in a 3-2 win over the White Sox on Sunday. He did not factor into the decision.

Davies held his own in a road appearance against the White Sox and left the game an out short of a quality start. Davies had pitched five scoreless frames to open the contest but was given the hook by Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo after allowing a couple of runs to score on a sacrifice fly and infield single in the sixth. Davies has a K:BB of 80:38 in 108.1 innings this season and is stuck at only two wins despite making 21 starts. He will look for win number three his next expected time out against the Brewers.

Odorizzi allowed two runs on four hits and a walk while striking out four over 5.2 innings in a no-decision versus the Cardinals on Sunday.

Odorizzi limited the Cardinals to one walk through five innings, but he gave up a two-out solo home run to Lars Nootbaar in the sixth. The Cardinals built off of that and added three straight singles to earn another run before Dylan Lee was brought in as a reliever. Odorizzi fell one out short of a quality start in this one. He's struggled a bit with Atlanta, posting a 4.28 ERA and 1.46 WHIP across 25.1 innings through five starts after he was traded from Houston at the deadline. The right-hander is projected for a favorable home start versus the Marlins next weekend.