MLB Player News

Priester (oblique) is expected to begin throwing live batting practice within the next 7-to-10 days, Alex Stumpf of DKPittsburghSports.com reports.

The 22-year-old recently began throwing bullpen sessions and is now close to facing live batters. Priester could head to the lower minors for a rehab assignment once cleared for game action.

Malone (illness) has been facing live hitters recently, Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.

Malone suffered a setback during spring training due to an undisclosed illness, but he's been progressing in his recovery while building up at the Pirates' extended spring training facility. The right-hander is expected to face more advanced competition soon.

Stroman (illness) is listed as the Cubs' probable starting pitcher for Thursday's game against the Diamondbacks in Chicago, Jordan Bastian of MLB.com reports.

Stroman cleared all COVID-19-related protocols Tuesday and rejoined the team, but the Cubs will give him two days to regain conditioning before formally reinstating him from the COVID-19-related injured list Thursday. Because Stroman didn't complete a rehab assignment beforehand and hasn't started since May 1 before landing on the IL, the Cubs could limit his workload more than usual in his return to action.

The Padres activated Snell (groin) from the 10-day injured list ahead of his scheduled start Wednesday in Philadelphia, Kevin Acee of The San Diego Union-Tribune reports.

Snell is finally ready to make his 2022 debut for the Padres after he was scratched ahead of what would have been his first start of the season April 10 due to left adductor tightness. The injury ultimately forced an extended trip to the IL, but Snell looks to be healthy again after recently completing a three-start minor-league rehab assignment. He stretched out to five innings and 59 pitches in his final minor-league outing May 10, so Snell should be capable of offering the Padres a decent amount of length Wednesday.

Heaney (shoulder) threw a 15-pitch bullpen session Tuesday, David Vassegh of AM 570 LA Sports reports.

Heaney began a throwing progression last weekend, and Tuesday's bullpen marked the first time he had thrown off a mound since landing on the injured list. The southpaw felt good Wednesday morning and will work on building up strength now that he's been cleared for mound work. Since Heaney has been on the injured list for nearly a month, he'll likely require a rehab assignment prior to rejoining the Dodgers.

Cavalli didn't make it out of the first inning in Tuesday's game against Triple-A Lehigh Valley, giving up five runs on four hits and two walks with two strikeouts. He now has a 7.62 ERA and 1.57 WHIP through seven starts this season.

Cavalli's control issues were always going to catch up with him at some point, and it seems Triple-A is that point -- his results this year haven't been much different from his six starts at the same level last season (7.30 ERA, 1.90 WHIP). That 4.5 BB/9 is bad enough, but he's also been surprisingly hittable, having given up 30 hits in 28.1 innings with an unremarkable 8.6 K/9 this year. There's some bad luck involved in those stats (.345 BABIP, 47.2 percent strand rate), but no matter how you slice it, he's lost some of his prospect luster.

Gore picked up a hold against Philadelphia on Tuesday by throwing three scoreless innings, allowing three hits while striking out four.

This was Gore's first professional relief appearance -- before Tuesday, he had started in all 61 of his minor- and major-league outings. The new role didn't seem to phase the 23-year-old, as he threw 30 of 40 pitches for strikes and limited the Phillies to three singles. Gore has been great as a starter this season, posting a 2.42 ERA and 1.23 WHIP over 26 innings, but he moved to the bullpen due to the return of Mike Clevinger and the imminent return of Blake Snell (groin). Gore is a candidate to move back into the rotation if the need arises, but he could spend substantial time in the bullpen throughout the season since the Padres will likely look to limit his workload.

Williams gave up four hits across four scoreless innings but didn't factor into the decision in the first game of Tuesday's doubleheader against the Cardinals. He struck out six without walking a batter.

Making his second start of the season, Williams baffled the Cards over 65 pitches (46 strikes) but wasn't stretched out enough to earn a win for his efforts in a 3-1 victory. With Tylor Megill (biceps) on the injured list, Williams figured to hang onto a rotation spot for a while, but his track record suggests he'll be volatile in that role.

Mikolas (3-2) took the loss in the first game of Tuesday's doubleheader against the Mets, giving up three runs (two earned) on seven hits and a walk over six innings. He struck out five.

The veteran right-hander didn't pitch badly and pounded the strike zone as per usual, but the Cardinals didn't score their only run of the game until the eighth inning, hanging Mikolas out to dry. He tossed 106 pitches (84 strikes) in his fifth quality start of the season, and he'll carry a stellar 1.68 ERA, 0.99 WHIP and 36:9 K:BB through 48.1 innings into his next outing.

Anderson (4-0) earned the victory and allowed two runs on seven hits, striking out seven across seven innings in a 12-3 win Tuesday over Arizona.

Both runs against Anderson came in the first inning with two outs when Jordan Luplow and Christian Walker hit back-to-back solo shots. In his last six frames, Anderson skated through the Diamondbacks' lineup, scattering four singles and allowing only one player to reach second base. The lefty was efficient, needing only 82 pitches in his best start as a Dodger. While the 32-year-old has an excellent 34:5 K:BB, his six home runs allowed in 35.2 innings are largely the reason his ERA sits at 4.04.