MLB Player News

Fried (groin) will begin a minor-league rehab assignment with Triple-A Gwinnett on Friday, David O'Brien of The Athletic Atlanta reports.

Fried is ahead of schedule in his recovery from a left groin strain, and he could be cleared to rejoin the Braves after making just one appearance for the Stripers. It's unclear what role Fried will fill once activated, but even if he's moved to the bullpen he could still make occasional spot starts down the stretch.

Interim manager Mike Shildt said Martinez (shoulder) will likely embark on a minor-league rehab assignment in the coming days, Rob Rains of StLSportsPage.com reports.

Martinez has been sidelined since the end of July with a strained right shoulder, but he's nearing a return to game action. Barring any setbacks, it sounds like Martinez will rejoin the Cardinals during their upcoming road trip, which begins Monday against the Dodgers. When Martinez does return, he will work in relief and it's sounding like he'll stay in the bullpen the rest of the season.

Flaherty will start Friday against the Brewers, Rob Rains of StLSportsPage.com reports.

Flaherty, who was originally lined up to pitch Thursday's series finale against the Nationals, will flip places in the rotation with Luke Weaver (finger), lining him up to start Friday's series opener against Milwaukee. There has been no word of any injury to this point. The 22-year-old right-hander owns a 3.22 ERA and 127:36 K:BB through 19 starts (103.1 innings) this season.

Senzatela (shoulder) is scheduled to come off the disabled list and start Saturday against the Braves, Patrick Saunders of The Denver Post reports.

Senzatela has been on the shelf since Aug. 5 with shoulder inflammation. He recently threw live batting practice and reported feeling great afterwards, clearing the way for him to rejoin the Rockies. His return to the rotation will push Chad Bettis to the bullpen. Prior to landing on the DL, Senzatela compiled a 4.56 ERA across 47.1 innings with a 3.60 mark across five starts after entering the rotation at the start of July.

Stripling is scheduled to visit a back specialist Wednesday, Pedro Moura of The Athletic Los Angeles reports.

Stripling wasn't available for Tuesday's 2-1 loss to the Giants after his lower back flared up when he threw a bullpen session before flying into San Francisco with the team on Sunday night. The meeting with Dr. Robert Watkins should provide more clarity on the extent of Stripling's injury, along with a possible return date for the right-hander, who recently transitioned to a relief role.

Strasburg (neck) said his simulated game went well Wednesday, and the next step will likely be a start, although he didn't say where that would be, Chelsea Janes of The Washington Post reports.

He said he threw 70 pitches in the sim game and if he feels good Thursday, he will "get ready for a start." Considering he gave up nine runs over his last 6.2 MLB innings before hitting the disabled list with a pinched nerve in his neck, and that he has been out since July 20, it seems likely that Strasburg will need at least one rehab start before the Nationals insert him back into the big-league rotation. His next step should become clear in the coming days.

Suarez will be recalled from Triple-A to start one game of Thursday's doubleheader against the Mets, Meghan Montemurro of The Athletic Philadelphia reports.

Zach Eflin, the 26th man for the doubleheader, will start the other game, and it's currently unclear what order they will go in. Suarez got tagged for four earned runs in five innings while striking out three against the Reds in his lone MLB start earlier this season. He has a 3.19 ERA in six starts at Triple-A, but his 1.45 WHIP and 7.5 K-BB percentage at that level are pretty big red flags. The best thing that can be said about his chances is that he is facing the Mets. Suarez is likely only making a spot start, as the Phillies can move back to a five-man rotation after the doubleheader.

The Braves optioned Toussaint to Triple-A Gwinnett on Tuesday.

Toussaint made his MLB debut in the first game of Monday's doubleheader against the Marlins, tossing six innings of one-run ball to pick up the victory. The strong outing should put him at the top of the list the next time the Braves require a spot starter, but he'll stick around in the minors for now since he was only up with the big club as the 26th man for the twin bill.

The Marlins optioned Gonzalez to Triple-A New Orleans on Tuesday.

Gonzalez served as the 26th man for the Marlins' doubleheader Monday against the Braves. He started the second half of the twin bill and took the loss, giving up three runs on eight hits and no walks over 4.2 innings. Since the Marlins only needed him to make a spot start, he'll head back to the minors and presumably slot into the New Orleans rotation.

Gomber is scheduled to start Wednesday's game against the Nationals.

After tossing five scoreless innings his last time out against the Royals on Aug. 10 to move to 2-0 on the season, Gomber will garner a third consecutive start for the Cardinals. With the Cardinals recently indicating that injured starter Carlos Martinez (shoulder) will likely shift to the bullpen for the rest of the season once he's activated from the 10-day disabled list, Gomber's hold on a rotation spot should be fairly secure so long as he performs capably.