MLB Player News

Snell (shoulder) will begin a rehab assignment with Single-A Rancho Cucamonga on Thursday, Bill Plunkett of The Orange County Register reports.

Snell resumed facing hitters last week and is set to pitch in a game Thursday for the first time since he went down with left shoulder inflammation in early April. The southpaw is expected to throw two innings for Rancho Cucamonga and will continue to build up from there while moving on to higher-level affiliates as he eyes a return to the Los Angeles rotation. His return could happen before the end of July if all goes well.

The Nationals announced Tuesday that Sykora was diagnosed with lower right triceps soreness and will be shut down for 2-to-3 weeks before throwing again, Mark Zuckerman of MASNSports.com reports.

Any arm issue is worrying for the 21-year-old pitching prospect, but the Nationals don't view Sykora's injury as a major concern. The triceps issue will keep Sykora from pitching in the All-Star Futures Game this weekend, however, and he appears unlikely to return to action for Double-A Harrisburg until at least early August. Across four different levels this season, Sykora has compiled a 1.91 ERA, 0.83 WHIP and 74:17 K:BB through just 42.1 innings.

Manaea (elbow/oblique) struck out five and allowed three earned runs on four hits and one walk over 3.2 innings in his rehab start Tuesday with Triple-A Syracuse.

Manaea had some hiccups in his seventh rehab start, but he built up to 73 pitches in the outing and looks poised to return from the 60-day injured list to make his next appearance in the majors. According to Anthony DiComo of MLB.com, the Mets are planning on having both Manaea and Clay Holmes appear in Sunday's game in Kansas City, with the latter pitcher likely to start and the former likely to piggyback him. Though his innings count would likely be somewhat suppressed if he works behind Holmes on Sunday, Manaea could be in better position to secure a win in his 2025 MLB debut than if he were used as a starter. Manaea, who has been on the shelf all season while recovering from a right oblique strain and more recently, a loose body in his pitching elbow, should have a rotation spot all to himself coming out of the All-Star break.

Scherzer (thumb) is listed as the Blue Jays' probable starter for Friday's game against the Athletics in Sacramento.

Though Scherzer continued to deal with inflammation in his right thumb during his most recent start last Saturday against the Angels, he'll be ready to take the hill for his next turn through the rotation on five days' rest. Scherzer has yet to reach 90 pitches in any of his four appearances this season, and with the All-Star break looming, the Blue Jays may not be willing to overextend him during Friday's start.

The Royals signed Keuchel to a minor-league contract Wednesday.

Per Jeff Passan of ESPN.com, Keuchel held a workout for teams last week and touched 92 miles per hour with his fastball. He will be assigned to Triple-A Omaha and would make a prorated $2 million if called up by Kansas City. The 37-year-old Keuchel posted a 5.40 ERA in four starts for the Brewers last season before finishing the campaign pitching in Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball with the Chiba Lotte Marines.

The Yankees selected Schlittler's contract from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre ahead of his scheduled start Wednesday versus the Mariners in New York.

The Yankees designated reliever Geoff Hartlieb for assignment to clear room on the 40-man roster and 26-man active roster for Schlittler, who will join the rotation Wednesday as a replacement for the injured Clarke Schmidt (forearm). The 24-year-old Schlittler had his worst start of the season for Scranton/Wilkes-Barre his last time out July 2 (six earned runs allowed over 2.1 innings), but he's been effective on the whole between stops at Triple-A and Double-A Somerset, logging a 2.82 ERA, 1.21 WHIP and 99:26 K:BB in 76.2 innings. If he's able to acquit himself well in his MLB debut, Schlittler could be in line for multiple turns through the New York rotation until Luis Gil (lat) or Ryan Yarbrough (oblique) returns from the injured list.

Woods Richardson (5-4) tossed five scoreless frames in a win against the Cubs on Tuesday, allowing just two hits and three walks while striking out four.

Though it wasn't flashy, Woods Richardson cruised through five shutout innings against the major-league leader in runs per game. He threw only 61 pitches, and it appears pulling him was a tactical move, as he was due to face the heart of the Cubs' order for a third time. Woods Richardson has a 1.38 ERA and is holding opponents to just a .126 batting average over his last five starts, racking up three straight wins. He lines up to make one final start before the All-Star break this weekend against the Pirates.

Warren (6-4) picked up the win in Tuesday's 10-3 rout of the Mariners, allowing four hits and two walks over 5.2 scoreless innings. He struck out four.

The right-hander issued both his free passes in the sixth inning with the Yankees ahead only 1-0, prompting manager Aaron Boone to give Warren the hook just one out shy of his fourth quality start of the season. He's held the opposition off the board in two of his last three outings, but those sharp performances were sandwiched around an eight-run disaster against the Blue Jays. Warren will look for some consistency in his final trip to the mound before the All-Star break, at home Sunday against the Cubs.

Bassitt (9-4) got the win Tuesday against the White Sox, allowing one run on four hits and a walk while striking out one in six innings.

Bassitt pitched to a lot of weak contact, with his only blemish being a sixth-inning solo home run off the bat of Josh Rojas. Tuesday marked the first time since April 2, 2023 that Bassitt failed to record multiple strikeouts in a start, although he appeared destined to go further into the game had it not gotten called in the seventh due to weather. Per Keegan Matheson of MLB.com, Bassitt said Tuesday that, given his low pitch count (78), he'd be ready to pitch again in any capacity before the All-Star break if needed. The 36-year-old now owns a 4.16 ERA, 1.36 WHIP and 103:29 K:BB in 106 innings this season.

Kelly said after Tuesday's 1-0 loss to the Padres that he was lifted early from his start after experiencing right calf discomfort, but he doesn't believe it will be anything worrisome moving forward, ArizonaSports.com reports.

Kelly has had multiple starts cut short in recent seasons due to leg cramping, and he appears to have run into a similar issue Tuesday. Though Kelly said he was "willing and able" to return to the mound for the bottom of the eighth after he felt some discomfort in his calf on two pitches in the seventh, the Diamondbacks ultimately decided to err on the side of caution and lift him early in a one-run game. Kelly dropped to 7-5 on the season while taking the loss, but he emerged with his fifth quality start in his last seven outings, as he allowed just one run on four hits and no walks while striking out four over seven innings and 77 pitches. Manager Torey Lovullo echoed Kelly's comments about his early exit being precautionary in nature, as the skipper said that there is "zero chance" the calf will be an issue for the right-hander moving forward, according to Jesse Friedman of GoPHNX.com. Kelly tentatively lines up to start the Diamondbacks' final game before the All-Star break Sunday in Anaheim versus the Angels.