MLB Player News

The Yankees reinstated Schmidt (shoulder) from the 15-day injured list ahead of his scheduled start Wednesday against the Royals in New York.

Schmidt opened the season on the shelf while recovering from right shoulder fatigue, but he'll make his 2025 debut with the Yankees after recently wrapping up a two-start rehab assignment in the minors. In his final outing with Double-A Somerset last Thursday, Schmidt tossed four scoreless innings and 61 pitches, so he could have a light workload restriction in place Wednesday.

Yankees manager Aaron Boone said Wednesday that the beginning of Gil's (lat) throwing progression will be pushed back about 10 days, Bryan Hoch of MLB.com reports.

Gil had been scheduled to play catch Wednesday or Thursday. However, the pitcher recently underwent an MRI, and doctors would like to see more healing with Gil's right lat before they clear him to throw. While he's not a setback, per se, Gil's recovery has not moved along as far as hoped.

Marlins manager Clayton McCullough indicated Wednesday that Perez (elbow) is about a month away from beginning a rehab assignment, Isaac Azout of FishOnFirst.com reports.

Perez faced hitters Wednesday, throwing 45 pitches with three "up-downs." Everything appears to be progressing as scheduled from April 2024 Tommy John surgery for Perez, and it sounds like a plan for rehab games will be mapped out in the not-too-distant future. If the right-hander does indeed begin a rehab assignment around mid-May, that would likely put him on pace for a season debut in mid-June.

Blanco (1-2) took the loss Wednesday against the Cardinals, allowing three runs on five hits and three walks over five innings. He struck out one.

Blanco got off to a nice start, allowing just one hit through his first four scoreless innings. However, the Cardinals led off the fifth with back-to-back singles before Lars Nootbaar launched a three-run homer. It's been a shaky beginning to the year for Blanco -- his ERA now sits at 6.48 with a 1.68 WHIP and 17:10 K:BB through his first four starts (16.2 innings). Blanco is currently scheduled for a home matchup with the Blue Jays in his next outing.

Eflin (lat) played catch Wednesday, Jacob Calvin Meyer of The Baltimore Sun reports.

Eflin began a throwing progression after being shut down with a mild right lat strain one week ago. The veteran right-hander is optimistic his absence won't last long, but a clearer picture of Eflin's timetable won't be available until he's further along in his throwing program.

Kershaw (toe/knee) struck out two and allowed two hits and issued no walks over three scoreless innings in his first rehab start with Triple-A Oklahoma on Wednesday.

Kershaw threw 22 of 30 pitches for strikes and sported a four-seamer that averaged just 87.5 miles per hour and topped out at 88.8 mph, which is down significantly from the 89.9 mph he averaged with the heater last season. However, the lack of velocity is not especially surprising given that Kershaw was pitching in a competitive setting for the first time this season. Kershaw isn't eligible to return from the 60-day injured list until May 17, so the Dodgers are prepared to give him the full 30 days he's allotted on his rehab assignment.

Soroka (biceps) will throw a simulated game Wednesday, Mark Zuckerman of MASNSports.com reports.

It will be his first time facing hitters since he went down with a right biceps strain in his season debut March 31. If Soroka's simulated game goes well, he'll likely be cleared to make 1-to-2 rehab starts. That would set the right-hander up to return in late April or early May if he continues to progress.

Seymour has a 2.40 ERA, 1.07 WHIP and 23:3 K:BB in 15 innings across three starts for Triple-A Durham.

The only Triple-A pitcher with a higher swinging-strike rate than Seymour (19.4 percent) is Spencer Strider (22.6 percent), who was completing a rehab assignment. Seymour is a lefty with a deceptive three-quarters delivery and a knack for keeping hitters off balance by changing speeds and landing all of his pitches for strikes. His fastball has averaged 89.6 mph (touched 91.6 mph) and he has thrown his changeup as much or more than his fastball while mixing in his cutter and seldom-used curveball and sweeper. Seymour is already on the 40-man roster and could join the big-league rotation whenever there is a need.

Blue Jays manager John Schneider said that Scherzer (thumb) is scheduled to meet with a doctor Wednesday after throwing on consecutive days, Keegan Matheson of MLB.com reports.

Scherzer experienced renewed soreness in his thumb after throwing late last week, but after a brief shutdown, the right-hander was able to start playing catch again. He'll get a checkup Wednesday from a different hand specialist than the one he had been meeting with previously with the hope that he's cleared to ramp up the intensity and volume of his throwing. Easton Lucas should continue to hold down a spot in the rotation until Scherzer is able to return from the injured list, perhaps in late April or early May if he incurs no further setbacks in the recovery process.

Lopez (hamstring) threw a bullpen session Wednesday, Dan Hayes of The Athletic reports.

The session went off without a hitch and now the Twins will wait to see how Lopez's right hamstring responds Thursday before they determine the next steps. Lopez is eligible for activation from the 15-day injured list April 24, and it's possible he's ready to go on that date if he continues to progress.