MLB Player News

Lively (10-7) took the loss Wednesday against the Diamondbacks in the opening game of a doubleheader, allowing four runs on four hits and four walks over five innings. He struck out two.

Lively struggled with command and control a bit Wednesday, issuing a season-high four walks. The Diamondbacks would ultimately make him pay with a pair of two-run homers in an eventual 7-3 Cleveland defeat. It's the first time in five starts that Lively's allowed more than two runs -- he'd posted a 2.78 ERA in his last four outings (22.2 innings) prior to Wednesday. Overall, the 32-year-old right-hander still sports a 3.59 ERA on the campaign with a 1.17 WHIP and 92:34 K:BB across 110.1 innings. Lively will look to rebound in his next outing, currently slated for early next week at home against the Cubs.

Pfaadt (6-6) earned the win in the first game of Wednesday's doubleheader against the Guardians, allowing two runs on four hits and a walk over 6.1 innings. He struck out six.

Pfaadt held Cleveland without a hit through his first four innings before Josh Naylor led off the fifth with a solo home run. The Guardians would add three more hits in the frame, but Pfaadt was able to limit the damage to just one additional run. The 25-year-old right-hander has been sharp of late, pitching to a 2.66 ERA in his last seven starts. Overall, Pfaadt sports a 3.92 ERA with a 1.11 WHIP and 124:29 K:BB across 137.2 innings this season. He's currently slated to face the Rockies at home early next week in his next outing.

The Orioles placed Rodriguez on the 15-day injured list Wednesday with right lat/teres discomfort.

Rodriguez was a late scratch from his scheduled start Tuesday versus the Blue Jays due to the injury and is now on the IL a day later. The Orioles aren't yet labeling the injury as a strain, but Rodriguez could still require more testing before a more specific diagnosis is available. He'll be eligible to return Aug. 19, but it's too soon to know whether the righty has a shot to be ready on that date. Albert Suarez pitched well as a last-minute substitution for Rodriguez on Tuesday and is likely to take his spot in the Baltimore rotation.

Ryan was removed from Wednesday's start against the Cubs in the bottom of the third inning with an undisclosed injury, Dan Hayes of The Athletic reports.

Ryan called for the trainer after delivering a pitch to Pete Crow-Armstrong, who was leading off the third inning for the Cubs. After a brief conversation with the trainer and manager Rocco Baldelli, Ryan exited without throwing a warmup pitch. He allowed one run on one hit over two-plus frames before being lifted.

Wicks (oblique) is scheduled to begin a rehab assignment Saturday with Triple-A Iowa, Meghan Montemurro of the Chicago Tribune reports.

Wicks' upcoming appearance with Iowa will be his first since mid-June, when he suffered a Grade 2 right oblique strain in a start against the Cardinals. Given the length of Wicks' absence, he'll likely need at least a couple of rehab outings beyond Saturday's to get fully stretched out, assuming the Cubs still want to keep him in play as an option for the rotation. Though Kyle Hendricks has shown improvement since re-entering the rotation when Wicks went down with the injury, Hendricks is still sporting a 5.05 ERA over his nine starts since mid-June and wouldn't seem to have much security as the club's No. 5 starter.

DeGrom (elbow) with throw a 20-pitch live batting practice session Thursday at Globe Life Field, Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News reports.

It will be deGrom's first time facing hitters since he underwent Tommy John surgery in June of 2023. Assuming it goes well, the right-hander will then progress to a two-inning live batting practice session early next week, which could be the final box he needs to check before being cleared to begin a rehab assignment. DeGrom will need multiple rehab starts before rejoining the Rangers' rotation.

Medina (elbow) underwent successful Tommy John surgery Wednesday in Arlington, Texas, Jason Burke of SI.com reports.

Since the Tommy John surgery is the first known elbow procedure of Medina's career, he should have a good chance at returning to pitching in games in 12-to-14 months, provided he experiences no setbacks in the rehab process. The timing of the surgery nonetheless means that Medina will be sidelined through most, if not all, of the 2025 season. Medina turned in a 5.18 ERA and 1.58 WHIP in 40 innings over his eight starts with Oakland before being shut down with a right elbow sprain in mid-July and eventually going under the knife.

The Twins will recall Varland from Triple-A St. Paul to start one of the games during Friday's doubleheader versus the Guardians, Dan Hayes of The Athletic reports.

Bailey Ober will also make a start for Minnesota during the twin bill, and the club has not yet made a decision on the order in which the two arms will appear. Varland holds a 1.19 ERA and 27:9 K:BB over 22.2 innings covering his last four starts at St. Paul.

Stroman's next scheduled start has been pushed back to Sunday against the Rangers as he works through some mechanical issues, Chris Kirschner of The Athletic reports.

Stroman's next turn would have been Friday, but the Yankees will give him a couple extra days as he irons some things out with his delivery. The right-hander has posted a 7.56 ERA and 1.92 WHIP over his last six starts and lasted just 2.2 innings his last time out versus the Blue Jays. Carlos Rodon and Gerrit Cole will each move up a day to start on Friday and Saturday, respectively.

The Rays reinstated Rasmussen (elbow) from the 60-day injured list Wednesday.

Rasmussen is expected to vie for a spot in the Tampa Bay rotation in 2025, but he'll be operating as a reliever down the stretch of the current season while he makes his return from the internal brace procedure he underwent last July. Though Rasmussen had a pair of Tommy John surgeries on his resume before he underwent his latest elbow operation last summer, he didn't seem to have much trouble regaining velocity or control during his rehab assignment. Over his five appearances at Triple-A Durham, Rasmussen gave up seven runs on 11 hits over 7.1 innings, but his 8:0 K:BB was encouraging. He's expected to operate as a one- or two-inning reliever for the Rays and will likely be eased back in with low-leverage work, though he could eventually push for usage in higher-leverage spots.