MLB Player News

Houck (face) will make his next rehab appearance with Triple-A Worcester on Thursday, Alex Speier of The Boston Globe reports.

Houck has been on the injured list since June 18 after requiring surgery to address a fracture on the right side of his face, but the right-hander is closing on a return to the Red Sox. He made his first rehab appearance with Worcester on Saturday, covering 1.2 innings and allowing three hits and three walks while tossing 46 pitches. The Red Sox are preparing to bring Houck back from the IL as a starter, so he'll presumably require two more outings in the minors to get fully stretched out.

The Yankees placed Rodon on the 15-day injured list Monday after he was diagnosed with a left hamstring strain following an MRI.

Rodon had hoped to avoid a stint on the IL after he exited his start in Sunday's loss to the Astros in the third inning with what the Yankees had labeled as a left hamstring tightness, but follow-up tests determined he was dealing with a muscular tear. The veteran southpaw is headed to the IL for the second time this season, after he began the campaign on the shelf while recovering from forearm and back injuries before making his Yankees debut July 7. A timeline for Rodon's return hasn't yet been established, but his upcoming absence likely solidifies the struggling Luis Severino's spot in the rotation after Yankees manager Aaron Boone had previously been non-committal about Severino's role moving forward.

Red Sox manager Alex Cora said Whitlock (elbow) is expected to be reinstated from the 15-day injured list Sunday, Alex Speier of The Boston Globe reports.

Before being activated, Whitlock will make just one three-inning rehab appearance, which will come Wednesday at Triple-A Worcester. Cora reiterated Monday that Whitlock will be returning to the Red Sox in a relief role, though the organization isn't necessarily pulling the plug on moving the right-hander back to the rotation in 2024. While the move to the bullpen likely lessens his overall fantasy appeal so long as closer Kenley Jansen is available for save situations, Whitlock could still have some value as a ratio stabilizer in a multi-inning relief role. Over 112.2 career innings as a reliever between the 2021 and 2022 seasons, Whitlock compiled a 2.24 ERA, 0.99 WHIP and 22.9 K-BB%.

Red Sox manager Alex Cora said Monday that Sale (shoulder) will likely be activated from the 60-day injured list to start Friday's game against the Tigers at Fenway Park, Alex Speier of The Boston Globe reports.

Sale built up to just 53 pitches over his two rehab starts with Triple-A Worcester, but the Red Sox won't have the veteran southpaw waste any more bullets in the minors after he was electric in his most recent outing Sunday, when he struck out seven and walked none over 4.1 scoreless frames. Since he's not yet fully stretched out for a traditional starting role, Sale could be capped at around 70-to-80 pitches Friday and may be deployed in tandem with another pitcher, but he could still have a long enough leash to hit the five innings he needs to qualify for a win. Sale's upcoming start will be his first with the Red Sox since June 1 after a two-plus-month recovery from a stress reaction in his left scupla.

Stroman (hip) will throw a bullpen session Tuesday, Taylor McGregor of Marquee Sports Network reports.

Stroman landed on the injured list last week, and he will not have to wait long to get back on the bump. Manager David Ross is hoping that Stroman will be ready to return from the injured list when first eligible Aug. 16, and a successful session Tuesday would go a long way toward reaching that goal.

The Marlins recalled Perez from Double-A Pensacola ahead of his scheduled start Monday in Cincinnati, Jordan McPherson of the Miami Herald reports.

Perez is back in the big leagues and will make his first appearance since July 6 after the Marlins elected to stash him in the minors for the past month in an effort to limit his workload in his age-20 campaign. Per McPherson, Perez's start Monday is expected to be one of 10 the Marlins are tentatively planning on having him make over the rest of the season, provided Miami still remains in the thick of playoff contention by late September/early October. After turning a dazzling 2.36 ERA while striking out 61 batters over 53.1 innings over his first 11 big-league starts, Perez looks worthy of an immediate activation this week for any fantasy managers that had been holding him.

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts confirmed Monday that Kershaw (shoulder) is "very likely" to return from the 15-day injured list to start Thursday against the Rockies, Jack Harris of the Los Angeles Times reports.

Kershaw had already been trending toward a Thursday return, and Roberts has all but locked it in at this point. The southpaw threw a bullpen session Sunday without issue, and as long as he recovers without incident, he'll be cleared to make his first major-league start since July 3. The future Hall of Famer has been dealing with inflammation in his left shoulder.

Barco (elbow) was activated from the 60-day injured list and assigned to Single-A Bradenton on Aug. 3.

He walked two and struck out two while recording just two outs in his first start for the Marauders on Sunday. Barco built up to four innings in his final rehab start in the Florida Complex League, so it's a bit surprising he recorded only two outs in his first Single-A start. He underwent Tommy John surgery prior to getting selected by the Pirates with the 44th overall pick in last year's draft.

McKenzie (elbow) hasn't experienced any setbacks since he resumed playing catch July 28, MLB.com reports.

According to the report, McKenzie was able to play catch on five consecutive days without issue, a good sign as he continues his recovery from a right UCL sprain. He remains hopeful to pitch again for the big club in 2023, but until he reaches the point in his rehab where he's facing live hitters, the Guardians likely won't offer up a concrete target date for his return from the 60-day injured list. Based on where he currently stands in his rehab program, McKenzie is likely at least a month away from rejoining the Cleveland rotation in a best-case scenario.

Bieber (elbow) was cleared to begin a throwing program Wednesday, MLB.com reports.

Bieber has reportedly been pain-free after picking up the ball for the first time since the All-Star break, but he's likely been limited to playing light catch thus far. The right-hander will gradually increase the distance of his long-toss throwing before graduating to bullpen sessions and then facing live hitters. Considering he still has multiple hurdles to clear in his recovery from right elbow inflammation and was placed on the 60-day injured list, Bieber won't be ready to rejoin the Guardians until around the middle of September in a best-case scenario.