MLB Player News

Urias (hamstring) did not throw off the bullpen mound Saturday as planned, Bill Plunkett of The Orange County Register reports.

It's not all bad news, as Urias was able to go through a full workout and throw from flat ground Saturday. However, since he did not resume mound work as expected, this could potentially set his return date back a bit. Manager Dave Roberts said earlier this week that he was "hopeful" to have the lefty back in early June against the Yankees when first eligible.

Dunning was placed on the paternity list Saturday.

Dunning will be away from the team for up to three days as he and his wife welcome their newborn baby. Considering he'd been slated slated to start Sunday against the Orioles, the Rangers will likely have to call up a new arm to toe the rubber or skip Dunning in the rotation.

The Brewers optioned Small to Triple-A Nashville on Saturday.

Small covered three innings behind starter Freddy Peralta in Friday's loss to the Giants, allowing five runs on nine hits. The lefty's ERA now sits at 15.00, and he was going to be unavailable for a few days after Friday's outing, so it only makes sense that the Brewers would swap him out for a fresh arm. Jake Cousins was recalled in a corresponding move.

McKenzie (shoulder) covered 4.1 innings and allowed four earned runs on six hits and two walks while striking out six in his second rehab start Thursday with Triple-A Columbus.

After striking out four in three scoreless frames in his first rehab outing with Columbus back on May 20, McKenzie looked less sharp while returning to the hill five days later. He still spotted just under two-thirds of his 68 pitches for strikes and made a good amount of bats miss, but the pair of walks and a pair of home runs allowed were blemishes on his final line. The Guardians haven't clarified whether McKenzie will require one last rehab start, or if he'll be ready to return from the 60-day injured list to make his 2023 debut for the big club during Cleveland's three-game series in Baltimore to begin the upcoming week.

Wentz is expected to pitch again in the Tigers' upcoming series with the Rangers, Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press reports.

Although he's struggled mightily over his last three starts, posting a 14.54 ERA and 2.88 WHIP, Wentz is expected to get another shot to toe the rubber with the Tigers next week. Manager A.J. Hinch believes that the team may have to "do some creative things" to get the left-hander back on track, which could include having him enter the game after an opener draws the start. Regardless, Detroit's rotation remains very banged up and Wentz seems likely to stick around for now.

Rea is scheduled to start Sunday's game against the Giants in Milwaukee.

Given the Brewers' ever-growing list of injuries in the rotation along with the fact that Rea blanked the Astros over 5.1 innings in his return to a starting role earlier this week, it comes as little surprise that he'll receive a second straight turn. With none of the Brewers' injured starting pitchers seemingly close to a return, Rea's spot in the rotation should be safe for a bit, but he's still tough to depend on outside of NL-only leagues or deeper mixed leagues. Through 36.1 innings with the big club in 2023, Rea has gone 1-3 and owns a 4.71 ERA, 1.27 WHIP and 29:15 K:BB.

Peralta (5-4) took the loss Friday as the Brewers fell 15-1 to the Giants, coughing up 10 runs (but only four earned) on eight hits and a walk over 2.1 innings. He struck out four.

The entire Milwaukee club lost focus early in the game after Willy Adames was struck in the head by a foul ball while in the dugout and taken to the hospital. Peralta's own error helped contribute to the six unearned runs on his line. The 26-year-old had four quality starts in his five prior outings, so given the circumstances he can get a mulligan on this performance. Peralta will take a 4.80 ERA, 1.42 WHIP and 58:23 K:BB through 54.1 innings into his next start, likely to come on the road next week in Toronto.

Rodriguez was optioned to Triple-A Norfolk on Saturday.

Rodriguez will head down to Norfolk after he's struggled on the mound recently, posting an inflated 11.14 ERA and 2.10 WHIP with 22 strikeouts over 21 innings in five starts in May. The 23-year-old has struggled with the long ball this season, surrendering 13 homers over his 10 outings. Rodriguez will now have an opportunity to get back on track with Norfolk before he inevitably gets another shot in the big leagues down the line. Keegan Akin was called up to replace Rodriguez on the major-league roster.

Blackburn (finger) will be activated from the 15-day injured list to make his season debut in a start Monday against Atlanta, Alex Espinoza of MLB.com reports.

The right-hander will make his long-awaited first turn of 2023 after overcoming a cracked fingernail and subsequent blister as well as numerous rocky rehab outings. Blackburn finally appeared to find his footing in a five-inning start for Triple-A Las Vegas against Tacoma on Wednesday, allowing just an earned run over five innings while recording five strikeouts. Blackburn followed it up with a setback-free 25-pitch bullpen session Friday, teeing up Monday's debut. With the 2022 All-Star having worked up to 73 pitches in that most recent appearance for the Aviators, Blackburn shouldn't be on too restrictive a pitch count versus Atlanta.

Wood (1-0) picked up the win Friday in a 15-1 rout of the Brewers, allowing one run on three hits and five walks over 5.2 innings. He struck out five.

The southpaw threw only 55 of 93 pitches for strikes, but he was able to avoid any significant damage from his control issues and got staked to a 10-1 lead in the third inning. It marked the first time this season Wood has been able to complete five innings, and he'll take a 3.51 ERA, 1.44 WHIP and 26:13 K:BB through 25.2 innings into his next outing, likely to come at home next week against the Pirates.