MLB Player News

Crawford is scheduled to either start or serve as a bulk reliever in Thursday's series finale with the Rays in Tampa Bay, Chris Cotillo of The Springfield Republican reports.

The Red Sox intend to wait until Friday's series opener with the Yankees to bring Nathan Eovaldi (back/hip) back from the 15-day injured list, so Crawford will receive one more turn through the rotation as a temporary fifth starter. Crawford impressed in his start last weekend against the Yankees, covering five innings and striking out six while allowing one earned run on four hits and two walks in a no-decision.

Manager Alex Cora said the Red Sox will likely activate Whitlock (hip) from the 15-day injured list prior to Friday's series opener with the Yankees, Chris Cotillo of The Springfield Republican reports.

Whitlock will be making his return to the Red Sox as a multi-inning option out of the bullpen, even though he enjoyed a good deal of success in his nine starts for Boston prior to landing on the IL on June 10 with right hip inflammation. Though the Red Sox view Whitlock as a starter over the long haul, the organization is hopeful that the bullpen role will maximize the right-hander's effectiveness and preserve his overall health. Since he's not expected to regularly factor into the equation for saves with Tanner Houck and John Schreiber having seemingly established themselves as the preferred options at the back end of the bullpen, Whitlock's fantasy value could take a big hit as he steps into a relief role, though he should still have some appeal as a ratio stabilizer. Whitlock is scheduled to make a two-inning rehab appearance Tuesday for Double-A Portland before the Red Sox formally activate him for the weekend series with the Yankees.

Red Sox manager Alex Cora said Monday that Eovaldi (back) is in line to be activated from the 15-day injured list to start Friday's game against the Yankees in New York, Chris Cotillo of The Springfield Republican reports.

Eovaldi's return for the series opener in New York will likely be contingent on him completing a between-starts bullpen session Tuesday without incident. The right-hander is coming off a three-inning rehab appearance at Triple-A Worcester on Sunday, with Eovaldi striking out four and allowing two earned runs on five hits and no walks in the 54-pitch outing. Since he was sidelined for more than a month with lower back and hip issues and didn't get fully stretched out during his rehab assignment, Eovaldi could be capped at somewhere between 70 and 90 pitches Friday.

Gausman (ankle) won't be available to start Tuesday's game against the Phillies, as the Blue Jays have announced Jose Berrios as their starter for the series opener, Mitch Bannon of SI.com reports.

After Gausman completed a bullpen session Friday, he was viewed as an option to start Sunday's series finale in Seattle, but the Blue Jays determined he wasn't ready to go for that contest, with Max Castillo getting the starting nod in his stead. Even after a team off day Monday, Gausman apparently hasn't completely moved past the right ankle injury, so the Blue Jays will push back his return at least one more day. The Blue Jays still appear to be leaving the door open for Gausman to start Wednesday against the Phillies, but he'll miss out on a two-start week with Berrios taking the hill Tuesday.

Berrios will start Tuesday in the first contest of the Blue Jays' two-game series with the Phillies in Toronto, Mitch Bannon of SI.com reports.

Toronto held out hope that Kevin Gausman (ankle) would be ready to go for its first game of the week, but the right-hander apparently needs at least one more day to heal up from his injury. Due to an off day Monday, the Blue Jays will be able to turn to Berrios, who takes the hill on five days' rest. He'll tentatively line up for a two-start week, with his second turn set to come Sunday at home against the Royals in the Blue Jays' final game before the All-Star break.

Martin was called up from Triple-A Charlotte and is starting Game 1 of Tuesday's doubleheader against the Guardians.

Martin will operate as the team's 27th man Tuesday, drawing his third major-league start this season. The 25-year-old has produced a 4.29 ERA and 1.24 WHIP with 17 strikeouts over 21 innings across five appearances with the White Sox. Martin will likely be returned to Triple-A following Tuesday's contests.

The Pirates promoted Chandler on Tuesday from their rookie-level Florida Complex League affiliate to Single-A Bradenton.

Chandler, a third-round draft pick in 2021 who is being developed as a two-way player, worked exclusively as a hitter upon being selected last summer. The Pirates were likely just looking to keep his innings in check after he completed his final season of high school last spring, but Chandler has been splitting his time between pitching and serving as a designated hitter during FCL games in 2022. Over five appearances on the mound in rookie ball, Chandler struck out 21 and issued seven walks over 12.1 scoreless innings. He was only slightly less impressive at the plate, turning in a monstrous 1.098 OPS while walking more times (nine) than he struck out (six) in 26 plate appearances. The Florida State League should present a stiffer test for the talented 19-year-old.

Fried (9-3) took the loss Monday as Atlanta fell 4-1 to the Mets, giving up two runs on five hits and five walks over five innings. He struck out five.

The southpaw didn't have much margin for error with Max Scherzer in top form for New York, but Fried didn't help his cause by tossing only 55 of 99 pitches for strikes before exiting. It's only the second time in his last eight starts Fried has issued multiple free passes, and even with Monday's bumpy outing, he sports a 1.93 ERA, 1.03 WHIP and 48:11 K:BB through 51.1 innings over that stretch.

Mikolas (6-7) picked up the win in Monday's 6-1 victory over the Phillies, allowing one run on six hits over 7.1 innings. He struck out five without walking a batter.

The right-hander served up a solo shot to Rhys Hoskins in the first inning but was in full control after that, tossing an efficient 99 pitches (62 strikes) before exiting. Mikolas has delivered six quality starts in his last seven outings, posting a 2.08 ERA, 0.76 WHIP and 37:7 K:BB through 47.2 innings over that impressive stretch, but a lack of consistent run support has left him with a 2-4 record during that time.

Nola (5-7) was the pitcher of record in Monday's 6-1 loss to the Cardinals after allowing five earned runs on seven hits and no walks while striking out seven across seven innings.

The five runs he allowed Monday tied a season high, but it was mostly a result of an untimely sequencing of hits, as he retired 21 of the 28 batters he faced on the night. He's now taken losses in three of his last four outings, though his 2.93 FIP over that stretch suggests that he's pitched better than his results would indicate. Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski confirmed Monday that due to his vaccination status, Nola won't be eligible to join the team in Toronto for its two-game series, so the right-hander will be moved to the restricted list. He'll be activated Friday and should make his final start before the All-Star break Saturday or Sunday in Miami.