MLB Player News

German (shoulder) threw three innings of live batting practice Wednesday and has been cleared to begin a minor-league rehab assignment, Bryan Hoch of MLB.com reports.

German had to face hitters once more prior to returning to game action in the minors, and he'll now be able to begin a rehab assignment after getting through his throwing session without any issues. The right-hander will likely require several rehab starts before returning from the injured list, and the Yankees plan to build him up as a starter during his time with a minor-league affiliate.

Priester (oblique) was activated from the 7-day injured list at Double-A Altoona and will pitch Sunday, Kevin Gorman of TribLive.com reports.

He will take the rotation spot of Mike Burrows, who was just promoted to Triple-A Indianapolis. Priester has been making rehab starts in the lower minors and gave up five earned runs with four strikeouts in 5.2 innings across two appearances. He may still have some rust to knock off early on at Double-A, having not pitched at all this season between spring training and his rehab assignment.

Woodruff (Raynaud's syndrome) could make one more rehab start next week for High-A Wisconsin before rejoining the big-league rotation, Curt Hogg of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports.

First, Woodruff will start Saturday for Triple-A Nashville, and if that goes well, he will fly back to Milwaukee on Sunday and potentially make one more rehab start for the nearby affiliate. A return to the big-league rotation following Saturday's rehab start hasn't been officially ruled out, but it's seeming like Woodruff is tracking toward a return at the end of the month either in Tampa Bay on June 29 or in Pittsburgh on June 30.

Severino, who was placed on the COVID-19 injured list rather than make his scheduled start Thursday, has not tested positive but is experiencing symptoms, Lindsey Adler of The Athletic reports.

He began experiencing fevers and chills Wednesday night but Severino is reportedly doing better Thursday. It's unclear if he's tested negative or if he just hadn't been tested at the time of Adler's report. It seems possible that Severino may be able make his start the next time through the rotation. Clarke Schmidt is starting a bullpen game Thursday.

Schmidt will start Thursday's game against the Rays after Luis Severino was placed on the COVID-19 injured list, Bryan Hoch of MLB.com reports.

While Schmidt is well rested, having not pitched since June 10, he also hasn't thrown more than two innings since he covered 2.2 innings May 14. With this in mind, it will likely be a bullpen game for the Yankees, and Schmidt is unlikely to go deep enough to qualify for the win. He has a 3.26 ERA, 1.14 WHIP and 15:10 K:BB in 19.1 innings through 11 appearances this year.

Severino was placed on the COVID-19 injured list shortly before Thursday's scheduled start against the Rays, Bryan Hoch of MLB.com reports.

This news comes less than four hours before first pitch, and it's unclear how long Severino will be sidelined. Clarke Schmidt will get the start in what should amount to a bullpen game for the Yankees.

Wolf (undisclosed) has given up two runs (one earned) on four hits and four walks while striking out six over seven innings in his two starts for Single-A Lynchburg since being activated from the 7-day injured list June 7.

Wolf was sidelined for the first two months of the season while recovering from an unspecified injury. The 21-year-old right-hander was part of the prospect haul that Cleveland received from the Mets in the January 2021 deal that sent Francisco Lindor and Carlos Carrasco to Queens.

Civale (thigh) completed his second rehab start with Triple-A Columbus on Wednesday, striking out seven over 4.2 innings while giving up an unearned run on two hits, a walk and two hit batsmen.

Civale wasn't incredibly efficient -- he tossed only 46 of his 76 pitches for strikes -- but he did a good job of overwhelming hitters Wednesday, as 12 of the 13 outs he recorded came via punchouts or groundouts. The sizable workload along with the Guardians' decision to demote Konnor Pilkington to Triple-A on Thursday implies that Cleveland plans to have Civale return from the 15-day injured list to make his next start in the big leagues.

Whitley (elbow) struck out two over two innings and was charged with three earned runs on three hits and two walks in a rehab start Thursday with the Astros' rookie-level Florida Complex League affiliate.

Whitley's numbers are indicative of some rust, but that was to be expected after he hadn't made an appearance in affiliated ball since Sept. 2, 2019. Arm troubles prevented him from joining the Astros during the pandemic-shortened 2020 campaign, and he missed the entire 2021 season after undergoing Tommy John surgery last March. Now 15 months removed from the procedure, Whitley should gradually work deeper into his rehab starts and ideally will show improved command before likely settling into the Triple-A Sugar Land rotation. The Astros will be careful to monitor Whitley's workload this season coming off surgery, so if he gets a call to the big leagues in 2022, he may be tasked with a relief role.

The Giants announced that Cobb (neck) will be activated from the 15-day injured list to start Sunday's game against the Pirates in Pittsburgh, Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area reports.

Cobb is on track to return after a minimum-length stay on the IL due to a neck strain. He completed a live batting practice session Tuesday without incident, and the Giants determined after evaluating him a day later that he wouldn't require a rehab assignment before coming off the IL. Prior to sustaining the neck injury, Cobb went 3-2 with a 5.73 ERA and 1.49 WHIP over eight starts spanning 37.2 innings, but a strong 21.3 K-BB% and 2.67 SIERA offer hope that he'll be able to stage a major turnaround in the ratio categories.