MLB Player News

Brubaker will start Game 1 of Saturday's doubleheader against the Reds after Friday's game was rained out, C. Trent Rosecrans of The Athletic reports.

Mitch Keller will start Saturday's nightcap, with the Reds no longer having need of a sixth starter for this weekend's series.

Irivin, who was placed on the 15-day injured list Thursday, is dealing with shoulder tendonitis, Martin Gallegos of MLB.com reports.

He will reportedly resume throwing in a few days and could return when first eligible in mid-May. Zach Logue replaced him in the rotation Friday against the Twins.

Gray (hamstring) could be activated to start Saturday against the A's, Dan Hayes of The Athletic reports.

He was originally going to make a rehab start for Triple-A St. Paul on Saturday, but now it's looking like he could make that start in the majors with Chris Paddack getting pushed to Sunday. Gray threw three scoreless innings with five strikeouts and no walks Sunday for Single-A Fort Myers.

Soroka (Achilles) hasn't had any setbacks in his recovery process and has been doing some mound work recently, Justin Toscano of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.

Soroka hasn't appeared in a game since August of 2020 due to multiple tears of his Achilles tendon. His most recent surgery was in early July of 2021, and it's encouraging that he's now able to throw off a mound. The team is hoping the right-hander will be able to return to game action around the All-Star break, but there's still a long way for him to go in his rehab before the team will be able to pinpoint a return date.

Wainwright landed on the injured list Friday after testing positive for COVID-19, John Denton of MLB.com reports.

The Cardinals originally didn't announce which injured list Wainwright was being placed on nor why he was absent, as has become standard protocol for players hitting the COVID-19 injured list. It turns out that he did in fact test positive for the virus, but the right-hander noted on his personal Twitter page that he's symptom-free. He'll have to test negative twice before returning to action, but if he remains unaffected by the illness he should be no worse for wear once he makes it back.

Matz (personal) was activated from the bereavement list Friday.

Matz was placed on the bereavement list Tuesday but has rejoined the team as expected without missing his turn through the rotation. The left-hander is scheduled to start Saturday against the Giants and has a 4.56 ERA, 1.44 WHIP and 27:5 K:BB across 23.2 innings this season.

Wainwright was placed on the injured list for undisclosed reasons Friday.

Not only did the Cardinals' announcement not specify the reason for Wainwright's absence, it also didn't specify which injured list the veteran righty had been placed on. That's the pattern teams have used when placing players on the COVID-19 injured list, which seems to be the case here. If Wainwright has tested positive for the virus, he could miss a handful of starts, but if he's out for other reasons, it's possible he returns without missing a single turn. His absence allows the Cardinals to activate Steven Matz from the bereavement list.

Whitlock's role in the rotation remains safe for now with Rich Hill heading to the COVID-19 injured list, Alex Speier of The Boston Globe reports.

After opening the year by allowing one run on four hits in 9.2 innings of relief work, Whitlock stepped into the rotation for a trio of successful starts. He's only averaged four innings across those starts, though he reached a season-high five in his latest outing Wednesday against the Angels. Whitlock's 1.25 ERA and 29:4 K:BB on the year will make it tough for Boston to send him back to the bullpen, though workload concerns could still cause such a move at some point given that he worked exclusively in relief last season.

Manager Mike Matheny said Friday that Bubic will operate out of the bullpen going forward, Anne Rogers of MLB.com reports.

The 24-year-old was unable to escape the first inning during his start Wednesday, and he'll now shift to a bullpen role. Bubic threw 24 pitches during that contest and will be available to pitch Saturday versus the Orioles. It remains unclear who will replace him in the starting rotation.

Hill was placed on the COVID-19 injured list Friday, Ian Browne of MLB.com reports.

Hill hasn't yet tested positive for COVID-19 but is experiencing symptoms and will isolate from the team as a precautionary measure. While he'll be eligible to return as soon as he clears the league's protocols, his timetable depends on whether he ultimately tests positive. He started Thursday's game against the Angels, so his next turn through the rotation tentatively lines up for Wednesday in Atlanta. However, the Red Sox have a pair of off days next week, so Hill could be pushed back in the rotation or skipped completely if he isn't cleared to return by Wednesday.