MLB Player News

Montgomery (COVID-19) is expected to return from the injured list to start one game of Tuesday's doubleheader against the Red Sox, Lindsey Adler of The Athletic reports.

The left-hander rejoined the team this weekend after testing positive for COVID-19 on Aug. 3, and he's poised to re-enter the starting rotation Tuesday. Montgomery has a 2.22 ERA, 0.99 WHIP and 29:9 K:BB over his past five starts (28.1 innings), and he'll attempt to pick up where he left off before he tested positive for the virus.

Manager Tony La Russa said Sunday that Rodon's medical examination came back clean and confirmed shoulder soreness, Vinnie Duber of NBC Sports Chicago reports.

Rodon is still expected to miss more than the 10-day minimum after landing on the injured list Wednesday, but according to James Fegan of The Athletic, La Russa indicated indicated the lefty could return during the upcoming four-game series in Toronto, which begins Aug. 23. Reynaldo Lopez is scheduled to start Tuesday and figures to remain in the rotation until Rodon is cleared to return.

Civale (finger) is scheduled to throw a two-inning simulated game Tuesday with High-A Lake County, Paul Hoynes of The Cleveland Plain Dealer reports.

The right-hander has been throwing off a mound for the past few weeks and will advance to facing live hitters Tuesday. Assuming all goes well with Lake County, Civale could subsequently begin a rehab assignment, which is likely to last multiple starts, as he nears his return from a nearly two-month absence.

The Padres placed Darvish (back) on the 10-day injured list Sunday, Bob Scanlan of Bally Sports San Diego reports.

As anticipated, Darvish will be forced to miss at least one more turn through the rotation after a bout with lower-back tightness cut his most recent outing Thursday against the Diamondbacks short. The banged-up San Diego pitching staff has few reinforcements on hand to replace Darvish, but Reiss Knehr -- who was recalled from Triple-A El Paso in a corresponding move -- could be one candidate to pick up a spot start while the reigning National League Cy Young Award runner-up is sidelined.

German (shoulder) is scheduled to throw a bullpen session Monday, Lindsey Adler of The Athletic reports.

The right-hander completed a bullpen session Saturday and will make a quick return to the mound two days later as he continues his throwing program. Manager Aaron Boone was uncertain whether German would embark on a rehab assignment following Monday's session.

The Padres are expected to place Darvish (back) on the 10-day injured list, Kevin Acee of The San Diego Union-Tribune reports.

After being removed from his 2.2-inning start Thursday against the Diamondbacks with lower-back tightness, Darvish hasn't made enough progress in his recovery to create much optimism that he'll be ready to make his next turn through the rotation. As a result, Darvish will likely be deactivated in the next day or two, becoming the latest in a long list of Padres pitchers to head to the IL. According to Acee, the Padres are exploring bringing in the recently released Jake Arrieta to bolster their dwindling rotation depth, but the club could look internally to fill in for Darvish when his next turn comes up this week.

The Brewers optioned Ashby to Triple-A Nashville on Sunday.

As anticipated, Ashby will head back to the minors after he was designated as the Brewers' 27th man ahead of Saturday's doubleheader with the Pirates. He picked up his third start of the season in the second game of the twin bill, tossing four scoreless innings en route to taking a no-decision in Milwaukee's 6-0 win. With Eric Lauer returning from the COVID-19 injured list to start Sunday's series finale and with Adrian Houser also closing in on a return from the COVID-19 IL, Ashby isn't expected to get any starting opportunities with Milwaukee in the near future.

The Brewers reinstated Lauer from the COVID-19 injured list ahead of his scheduled start Sunday against the Pirates.

Milwaukee optioned reliever Justin Topa to Triple-A Nashville and transferred reliever John Curtiss (elbow) from the 10-day IL to the 60-day IL to clear room for Lauer on the 26-man active roster and 40-man roster. Lauer, who was sidelined for a week and a half after testing positive for the virus, owns a 3.50 ERA and 1.24 WHIP in 69.1 innings across his 15 outings (11 starts) this season.

Corbin (6-12) was tagged with the loss Saturday against Atlanta after allowing six runs on seven hits and two walks while fanning five across 4.2 innings.

The veteran 32-year-old hurler continues to struggle and has been unable to repeat the strong performances he's had in past years with the Nationals. In fact, his 6.04 ERA would rank as a career-worst mark for him, and he has been pitching awfully of late with four or more runs allowed in six straight appearances. He owns a 7.83 ERA during that six-game stretch.

Fried (10-7) earned the win Saturday against the Nationals after allowing two runs (one earned) on five hits while fanning seven across six innings.

Fried recorded his fourth straight quality start and has given up two or fewer earned runs in each of those contests, as the left-hander continues to thrive every time he steps on the mound. While Fried has been consistently good all season long, he seems to have reached another level over the last few weeks -- he owns a 3.26 ERA and a 1.26 WHIP while posting a 9.8 K/9 over eight starts since the beginning of July.