MLB Player News

Schultz will be the Blue Jays' opening pitcher for Friday's contest in Minnesota.

Eric Lauer is expected to follow Schultz in a bulk relief role. Schultz is stretched out as a long reliever, but he'll be on two days' rest Friday, so his appearance figures to be relatively brief.

Martinez went 3-for-5 with a home run and two RBI for Triple-A Buffalo on Thursday.

The 23-year-old has gone yard in three straight games. homering four times during that span as he continues to turn his campaign around. Martinez's prospect status dimmed following last year's PED suspension, but since the beginning of May he's slashing .291/.359/.583 with seven homers and 18 RBI in 28 contests, and more importantly he's struck out just 21.4 percent of the time after he stumbled to a 39.5 percent strikeout rate in April. There's no room in the big-league infield for Martinez and his questionable glove right now, especially given the emergence of Addison Barger, but Martinez could slug his way into being an option for the Jays in the second half.

Jansen is absent from the lineup for Friday's game versus the Marlins.

Jansen was the Rays' starting catcher for Thursday's night game, so he will get some rest during Friday's matinee. Matt Thaiss is behind the dish and batting seventh.

Misner is absent from the lineup for Friday's game against the Marlins.

Misner had started the previous four tilts but will get a breather for Friday's series opener. Jake Mangum will slide over to center field and Jose Caballero will cover left field for the Rays.

Diaz is absent from the lineup for Friday's game against the Marlins.

It's a routine day off for Diaz, who had started each of the previous nine contests. The Rays are going with Brandon Lowe at designated hitter, with Curtis Mead getting the nod at second base.

Barriera (elbow) has been sent to the rookie-level Florida Complex League Blue Jays to begin a rehab assignment, Mitch Bannon of The Athletic reports.

Barriera is finally ready to pitch in games again after undergoing a hybrid Tommy John/internal brace procedure on his left elbow last April. The 2022 first-round pick has thrown only 21.2 innings in pro ball due to arm problems and will likely be assigned to Single-A Dunedin once he's been built up in the FCL.

Ramirez went 2-for-4 with a stolen base in Thursday's 4-0 loss to the Yankees.

Ramirez had two of Cleveland's three hits and stole his 17th base of the season, which is tied for eighth in MLB. The multi-hit effort was the fourth in the last five games for Ramirez, who also extended his on-base streak to 31 contests. The third baseman is slashing .393/.448/.639 with 11 walks, 17 extra-base hits (including six home runs), 15 RBI, 12 steals and 26 runs during the streak.

Manoah (elbow) will face live hitters Tuesday for the first time since a hybrid internal brace procedure last June, Mitch Bannon of The Athletic reports.

Manoah remains on track in his rehab, and he's nearly ready to face hitters after weeks of bullpen sessions. The right-hander is expected to begin a rehab assignment in July and rejoin the Blue Jays by August if all goes well.

Bieber (elbow) was scratched from Friday's scheduled rehab start for Double-A Akron due to soreness, Tim Stebbins of MLB.com reports.

Bieber experienced soreness after throwing a bullpen session with the RubberDucks on Tuesday. A consultation with Dr. Keith Meister, the physician who performed his Tommy John surgery last year, led to the recommendation that the right-hander pause his rehab for one week. "Obviously a little bit of the setback with shutting him down for a week, but it seems to be all normal -- normal rehab from Tommy John," Guardians manager Stephen Vogt said. "These things happen. So we'll reassess where we are in a week."

The Athletics re-signed Brooks to a minor-league contract Thursday.

Brooks has been assigned to Double-A Midland after pitching in the Mexican League to begin the year. The 35-year-old made four starts and one relief appearance for the Athletics last season, posting a 5.06 ERA and 12:8 K:BB over 26.2 frames.