MLB Player News

Rodriguez (hamstring) is back in the lineup for Friday's matchup against Boston.

After exiting early from Wednesday's matchup and riding the pine on Thursday, Rodriguez is back in the lineup for the series opener against Boston on Friday. The 25-year-old will play center field and bat third for Seattle.

The Mariners designated Mastrobuoni for assignment Friday.

Mastrobuoni went 5-for-23 with an RBI and three runs scored during his eight-game stint with the Mariners, but he'll now lose his place on the 26-man and 40-man rosters in favor of Weston Wilson. Mastrobuoni owns just a .567 OPS across 474 plate appearances in his MLB career, but his defensive versatility could draw some attention on the waiver wire.

The Mariners selected Wilson's contract from Triple-A Tacoma on Friday.

Wilson will return for his second stint in the majors this season, this time with a different team in Seattle. The 31-year-old appeared in 21 games with Baltimore before being designated for assignment June 6. Wilson slashed .231/.348/.33 with one homer in 46 plate appearances with the Orioles. Seattle designated Miles Mastrobuoni for assignment in order to make room for Wilson on the roster.

Lux (shoulder) is scheduled to begin a rehab assignment June 29, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

Lux has been on the injured list all season due to shoulder and ankle issues, though he was cleared to resume taking live batting practice last week. Manager Kevin Cash said Friday that the 28-year-old's shoulder is feeling better now that he's a month removed from suffering a setback during a rehab game, but the Rays will continue to bring him back slowly and wait until the end of the month before returning him to minor-league action. More information about the duration of Lux's upcoming rehab assignment may come once he begins playing in games.

Rodriguez (back) recently underwent an MRI that came back clean, per MLB.com.

The imaging brought promising news for the right-handed hurler, and he was able to play catch June 16. That was just two days after Rodriguez had to depart his start against Tampa Bay after feeling tightness in his back. It's not clear how long Rodriguez will be sidelined, but early indications are that he may not need much more than the minimum 15 days required by his IL stint.

Javier (shoulder) will make another appearance Sunday for Triple-A Sugar Land in what should be his final rehab start, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.

Javier only made three appearances for Houston before being placed on the injured list April 10. Houston believes this upcoming rehab start should be the 29-year-old's final one, so it seems the right-hander is close to being back with the big-league club after missing over two months of action.

Fried (elbow) will throw a bullpen session this weekend, Gary Phillips of the New York Daily News reports.

Fried has been out of action since mid-May due to a left elbow bone bruise. The southpaw was cleared to throw off a mound about a month later, and he tossed his first bullpen June 16. MLB.com reports that Fried's next bullpen will take place Sunday and that the veteran pitcher is currently asymptomatic. If he continues to progress without any setbacks, Fried could rejoin New York's rotation at some point in July.

Schmidt (elbow) tossed a side session Wednesday and is "a couple of weeks" away from facing live hitters, per MLB.com.

Schmidt is now almost a year out from the internal brace procedure he underwent last July. The veteran hurler began throwing from a mound in early April but has been limited to side sessions so far. If he continues his throwing program and is able to face hitters in late June or early July, Schmidt could be ready for game action at some point in August.

McCullers (shoulder) threw a 25-pitch live batting practice session Friday at Daikin Park, Chandler Rome of The Athletic reports.

It was the hurler's first time facing hitters since he was diagnosed with right shoulder inflammation in mid-May. The next step for McCullers will either be throwing another live batting practice session or going out on a rehab assignment. It seems McCullers could be back before the All-Star break if all goes well, but he still has several boxes to check.

Cleveland optioned Dion to Triple-A Columbus on Friday, Tim Stebbins of MLB.com reports.

Dion will make his way back to Columbus after making just six appearances since having his contract selected May 25. With Cleveland, the 26-year-old recorded a 5.56 ERA, 1.85 WHIP and 13:3 K:BB in 11.1 innings. Erik Sabrowski (elbow) will take Dion's spot on the active roster.