MLB Player News

Whitlock (knee) will embark on a rehab assignment with Triple-A Worcester on Saturday, Tim Healey of The Boston Globe reports.

Whitlock is ready to take the next step in his recovery from left knee inflammation that led to him being placed on the 15-day injured list in late May. Red Sox manager Chad Tracy relayed that how Whitlock's knee reacts following Saturday's Triple-A game will determine whether the right-hander will need just one rehab outing before being activated from the IL.

Manager John Schneider said Friday that Cease (hamstring) is "very likely" to rejoin the Blue Jays' rotation next week, Keegan Matheson of MLB.com reports.

Cease threw 75 pitches across four innings in a rehab start with Triple-A Buffalo on Thursday and came out of it feeling good. He appears likely to make the start for Toronto on Tuesday at home against the Phillies. The right-hander last pitched for the Blue Jays on May 24 and owns a 3.05 ERA, 1.21 WHIP and 92:26 K:BB across 62 innings this season.

Martinez is not in the starting lineup for Friday's game against the Rangers.

With Martinez getting the night off from the starting nine, Daniel Schneemann is making the start in center field, and Kyle Manzardo is at designated hitter with Rhys Hoskins manning first base. Over his last 13 games, Martinez is hitting just .140 with a .360 OPS across 51 plate appearances.

Rooker (knee) is back in the starting lineup and batting fourth as the designated hitter for Friday's game against the Astros.

Rooker got the day off from the starting nine Thursday against the Cubs due to knee soreness, but he's back in there for Friday's series opener versus Houston. Rooker is just 5-for-37 with one homer, two RBI, four runs scored and a 2:13 BB:K over his last 10 games.

Walls (hamstring) is back in the starting lineup for Friday's game against the Marlins, playing shortstop and batting ninth.

Walls was removed from Monday's game against the Tigers due to hamstring tightness and didn't start Tuesday or Wednesday ahead of the team's off day Thursday. Walls has an ugly .208/.313/.285 slash line with no homers and 14 RBI across 155 plate appearances this season.

The Athletics designated Kuhnel for assignment Friday.

The 31-year-old Kuhnel was on the mound for the Athletics' ninth-inning collapse Thursday against the Cubs. He allowed four runs on five hits across two-thirds of an inning, blowing a 6-3 lead. Kuhnel pitched to a 4.21 ERA, 1.29 WHIP and 14:6 K:BB across 25.2 innings out of the bullpen this season.

The Athletics recalled Alvarado from Triple-A Las Vegas on Friday.

The team DFA'd Joel Kuhnel in a corresponding move. Alvarado pitched in 10 games out of the Athletics' bullpen earlier this season and posted an 8.38 ERA, 1.86 WHIP and 9:7 K:BB across 9.2 innings. He has a 2.25 ERA and 16:4 K:BB across 12 innings with Las Vegas.

The Astros optioned Dezenzo to Triple-A Sugar Land on Friday, Matt Kawahara of the Houston Chronicle reports.

Houston needed the spot on the 26-man roster for Jose Altuve, who was activated from the 10-day IL in a corresponding move. Dezenzo has slashed just .191/.255/.340 with one homer, two RBI, five runs scored and a 4:19 BB:K across 51 plate appearances with the Astros this season. He needs to cut down on the strikeouts after fanning 37.3 percent of the time.

Winn (arm) will begin a rehab assignment with Triple-A Round Rock on Friday.

Winn hasn't pitched since May 23 due to arm fatigue, but he appears ready to see game action. The right-hander has pitched to a 5.59 ERA, 1.50 WHIP and 23:7 K:BB across 19.1 innings out of the Texas bullpen this season.

The Rangers activated Haggerty from the bereavement list Friday and designated him for assignment.

The utility man has appeared in 35 games for the Rangers this season but has slashed .159/.213/.182 with one extra-base hit, one RBI, three runs scored, two stolen bases and a 2:16 BB:K across 47 plate appearances.