MLB Player News

Matz (back) is hoping to return sometime in August, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.

The left-hander threw his second bullpen session Saturday since resuming a throwing program. Matz has been on the injured list since May 3 due to a lower-back strain and had to be pulled off his initial rehab assignment in June following a setback. He'll need another rehab assignment before returning, at which point a timeline for his return should become clearer.

Edman (wrist) is expected to resume his rehab assignment with Double-A Springfield on Tuesday, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.

Edman played four rehab games with Springfield from July 9 through 14 but has missed the last week of action due to lingering ankle soreness. He'll go through a workout Tuesday, and assuming all goes well, he'll return to game action Wednesday as Springfield's designated hitter. Edman has yet to play the field and will need to show he can handle multiple positions with no concerns before he's ready for his season debut with the Cardinals.

Rojas (forearm) is not in the starting lineup for Monday's series opener against the Giants, Kirsten Watson of Spectrum SportsNet LA reports.

As expected, Rojas will be absent from Monday's lineup after he left in the third inning of Sunday's 9-6 win over the Red Sox due to right forearm tightness. Enrique Hernandez will start at shortstop and bat ninth against Giants southpaw Blake Snell. Dodgers' manager Dave Roberts also said he'll likely stay away from Rojas again Tuesday, in the hopes the shortstop will be cleared to return Wednesday, per Watson.

Bellinger (finger) is able to hit without much discomfort but is still having some trouble gripping a baseball, Bruce Levine of 670TheScore.com reports.

Bellinger is nearly two weeks removed from suffering a fractured left middle finger and the Cubs are encouraged with how he's progressed. It sounds like he could be ready to hit in a game before playing defense, but the team likely wants him to be able to do both before it clears him to return. Adding some intrigue to the timeline for Bellinger's return -- which remains up in the air -- is that he could be traded before the July 30 deadline.

Diaz (calf) is absent from the Rockies' lineup Monday against the Red Sox.

Diaz left in the third inning of Saturday's win over the Giants due to right calf tightness, and it appears to be bothering him enough to sideline him for a second straight game. Jacob Stallings will start behind the plate Monday and bat seventh against Red Sox right-hander Tanner Houck.

McMahon is not in the starting lineup for Monday's series opener against the Red Sox due to a jammed finger, Patrick Lyons of JustBaseball.com reports.

McMahon was originally slated for a rest day Sunday, but he was inserted into the starting lineup after Ezequiel Tovar went home with flu-like symptoms and wound up jamming his finger. The issue doesn't appear to be serious though, and McMahon could be back Tuesday. Aaron Schunk will get the nod at the hot corner and bat ninth against Boston right-hander Tanner Houck.

Marsh is not in Monday's lineup against the Twins due to a sore right elbow, Scott Lauber of The Philadelphia Inquirer reports.

Phillies manager Rob Thomson said Monday that Marsh had been playing through the issue during the weekend series against the Pirates. The expectation is for Marsh to be available for Tuesday's game.

The Cubs transferred Little (lat) from the 15-day injured list to the 60-day IL on Monday.

The move frees up a spot for Julian Merryweather's (ribs) return from the 60-day IL. Over the weekend, manager Craig Counsell said Little would likely miss the rest of the season due to a left lat strain.

The Cubs optioned Bigge to Triple-A Iowa on Monday.

Bigge has made a good initial impression with the Cubs in allowing one run with a 5:2 K:BB over 3.1 frames during two short stints in the majors. He will be back in the big-league bullpen eventually but will head back to Iowa for the time being.

The Cubs activated Merryweather (ribs) from the 60-day injured list Monday.

Merryweather has missed most of this season with a rib stress fracture but is ready to go after allowing one run with a 5:0 K:BB over 4.2 innings during his rehab assignment. The hard-throwing right-hander should handle high-leverage spots for the Cubs, though he might be eased back into such situations.