Christian Yelich again takes seat against lefty

Walker rejoins Baltimore’s bullpen mix for Monday’s series opener against the White Sox with fellow southpaw Keegan Akin hitting the shelf with an elbow issue. The 31-year-old has made three relief appearances for the Orioles this season.

No timetable yet for Akin, but elbow issues typically result in lengthy absences. The 31-year-old lefty has struggled to an inflated 5.68 ERA, 1.46 WHIP and 17/9 K/BB ratio across 25 1/3 innings this season.

Refsnyder is dealing with a knee issue. It’ll be newly acquired Buddy Kennedy taking his spot on Seattle’s roster prior to Monday’s contest against the division-rival Angels.

It’s typically the final step before a position player heads out on a minor league rehab assignment. The Mariners could certainly use Donovan back given their injury issues up and down the roster. The 29-year-old infielder has been battling lingering groin issues pretty much all season, which he believes are tied to last year’s sports hernia surgery. He’s been on the injured list since mid-May due to a groin strain.

It’s pretty remarkable that Raley has managed to avoid a trip to the injured list since he’s dealt with forearm and back issues, while also missing time due to illness, since mid-June. The 31-year-old will attempt to play through a left forearm strain that cropped up on a swing over the weekend. It’ll be Victor Robles in right field on Monday night in his place.

Canzone will attempt to play through a lingering right hamstring issue that’s been bothering him since last weekend. The 28-year-old, who has homered eight times in his last 30 games, will be limited to DH for at least the next couple days and there’s optimism he’ll manage to avoid a trip to the injured list.

Merrill has been scuffling recently, hitting just .228 (28-for-123) with four homers and seven steals over his last 30 games. He’s just 5-for-28 over his last seven games. His cold spell corresponds with a hot streak from Samad Taylor, who has been hitting second for the last couple weeks now. The Padres have moved him out of the heart of the order temporarily with lefty Shota Imanaga taking the ball for Chicago at Wrigley Field on Monday night.

It’s not official, but it seems highly likely that Schultz will return to take the ball later this week. The 22-year-old top pitching prospect threw 74 pitches and struck out seven over 4 2/3 innings during his latest minor league rehab start for Triple-A Charlotte last Friday. The towering 22-year-old southpaw offers enough strikeout upside that he’s worthy of a speculative roster spot in deeper fantasy formats. It’s a tough matchup against a strong Baltimore lineup, but he’s a name to watch closely in all fantasy formats based on his immense raw talent.

Fried is aiming for roughly 30 pitches over two innings during his latest throwing session. It’ll be his first time facing hitters since landing on the shelf with a bone bruise in his elbow back in mid-May. The 32-year-old figures to be ready to progress to a minor league rehab assignment at some point in early July with a return to New York’s rotation possible after the All-Star break.

Astros manager Joe Espada told reporters Peña will undergo further evaluation to determine the severity of the issue. There should be some additional clarity on his status after the contest. The 28-year-old shortstop has been on a tear at the plate recently, hitting .319 (29-for-91) with three homers, 13 RBI and five steals since the start of June. He’s presumably day-to-day for now. It’ll be Nick Allen filling in at shortstop in his return from the injured list on Monday night.