MLB Player News

The No. 2 overall pick in the 2014 Draft, Kolek underwent Tommy John surgery last April. The 21-year-old’s professional high in innings is 108 2/3 and he’ll obviously be watched closely from a workload perspective in 2017. “Everything feels great,” said Kolek, “till you start pushing it a little bit. Then your body reminds you that you did have surgery. So it’s like, you have to listen to the doctor. There’s no rushing anything. It doesn’t matter whether I rush or not or if I feel really good. I can’t pitch tomorrow.”

The 23-year-old hurler was designated for assignment on Wednesday after posting an 8.22 ERA and 21/29 K/BB ratio over 15 1/3 innings at Double-A Mississippi. The Nationals see something they can work with though and will give him a 40-man roster spot for the time being.

The cycle continues. Carrasco has been designated for assignment three times by the Braves this season, and each time he has passed through waivers unclaimed and returned as extra depth in the minor leagues.

The 28-year-old backstop was claimed off of waivers from the Orioles back in May. He wound up playing in just five games at Triple-A Gwinnett, hitting .313 (5-for-16) with a pair of RBI. There’s always a need for catching depth around the league, so Handley shouldn’t be out of work for long.

Waldrep had been working with the Braves’ Rookie-level affiliate in the Florida Complex League. He’ll continue to work his way back at Triple-A with an eye toward returning to the Braves’ rotation before the All-Star break.

It’s the first trip to the big leagues for Jordan. The 23-year-old slugger was originally a third-round selection by the Red Sox from the 2020 draft class. He was having a terrific season at the Triple-A level, slashing .313/.379/.548 with 11 homers and 35 RBI in 252 plate appearances, so the Cardinals will see if he can provide some of the thump that Nolan Gorman was lacking.

Gorman went 0-for-3 with a pair of strikeouts on Thursday and that appears to have been the final straw for the Cardinals. The 26-year-old has flailed to a miserable .194/.279/.318 slash line with seven homers, 26 RBI and a 74/25 K/BB ratio over 229 plate appearances on the season. Blaze Jordan was recalled in a corresponding move to take his place on the active roster.

It’s unclear if the plan is for Dobbins to return to the rotation at the Triple-A level, or if he’ll be back to make another start with the Cardinals in relatively short order. The 26-year-old hurler holds a 3.63 ERA, 1.38 WHIP and a 19/7 K/BB ratio over 17 1/3 innings with the Cardinals this season.

The 28-year-old hurler has been hit hard in five appearances with the Cardinals this season, posting a 12.27 ERA, 3.55 WHIP and a 3/5 K/BB ratio across 3 2/3 innings. He’ll function in a middle relief role for skipper Oli Marmol.

Urías has been shelved since May 5 already due to the elbow issue and after being pulled off of his minor league rehab assignment last week following a setback, it appears as though he’s going to be shelved a while longer. This move frees up a spot on the Cardinals’ 40-man roster.

The 31-year-old glove-first shortstop slashed a woeful .167/.304/.222 with zero homers, two RBI and a 12/7 K/BB ratio in 46 plate appearances with the Tigers. It’s possible that he could land with another team that’s interested in a quality defender as infield depth.