MLB Player News

The 25-year-old southpaw punched out five batters on the night while issuing four free passes. He allowed an RBI double to Yordan Alvarez in the opening inning and a solo shot to José Abreu in the second, but aside from that Ragans was terrific and able to pitch himself out of several jams. He got 15 swings and misses on 93 pitches on the night — six of those on his heater — while posting a CSW of 28 percent. Ragans now sports an impressive 3.31 ERA, 1.14 WHIP and a 105/37 K/BB ratio (89 2/3 innings) in 28 appearances (11 starts) on the season. He’ll look to finish strong when he takes on the Tigers in Detroit on Thursday.

Gibson is one of the more intriguing young arms in the game but he’s posted a 3.65 ERA, 1.62 WHIP and 5/7 K/BB ratio across 12 1/3 innings at the highest level this season. The 24-year-old prospect is not a recommended streaming option against the Blue Jays in a challenging road matchup in Canada.

Blue Jays manager John Scheider left open the possibility that Kirk could be ready for Friday’s series opener against the Yankees. The 27-year-old backstop kicked off a rehab assignment in the lower minors last week and will get a few additional contests under his belt to knock off any remaining rust this week. He’s been out since undergoing thumb surgery back in early April.

García has been slowly working his way back from last year’s right elbow procedure and figures to be ready to rejoin Toronto’s relief mix at some point this month. The 35-year-old has made four rehab appearances in the lower minors over the past month.

Bautista is facing a long road back from last year’s shoulder surgery to repair a torn labrum and rotator cuff, but he’s on track to make it back to Baltimore’s bullpen at some point in the second half. He’ll likely split the closing duties with Ryan Helsley, in the event that both are healthy, and form one of the best late-inning tandem’s in the game.

Schneider also added that Max Scherzer (forearm) will be activated to start Wednesday’s series finale at the Rogers Centre with Trey Yesavage being pushed back to Friday’s showdown against the Yankees. The influx of veteran reinforcements also pushes rookie standout Spencer Miles back to a long relief role. It’s a stunning turn of events that Toronto has a legitimate five-man rotation again after piecing things together for most of the last two months. Cease threw 75 pitches in his final rehab outing and shouldn’t have any limitations in his return from the injured list.

Varsho remains on the bench for the third consecutive game due to a lingering left wrist issue. It’ll be Myles Straw continuing to handle center field in his absence. The 29-year-old is presumably available off the bench, which was the case over the weekend, but the Blue Jays are giving him some extra time off to manage the situation. It’s an encouraging sign that he’s managed to avoid a trip to the injured list.

Caballero returns to shortstop with free-swinging rookie slugger Spencer Jones getting a shot in right field on Monday night in Cleveland. The versatile 29-year-old started back-to-back games in right field after franchise cornerstone Aaron Judge hit the injured list with a fracture in his rib cage over the weekend.

Rays manager Kevin Cash told reporters Simpson will receive another full day off to address a lingering thumb bruise that he’s been dealing with since last week. The 25-year-old speedster is available off the bench. The hope is that the additional rest puts the ailment to bed. Austin Slater gets the nod in left field to face Red Sox lefty Connelly Early on Monday night with Simpson missing his third straight game.

Rays skipper Kevin Cash confirmed that DeLuca will be ready to return to game action later this week. The 27-year-old outfielder hit the injured list with a mild hamstring strain back in late May. He should make it back to Tampa Bay’s outfield mix at some point later next week.

It’s presumably the final checkmark before Helsley heads out on a minor league rehab assignment. The flame-throwing 31-year-old closer has been on the shelf recovering from elbow inflammation since late April. He’ll need a handful of tune-up outings in order to get back up to speed, especially given the lengthy layoff, but he’s trending towards a mid-June return. Rico Garcia will continue handling save situations for the Orioles in his absence.