MLB Player News

It’s broadly good news that López’s surgery was “less invasive” than a standard Tommy John surgery. Assuming he’s able to look good in his build up and has no setbacks, a return in the first half of the 2027 season will be on the table for the star starter. López will be on the final year of his four-year, $73.5 million contract in 2027. “This is the better of the two surgeries,” Twins athletic trainer Nick Paparesta said. “We’re pretty excited about that. Pablo is excited about that as well.”

Mead returns to the second spot in Washington’s lineup to face Arizona lefty Eduardo Rodriguez after spending Friday’s contest on the bench. The 25-year-old has taken over as the club’s starting third baseman back in mid-May and hasn’t looked back, hitting .278 (15-for-54) with four homers and 11 RBI over 15 games during that span. He’s worthy of a speculative roster spot in leagues where he’s still on the waiver wire given his recent production, everyday role and former prospect status.

Vargas came off the bench as a defensive replacement during Friday’s series opener, which is an encouraging sign. The 34-year-old will get some extra time off to recover after a serious collision with Dodgers slugger Max Muncy earlier this week. It’ll be rookie LuJames Groover drawing another start at first base in his absence.

Mauricio Dubón’s recent power surge enables Atlanta to give Harris some extra time off after making an early exit from Friday’s series opener with back tightness. The 25-year-old center fielder is day-to-day heading into Sunday’s series finale at Truist Park.

Sánchez provides New York with a bit more offensive upside against left-handed pitching from their backup catcher spot over J.C. Escarra, who was shipped to the minors following Friday’s contest. The 29-year-old journeyman has appeared in 50 games between five different teams since 2020. He’s the textbook definition of a journeyman backstop in the modern era.

Jameson gets the call to join Arizona’s relief mix after posting an underwhelming 7.33 ERA, 1.59 WHIP and 23/12 K/BB ratio across 23 1/3 innings as a reliever for Triple-A Reno this season. The 28-year-old former prospect’s career was derailed by a Tommy John procedure that he underwent during the late stages of the 2023 campaign.

The big surprise here is that Strowd checked out fine after being lifted from Friday’s game against the Nationals because he couldn’t feel the baseball or throw it where he wanted to, according to Arizona manager Torey Lovullo. Clearly, those comments were performance-related. The 28-year-old walked three batters and allowed one run during his lone inning of work.

Dobbins figures to jump into St. Louis’ rotation at some point during next week’s three-game series against the Mets as they move to a six-man mix moving forward. The 26-year-old has posted a 2.77 ERA and 14/7 K/BB ratio across 13 innings over three appearances since coming off the injured list last month. He struck out six over five shutout frames in relief against the Reds on Friday night.

Urías will undergo further evaluation after experiencing left elbow pain while swinging during his rehab assignment. The 32-year-old was on the injured list with a different right elbow issue since May 5. There should be some clarity on his status at some point in the coming days.

Basallo will undergo further evaluation this weekend to determine whether he’ll require a trip to the injured list. In the meantime, the Orioles brought up Sam Huff as emergency catching depth behind Adley Rutschman. The 21-year-old prodigy made a precautionary exit from Friday’s series opener at the Rogers Centre with right abdominal discomfort. There should be a clearer idea of his status before the weekend concludes. We’ll have updates on the developing situation as it unfolds.

Huff receives the call to join Baltimore’s catching mix as emergency depth behind starter Adley Rutschman while Samuel Basallo deals with an abdominal issue. The 28-year-old offers some over-the-fence pop but little else at this stage of his career. He got into three games for the Orioles earlier this month.