Angels Place Yusei Kikuchi On 15-Day Injured List
Prior to today’s game with the Mets, the Angels placed left-hander Yusei Kikuchi on the 15-day injured list (retroactive to April 30) due to left shoulder inflammation. Left-hander Tayler Saucedo had his contract selected from Triple-A to fill Kikuchi’s 26-man roster spot and fill the open spot on the Halos’ 40-man roster.
An IL trip seemed likely once Kikuchi left his start last Wednesday after just two innings of work. As MLB.com’s Rhett Bollinger noted, Kikuchi’s velocity was 1.3mph lower than usual on Wednesday, so it seemed like something wasn’t quite right from the jump when the southpaw took the mound.
Kikuchi underwent an MRI on Friday but Angels general manager Perry Minasian didn’t have any updates on the results when speaking with Bollinger and other reporters. “We’re just waiting on how it progresses. He’s getting looked at and he’ll get looked at again,” Minasian said.
The injury adds to what has already been an uninspiring beginning to Kikuchi’s 2026 season. Over seven starts and 31 innings of work, Kikuchi has a 5.81 ERA, 23.2% strikeout rate, and 9.9% walk rate, plus other secondary metrics that generally sit only slightly above or below the league average. Kikuchi’s 4.16 SIERA is more reflective of his overall performance, as his actual ERA has been inflated by some bad batted-ball luck (.352 BABIP).
Led by Jose Soriano‘s sterling work, the Los Angeles rotation has been pretty decent this year despite a number of injuries that thinned out the depth chart. Kikuchi joins Grayson Rodriguez, Ryan Johnson, and Alek Manoah on the 15-day IL, leaving Caden Dana as perhaps the likeliest Triple-A candidate to be called up as a replacement starter. Minasian said the team hadn’t yet decided on a replacement, but since Dana last pitched on Thursday, he might line up well for Kikuchi’s spot.
Saucedo was signed to a minor league contract in January, and the lefty is now in line for his first MLB action of the 2026 season. Saucedo has appeared in each of the previous five seasons, and had good numbers out of Seattle’s bullpen in 2023-24 before stumbling to a 7.43 ERA over 13 1/3 innings for the Mariners in 2025. Between the lack of production and a two-month injury absence due to a lat strain, it was essentially a lost year for Saucedo, culminating in a non-tender from the Mariners in November.
A .378 BABIP certainly contributed to Saucedo’s struggles in 2025, particularly since the southpaw is a grounder specialist with a 56.2% career grounder rate. Saucedo has always had so-so control at best, but his okay strikeout ability and his knack for inducing grounders could lead to better results if he gets even average batted-ball luck, like his .298 BABIP from 2023-24.
Mariners Claim Jose Suarez, Designate Rhylan Thomas For Assignment
The Mariners claimed left-hander Jose Suarez off waivers from the Braves, the club announced. Outfielder Rhylan Thomas was designated for assignment. Seattle’s 40-man roster remains full.
Atlanta moved on from Suarez as part of a bullpen reshuffling heading into a series against the Rockies this weekend. The 28-year-old had struggled to a 6.61 ERA over eight outings (one start). The Braves mostly deployed Suarez, a former starter, in multi-inning stints. He recorded a three-inning save against the Phillies in mid-April. Suarez had a career-best 26.6% strikeout rate over 16 1/3 frames, but it came with a discouraging 15.2% walk rate.
Under the hood, there are a couple of intriguing factors to entice a team looking for bullpen depth. Suarez has an xFIP and SIERA right around 4.00. He’s averaging 93.4 mph on his four-seamer, matching a career-best mark from 2025. Suarez is using his changeup at more than a 30% clip for the first time since 2020. The pitch has generated a solid 38.3% whiff rate. It’s responsible for 13 of Suarez’s 21 strikeouts.
Seattle acquired Thomas from the Mets around the 2024 trade deadline for reliever Ryne Stanek. He briefly debuted with the club in 2025, going 1-for-8 across three games. The 26-year-old outfielder has scuffled to a 67 wRC+ in 31 games at Triple-A this season.
New York selected Thomas in the 11th round of the 2022 draft. A college bat who was already 22 when he entered the pro ranks, Thomas hit the ground running in the lower rungs of the minors. He slashed .328/.407/.425 across three levels in 2023, closing the year at Double-A. Thomas posted a 131 wRC+ in his second stint with Binghamton the following year, earning a bump to Triple-A. He hit a bit of a roadblock at Syracuse, but picked things back up after making the move to Seattle’s Triple-A affiliate. He slashed .325/.380/.411 with a career-high 35 steals with Tacoma last year.
The lefty-swinging Thomas tore the cover off the ball this spring, hitting .486 with six extra-base hits in 43 plate appearances. Despite the strong performance, he was on the outside looking in for a big-league roster spot. Seattle already had Luke Raley and Dominic Canzone as left-handed outfielders, with Rob Refsnyder as a platoon option against southpaws. Veteran Connor Joe got the call when Victor Robles went down with an injury early in the season.
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Tigers Select Zack Short, Designate Grant Holman For Assignment
The Tigers announced that they are selecting the contract of infielder Zack Short for tonight’s game with the Rangers. Fellow infielder Jace Jung was optioned to Triple-A Toledo, and right-hander Grant Holman was designated for assignment to clear a spot on the 40-man for Short. (Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press was among those to relay the moves before the Tigers’ official announcement.)
Short was acquired in a trade from the Nationals two days ago, and the infielder is now poised to get his first big league action of the 2026 season. It’s a bit of a full-circle moment for Short, who spent his first three Major League seasons in Detroit after debuting in 2021. Short hasn’t hit much (.172/.271/.296) over his 594 career plate appearances, yet his ability to play multiple positions brings depth to a Tigers club that is dealing with a rash of injuries.
Gleyber Torres is day to day with side tightness, while Javier Baez, Zach McKinstry, and Parker Meadows have all gone to the injured list over the last few weeks. Shortstop Trey Sweeney also has yet to play this season due to a shoulder strain. It would seem like Short’s primary backup role will be shortstop since the Tigers currently have nobody behind Kevin McGonigle, though it doesn’t look like the hot-hitting McGonigle will be coming out of the lineup any time soon.
This is the fourth time in less than three months that Holman has been DFA’ed, as the righty has gone from the A’s to the Diamondbacks to the Dodgers and finally to the Tigers on a series of waiver claims. Amidst all of these moves, Holman hasn’t gotten any looks in the majors this season, and a 6.75 ERA over four innings and three appearances for Toledo didn’t turn any heads in Detroit.
Holman has two minor league options remaining, and he delivered a sparkling 0.47 ERA over 58 minor league innings in 2024-25. His 4.66 ERA, 18.8% strikeout rate, and 10.2% walk rate over 38 2/3 career MLB innings with the Athletics over those two seasons is less impressive, but it is easy to see why teams keep stepping up to claim Holman as a depth arm. It wouldn’t be a surprise if Holman changes organizations yet again during the DFA period, though if he does clear waivers, the Tigers can outright him to Triple-A.
Nationals Claim Zak Kent
The Nationals claimed right-hander Zak Kent off waivers from the Twins, the team announced. He’s been optioned to Triple-A Rochester. Washington had an opening on the 40-man roster after lefty Cionel Perez was outrighted on Saturday.
Minnesota designated Kent for assignment earlier this week to clear a spot for right-hander Luis García, who was added to the bullpen after Garrett Acton went down with a shoulder strain. Kent is no stranger to the DFA carousel. In a span of three months this offseason, he was claimed by the Cardinals, Rangers, Cardinals (again), and Twins.
Kent finally found a home in Minnesota. He broke camp with the club and made two appearances in early April. The righty allowed five runs over 3 2/3 innings, though only two of the tallies were earned. Kent posted an unsightly 2:5 strikeout-to-walk ratio. He was sent to Triple-A after less than two weeks on the big-league club.
The 28-year-old Kent has notched a 3.38 ERA across 10 2/3 innings with St. Paul. He has a solid 26.1% strikeout rate, but a concerning 13% walk rate. Kent briefly debuted in the majors last season with the Guardians.
The new regime in Washington hasn’t been shy about shuffling arms in and out of the bullpen. The Nats have already used 16 different relievers this season. That number doesn’t include relief outings for Miles Mikolas and Zack Littell, who have operated behind openers at times.
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Mets Select Vidal Brujan, Designate Eric Wagaman For Assignment
The Mets are filling their void at shortstop with Vidal Brujan, who had his contract selected ahead of Sunday’s game against the Angels. The club announced first baseman Eric Wagaman has been designated for assignment to clear a 40-man spot for Brujan. Infielder Ronny Mauricio was placed on the 10-day IL with a fractured thumb, opening up room on the big-league club.
Brujan bounced around this offseason, landing with the Mets after getting DFAed by the Twins and then the Braves. He met the same fate with New York after falling short of an Opening Day roster spot, but snuck through waivers this time. The 28-year-old had a 62 wRC+ in 24 games at Triple-A Syracuse.
It’s been several years, but Brujan was once a top prospect in the Rays’ system. He debuted with Tampa Bay in 2021 and spent parts of three seasons with the club. Brujan failed to provide much more than defensive versatility and a bit of speed during his time as a Ray. He was dealt to the Marlins in a small trade in November 2023. Miami gave the infielder his longest look to date in the majors. Brujan slashed .222/.303/.319 in a career-high 278 plate appearances in 2024.
Brujan has major league experience at all four infield positions and all three outfield spots. He’s even made four appearances on the mound. The Mets need him in the infield, specifically at shortstop, and he’s been solid there. Brujan has accrued 4 Defensive Runs Saved in 363 1/3 MLB innings at the position. He posted 2 DRS in his short stint with Atlanta last season. The Mets are without star shortstop Francisco Lindor for the foreseeable future as he deals with a calf strain. Mauricio was set to take over, but now he’s injured himself.
It’s a tough blow for Mauricio, who’s also a former prospect of note. The 25-year-old didn’t make the team out of Spring Training, but made a brief cameo in early April. He came back up after the Lindor injury and assumed the everyday shortstop gig. Mauricio launched his first home run of the season on Friday. He had another hit on Saturday, an infield single that loaded the bases in a tie game. Mauricio dove headfirst into the bag on the play, resulting in the thumb injury.
Manager Carlos Mendoza told reporters, including Anthony DiComo of MLB.com, that Mauricio is expected to miss 6-8 weeks. Bo Bichette slid over to shortstop yesterday after Mauricio was removed, with Brett Baty moving to third base. The former Blue Jays shortstop has played 17 innings at the position this season.
The Mets picked up Wagaman off waivers from the Twins earlier this week. He was bumped up to the big-league squad on Thursday after Luis Robert Jr. hit the injured list. Wagaman was sent right back down on Friday, with recently claimed Andy Ibáñez joining the club.
Wagaman briefly debuted with the Angels in 2024. He signed with the Marlins heading into 2025 and stumbled into a full-time gig at first base. Wagaman posted an underwhelming 85 wRC+ in 140 games with Miami. He struck out at a below-average rate and chipped in four steals, but didn’t provide the power typically associated with corner infielders, with just nine home runs and a .128 ISO. Wagaman posted a -1 DRS across 862 1/3 innings at the cold corner.
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Joe Ryan Leaves Start With Elbow Soreness
Twins right-hander Joe Ryan was pulled two batters into his start on Sunday against the Blue Jays. He departed with right elbow soreness, relayed Betsy Helfand of the St. Paul Pioneer Press.
Ryan struck out Yohendrick Pinango on three pitches to begin the game. He walked Kazuma Okamoto and then called for the trainer. Ryan’s final pitch was a 90 mph fastball, a couple of ticks down from his season average. Right-hander Andrew Morris came on in relief.
It’s the second injury scare of the season for Ryan, who missed time during Spring Training with lower back inflammation. He recovered in time to take the ball on Opening Day, when he delivered 5.1 scoreless innings against the Orioles. The righty has headlined a rotation that ranks ninth in ERA heading into Sunday.
Ryan has had a pretty typical season so far. He’s posted a 3.76 ERA with a decent strikeout rate while limiting walks. His fly-ball approach tends to lead to home runs, but Ryan has kept the ball in the yard better than usual, permitting just three long balls in 38 1/3 innings.
An extended absence for Ryan would further test a Minnesota pitching staff already dealing with injuries to Pablo Lopez and Mick Abel. Lopez is done for the year after undergoing elbow surgery. Abel is dealing with elbow inflammation. Prospect Connor Prielipp is getting his first taste in the majors thanks to the starting pitcher injuries. Fellow prospect Kendry Rojas also got a brief look. He could be heading back to the big leagues if Ryan needs an IL stint. Zebby Matthews would be another candidate to slide into a rotation spot.
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Padres Activate Griffin Canning
May 3: San Diego officially activated Canning to start today against the White Sox. Right-hander German Marquez went to the 15-day IL in a corresponding move. Marquez is dealing with right forearm nerve inflammation. Chicago tagged him for seven earned runs over five innings on Friday.
May 2: The Padres are planning to activate right-hander Griffin Canning on Sunday, according to Jeff Sanders of the San Diego Union-Tribune. The righty will be making his 2026 and Padres debut in the series finale against the White Sox.
Canning joined the Padres in February on a one-year, $2.5MM guarantee. He underwent surgery last June to repair a ruptured left Achilles, which wiped out the remainder of his season with the Mets. Upon signing with San Diego, it was thought that Canning could be ready for Opening Day, though he ultimately required a rehab assignment at Triple-A. He made his final appearance in that assignment on Tuesday, reaching 68 pitches over five innings. Based on that progression, Canning might be on a pitch limit in his debut before assuming a full starter’s workload next time around.
Although the Achilles injury limited Canning to just 76 1/3 innings with the Mets last year, he showed some improvement over his career numbers. For one thing, he did a better job of keeping the ball in the yard. After surrendering 31 home runs in 171 2/3 innings with the Angels in 2024, or 1.63 per nine innings, Canning cut that to 0.93 HR/9 in 2025. He also showed a marked increase in groundball rate, hitting an above average 50.9% after sitting around average in 2023-24. It wasn’t all positive, as Canning’s 21.3% strikeout rate and 10.7% walk rate were both worse than average. Altogether, though, it was enough for the Padres to sign him to a major-league deal as a back-of-the-rotation arm.
Canning’s arrival could potentially lead to changes in the Padres’ rotation. Michael King and the emergent Randy Vásquez have the first two spots locked in, with Walker Buehler, Germán Márquez, and Matt Waldron rounding out the group. The latter three have not been good so far in 2026. While Buehler’s 5.40 ERA is nearly two runs higher than his 3.42 FIP, his lackluster performance in 2024-25 gives little hope for a turnaround. Márquez and Waldron are similarly ineffective options. Márquez is giving up more than two home runs per nine innings, and Waldron has an unsightly 9.88 ERA in three starts.
If the Padres wanted to stick with a traditional five-man rotation, a case could be made for any one of Buehler, Márquez, and Waldron to get cut based on their performance. However, reports from yesterday indicated that the club may consider a six-man rotation. In that scenario, the trio could hold onto their spots for one or two more turns until the recently-signed Lucas Giolito is brought up from his optional assignment.
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Orioles Promote Trey Gibson
May 3: The Orioles officially selected Gibson’s contract for his big-league debut against the Yankees, per a team announcement. Left-hander Nick Raquet was optioned to Triple-A in a corresponding move.
May 2: Trey Gibson was added to the Orioles’ taxi squad earlier today, and manager Craig Albernaz confirmed to reporters (including the Baltimore Banner’s Andy Kostka) that the O’s would be officially selecting the right-hander’s contract to the active roster on Sunday. The Orioles have available space on their 40-man roster, so just a 26-man move will be required to add Gibson before he makes his MLB debut in a start against the Yankees. Kostka was the first to report earlier today that Gibson was joining the Orioles this weekend in New York.
Since an illness sent Trevor Rogers to the 15-day injured list on Wednesday, a fill-in starter of some kind was needed to take Rogers’ next turn in the rotation. The pitching staff was then further scrambled by a doubleheader against the Astros on Thursday, so the O’s opted to promote Gibson since the right-hander would be on regular rest following his last Triple-A outing on April 26.
Facing Aaron Judge and company is a tough draw for any pitcher, let alone a 23-year-old in his first big league game. Gibson arrives in the Show on the heels of only okay (4.01 ERA, 21.9% strikeout rate, 10.5% walk rate, 52.1% grounder rate) numbers across 24 2/3 Triple-A innings this season, but most of the damage done against Gibson came in his first two starts. Since that slow start, the righty has posted a 2.55 ERA over his last five outings.
Gibson would probably have been drafted out of high school in 2020 if that year’s pandemic-shortened draft hadn’t been only five rounds long, so he instead went to play college ball at Liberty, but then went undrafted after an undistinguished college career. The Orioles signed him as a free agent in the summer of 2023, and Gibson has since emerged as one of baseball’s better pitching prospects. ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel slotted Gibson 46th on his preseason top-100 list, and Baseball America also had the right-hander 72nd on their preseason ranking.
Gibson’s arsenal is at least six pitches deep, with BA assigning at least a 55 grade to four of his offerings. His ability to fully command the majority of these pitches remains a question, yet working with the Orioles’ coaching staff to narrow his pitch mix down to just the cream of the crop might help Gibson’s chances of remaining as a starter in the majors. Gibson has generated a lot of grounders at every level of the minors and also racked up quite a few strikeouts, though a career 3.99 ERA in the minors indicates that Gibson’s deep pitching repertoire hasn’t entirely fooled minor league hitters.
With Rogers, Dean Kremer, and (out for the season) Zach Eflin all on the injured list, Baltimore has already been forced to dive deeper into its pitching depth chart than expected, even if Gibson was probably on track to make his MLB debut at some point in 2026 anyway. Brandon Young and Cade Povich remain the favorites for starting duty until at least Rogers is back, but since Kremer will likely miss most or all of May recovering from a quad strain, there could be room for Gibson to impress if he pitches well in this spot start.
Cubs Reinstate Daniel Palencia, Designate Yacksel Rios For Assignment
Cubs right-hander Daniel Palencia has been activated from the 15-day IL, the team announced. The closer missed three weeks with a lat strain. Fellow righty Yacksel Rios was designated for assignment in a corresponding move.
Palencia initially went down with what was labeled a left oblique strain. Additional testing showed a mild lat strain. He’ll return to the big-league club after just one rehab appearance. Palencia tossed 19 pitches for Triple-A Iowa on Friday.
Before the injury, Palencia had fired five scoreless innings as the unquestioned closer for Chicago. The strong relief work had only resulted in one save, though. Since Palencia went down, the Cubs generated six saves, which went to five different relievers. Caleb Thielbar, Ben Brown, Jacob Webb, Corbin Martin, and Hoby Milner all stepped in to close out games.
Brown and Webb recorded two-inning saves in the first two games of this weekend’s series against the Diamondbacks, part of a patchwork approach with Chicago dealing with several reliever injuries. Even with Palencia back, the Cubs still have Hunter Harvey, Riley Martin, Ethan Roberts, and Thielbar on the IL. Porter Hodge was lost for the season.
The extensive bullpen injuries helped Rios return to the big leagues for the first time since 2023. He got the call along with Charlie Barnes after Martin went to the IL and Vince Velasquez was designated for assignment. The 32-year-old recorded five outs in a blowout loss to the Dodgers in his lone appearance. Rios hadn’t pitched in a week.
The Cubs have five days to trade Rios or put him on waivers. If he makes it through the process without another team grabbing him, he could be outrighted to Triple-A Iowa. Rios was outrighted by the A’s after his last big-league stint, so he could forego the minor league assignment and head to free agency. He averaged a career-best 98.2 mph on his fastball during his one game with the Cubs, which might be enough to attract another team.
Rios has pitched in parts of seven MLB seasons with six different organizations. The righty was a semi-regular member of the Phillies bullpen after debuting in 2017. After getting DFAed by Philadelphia in 2019, he bounced to the Pirates, Mariners, Red Sox, and A’s in subsequent seasons. Rios has never averaged even 97 mph with his heater, so the jump in velocity is interesting, especially given his age. It’s a tiny sample, though.
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Braves Place Ronald Acuna Jr. On IL, Reinstate Spencer Strider
Braves outfielder Ronald Acuna Jr. is heading to the injured list with a hamstring strain, the team announced. Jose Azocar was selected to the roster as a replacement. Atlanta also reinstated right-hander Spencer Strider from the IL. Righty Hunter Stratton is headed back to Triple-A to clear a spot.
Acuna was removed in the second inning of Saturday’s game against the Rockies after a groundout. He was replaced by Eli White in right field. The Braves had an opening on the 40-man, so no corresponding move was needed to add Azocar.
The 28-year-old Acuna is off to a slow start this season by his lofty standards. He’s slashed .252/.362/.378 across 152 plate appearances. Acuna has just two home runs in 34 games. Atlanta’s offensive production has been just fine, though, as the club leads the league in scoring by 15 runs.
The Braves will likely lean on a mix of White, Azocar, and Mauricio Dubon for additional reps in the outfield. Michael Harris II is back from a minor quad issue, so he’ll lock down center on an everyday basis. That leaves the aforementioned trio and Mike Yastrzemski to cover the corner spots. Yastrzemski has a .642 OPS in his career against lefties, so he’ll probably remain in a platoon role.
Azocar returned to the organization on a minor league deal in December. He initially latched on with Atlanta in May after a brief stint with the Mets last season. Azocar only appeared in two games with the Braves before getting designated for assignment. He went back to New York and spent the rest of the year in the minors, then elected free agency.
The 29-year-old Azocar has spent parts of four seasons in the majors, mostly with the Padres. He debuted for San Diego in 2022 and earned semi-regular work at all three outfield spots. Azocar posted an 81 wRC+ in 216 plate appearances. He was up and down with the big-league club over the next couple of seasons. Azocar hasn’t hit enough to stick for an extended stretch in the majors, but he provides some speed along with competent defense in the outfield.
Strider has been sidelined since Spring Training with an oblique injury. He’ll make his season debut against the Rockies. The righty ramped up to 82 pitches in his final Triple-A outing, so he should be in for close to a normal workload in his return.
Injuries have limited Strider to 25 starts over the past two seasons. He missed nearly all of 2024 with an elbow injury. Strider returned in April of last year, only to go right back on the IL with a hamstring issue. He made 23 starts in 2025, pitching to a 4.45 ERA across 125 1/3 innings.
All eyes will be on the Coors Field radar gun in Strider’s return. His fastball averaged a career-low 95.5 mph last year. The pitch sat at 96.3 mph in his brief 2024 stint. Strider was consistently in the upper-90s with the heater during his elite years in 2022 and 2023. He introduced a curveball to help expand his arsenal, though he used the pitch just 8.9% of the time in 2025.
Stratton will head back to Triple-A after just one appearance with Atlanta. He came up on Friday with Anthony Molina after José Suarez and Joel Payamps were designated for assignment. Stratton lasted longer than Molina, who was sent back down yesterday with Carlos Carrasco returning to the squad.
Atlanta acquired Stratton in a minor trade with the Pirates last summer. He pitched well in 12 appearances with the club, posting a 2.20 ERA with nearly a strikeout per inning. Given how frequently the Braves have shuffled pitchers on and off the roster, Stratton will likely get another shot in the majors at some point this year.
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