MLB Player News

Manager John Schneider said Tuesday that Yesavage (knee) continues to play catch off flat ground, and the Blue Jays are still hoping the right-hander can return from the 15-day injured list in late September, MLB.com reports.

After undergoing left meniscus surgery Aug. 11, Yesavage was cleared to begin a throwing program about a week later. While he's said to be showing good range of motion with his knee, the Blue Jays haven't yet given him the green light to advance to mound work. Yesavage still has enough time to get cleared for game action before the end of the season, but if he ends up returning in the final week or two of September, he won't be stretched out enough for a full starting role.

Taillon (forearm) is scheduled to throw a side session Tuesday before the Blue Jays determine whether he returns from the 15-day injured list or makes another rehab appearance at Triple-A Buffalo, Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.ca reports.

Taillon made his first rehab start for Buffalo on Friday, covering 48 pitches over 3.1 innings while yielding four earned runs on three hits and two walks. The veteran right-hander seemed to check out fine physically coming out of that outing, but the Blue Jays will get a closer look at him during the upcoming bullpen session before plotting out his next steps. If Toronto decides to bring Taillon back from the IL to fill the fifth spot in the rotation during next weekend's series in Kansas City, he would likely be operating with a restricted pitch count.

Neto went 1-for-5 with a solo home run in Saturday's 4-2 extra-inning loss to the Phillies.

The Angels couldn't get much of anything going against Cristopher Sanchez, but Neto tied the game with a solo shot off reliever Jonathan Bowlan in the eighth inning. Neto has found some production late in August, going 18-for-47 (.383) with eight extra-base hits and 12 RBI over his last 11 games. For the season, the shortstop is batting .236 with a .750 OPS, 23 homers, 18 stolen bases, 65 RBI, 85 runs scored, 27 doubles and four triples, providing reliable counting stats despite a slight drop in his rate stats this year.

Johnson allowed one run on two hits and five walks while striking out two over five innings in a no-decision versus the Phillies on Saturday.

This outing could have gone much worse for Johnson, but both hits he allowed were singles. He threw just 48 of 88 pitches for strikes, while the five walks matched his season high. The right-hander is at a 5.47 ERA, 1.42 WHIP and 52:36 K:BB through 72.1 innings over 17 games (14 starts) this season. The Angels have worked with a six-man rotation over the last week since Yusei Kikuchi came off the injured list, and if that continues, there's room for both Johnson and George Klassen to get starts. Johnson is tentatively lined up for a road start in Pittsburgh next weekend.

Taveras went 2-for-3 with two doubles, a walk, three RBI and a stolen base in Saturday's 5-3 win over the Athletics.

Taveras drove in more than half of his team's runs in the win, belting a ground-rule RBI double in the third inning and adding a two-run double in the sixth. The veteran outfielder has gone just 5-for-21 over his past five games, but he's knocked in a hearty eight runs with three extra-base hits during that span. On the season, Taveras is slashing .227/.299/.363 with eight homers, 15 doubles, six triples, 53 runs, 52 RBI and 11 stolen bases over 424 plate appearances.

Perkins (3-10) allowed two runs (one earned) on four hits and four walks while striking out five batters over five innings in a loss to Baltimore on Saturday.

It was a bit of a tough-luck loss for Perkins given that he allowed only one earned run, but it wasn't exactly a masterful performance either since he walked four batters. That has been an issue for the right-hander of late -- he's issued nine free passes across his past two starts and has handed out three or more walks five times over his past 10 outings. Perkins is 1-7 during that span, so the lack of control isn't doing him any favors. He'll carry an ugly 6.42 season ERA into his next start, which is projected to be a road matchup against the Mariners.

Kittredge earned a save against the Athletics on Saturday, allowing two hits with no walks or strikeouts in one scoreless inning.

Kittredge inherited a two-run lead in the ninth inning and allowed the tying run to reach second base on a pair of singles and a pair of stolen bases. However, the veteran righty got Tommy White to ground out to end the threat. Kittredge picked up his fourth save in August and his eighth overall this season. Four other Orioles relievers have notched at least one save in August, so Kittredge seemingly remains in a committee, but he appears to be the most likely of the team's pitchers to be handed the ball in save situations.

Rojas went 2-for-2 with a home run and four RBI in Saturday's 8-3 win over Cleveland.

Despite coming off the bench Saturday, Rojas registered his second career four-RBI effort. He's looking to make a case for more playing time, hitting safely in each of his last three games since being recalled from the minor leagues. Through 91 major-league plate appearances, Rojas is still slashing a pedestrian .247/.281/.365 with two homers, 13 RBI, one stolen base and nine runs scored.

Baz (5-14) earned the win over the Athletics on Saturday, allowing two runs on five hits and three walks while striking out four batters over 5.2 innings.

Baz breezed through his first five innings, and Baltimore's offense staked him to a 4-0 lead. The righty faded in the sixth, giving up two runs on two hits, two walks and a hit-by-pitch before he was pulled with two outs and the bases loaded. Reliever Alex Hoppe avoided further damage, and Baz went on to record his first victory since June 12. During his 12-start winless stretch, Baz went 0-8, though he pitched to a respectable 3.35 ERA over seven starts at home and a tolerable 4.02 ERA overall during that span. He'll try to build a winning streak his next time out, which is slated to be a matchup in Baltimore against Boston.

Rice went 2-for-9 with a run and three RBI over both games of Saturday's doubleheader split with Boston.

Rice went a quiet 0-for-4 in Game 1, but he bounced back with a 2-for-5 performance in the nightcap. His RBI single in the third inning of that game produced New York's first run of the twin bill, and Rice added a two-run single to cap the scoring in the eighth. The All-Star slugger struggled through most of August but has been heating up of late, batting .357 (10-for-28) with a home run, two doubles, six runs and six RBI over his past seven games.