Blue Jays' Yariel Rodriguez: Set to return from IL this week

Rodriguez (back) rejoined the Blue Jays following his rehab start with Triple-A Buffalo on Sunday and is expected to be reinstated from the 15-day injured list later this week, Francys Romero of BeisbolFR.com reports.

In his sixth and final rehab outing with Buffalo, Rodriguez tossed 79 pitches over three innings, striking out seven while giving up two earned runs on three hits and three walks. Per Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet.ca, Rodriguez's fastball averaged 93 miles per hour -- just one tick behind his season-long average over four starts with Toronto -- and topped out at 96. He'll likely step in as the Blue Jays' new No. 5 starter during this weekend's series in Cleveland, though manager John Schneider could choose to deploy Rodriguez as part of a tandem with Bowden Francis. In three of his previous four starts prior to landing on the IL on April 30 with thoracic spine inflammation, Rodriguez had been followed by Francis out of the bullpen and covered between three and four innings on each occasion.