What It Means:

He's been playing catch now for a week since going through a shutdown period in mid-May. Alvarez is on his way back from major shoulder surgery and currently has no timetable for activation. He was looking pretty sharp in the minors before this latest setback.

Alvarez hasn't seen significant innings since 2014, when he posted 3.70 SIERA (2.65 ERA) with a meager 14.3 percent strikeout rate in 30 games.