What happened: Max Fried began a minor league rehab assignment Friday night with Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre against Worcester, his first outing since May 13 because of an elbow bone bruise, with Boone expecting him to throw around 50 pitches. Boone said Carlos Rodon threw about 10 pitches in a bullpen session Friday, while Clarke Schmidt is set to face live hitters for the first time Saturday. Giancarlo Stanton has started a running program but still has no set return timeline.

Why it matters: New York enters Friday's series opener against the Dodgers on a four-game win streak, and Fried's return would deepen a rotation that's been thin since Rodon's elbow inflammation forced trade-deadline rotation talks. Schmidt's live-hitter session marks a checkpoint in a comeback from his second career Tommy John surgery.

What to watch: Boone said Fried needs at least one more rehab outing before New York decides on activation, and Rodon is targeting a rotation return around the time Schmidt could rejoin the mix next month.