MLB Player News

As expected, Rodriguez will open the regular season on the shelf after experiencing shoulder fatigue during the late stages of spring training. The 26-year-old former top pitching prospect was plagued by injuries during his Orioles tenure and it’s a troubling sign that his Angels run is starting to have the same vibes. It’ll be Ryan Johnson and Jack Kochanowicz taking the final spots in Los Angeles’ rotation to kick off the season.

Not good. Estévez’s fastball velocity was down noticeably, just like it was all throughout spring training, as he averaged just 90 mph on six fastball before leaving his rehab debut after 14 pitches. There’s clearly something going on here and the emergence of a shoulder issue helps explain his diminished velocity over the last few months. There should be an update on his status soon, but it doesn’t sound like Estévez is close to returning after this latest incident. It’ll be Lucas Erceg continuing to close for Kansas City.

Alexander retreats to the minors after allowing five runs over 4 1/3 innings in long relief during Wednesday’s blowout loss to the Dodgers after starter Lance McCullers Jr. left the contest with a finger injury. The move frees up a spot for Houston to bring up a fresh arm for Friday’s series opener against the Reds.

The procedural move opens up a spot on the Athletics’ 40-man roster for recently acquired backstop Jonah Heim. The 32-year-old reliever has made 105 appearances in the big leagues over the last three years, posting a respectable 4.47 ERA and 117/58 K/BB ratio across 110 2/3 innings during that span.

Pages had a three-run homer off Lance McCullers Jr. in the third, a two-run blast off Jason Alexander in the fifth and then a solo shot off catcher Cesar Salazar in the ninth. He joins teammate Max Muncy as the only players with three-homer games this year. It’s his third career mulithomer game, and he bested his previous high for RBI by two. He’s batting .336 with eight homers on the season.

Ohtani had gone hitless in five straight games, which was likely part of why he wasn’t asked to hit in his mound start last night. The encouraging development from him lately is that he’s 5-for-5 stealing bases in his last 13 games. He never attempted any in his first 20 games.

This was almost certainly because of the score. Isaac Paredes also departed early, as the Astros can’t afford to lose more of their most important players to injury. Alvarez, at least, is probably a better bet to stay healthy now with Carlos Correa out for the season and alleviating the Astros’ infield jam that never really materialized with Jeremy Peña missing all but 10 games to date. He should DH most of the time going forward, which could lead to more opportunities for Brice Matthews, Zach Cole and the currently injured Joey Loperfido going forward.

Roberts added that Glasnow will undergo a precautionary MRI to rule out anything serious after he experienced back spasms that led to his removal from Wednesday’s start against the Astros after just one inning. There should be a clearer idea of his status at some point later this week, but early indications are that Glasnow will make his next start against the Giants next Wednesday.

McCullers added that a portion of his fingernail on his right index finger popped off while throwing a third-inning curveball, which led to his early exit from the contest. He was charged with six runs over 2 2/3 innings during Wednesday afternoon’s start against the Dodgers. Incredibly, the first three runs all came on wild pitches. He finished with four strikeouts and also issued three walks. He’s tentatively scheduled to take the ball against the Mariners on Tuesday. There should be an update on his status at some point in the next few days.

Counsell didn’t offer a potential return timeline, but Boyd is facing an extended absence. The 35-year-old southpaw suffered the injury while playing with his kids on Wednesday. He was scheduled to take the ball on Friday against the Rangers his next time out. There should be a definitive update on his status following the surgical procedure. Boyd can be safely dropped in nearly all fantasy formats. The latest hit to Chicago’s rotation depth comes after promising second-year starter Cade Horton was lost for the season to elbow surgery and Justin Steele suffered a setback in his return from Tommy John.

It sounds like Ryan will be a full-go for Saturday’s contest against the Guardians after making it through Wednesday’s bullpen session without any issues. The 29-year-old underwent an MRI that didn’t reveal any structural damage after leaving his previous start with elbow soreness.