Albers is expected to move to the bullpen this week with Felix Hernandez (shoulder) and James Paxton (pectoral) set to be activated from the 10-day disabled list to make starts Thursday against the Rangers and Friday against the Astros, respectively, Bob Dutton of The Tacoma News Tribune reports.
Manager Scott Servais is tentatively planning to have Albers piggyback Hernandez in the Thursday outing, as the latter will be limited to around 50 or 60 pitches in his first start coming off the DL due to his lack of a minor-league rehab assignment beforehand. That should leave multiple innings available for Albers, but with his usage likely to become more unpredictable after Thursday, those in AL-only or deeper mixed leagues mining for wins may want to look elsewhere. Albers has generally impressed in his five starts for the big club this season, going 4-1 with a 2.67 ERA and 1.26 WHIP across 27 innings.