MLB Player News

Alvarado (oblique) will begin a rehab assignment with High-A Charlotte on Sunday, Neil Solondz of the Rays Radio Network reports.

Alvarado has been out since early July with a strained oblique. An exact return timeline has yet to be established, but he could return as soon as next Friday in Seattle if he looks good during his rehab outings. He needs to work on his command as much as working on getting healthy, as he struggled to a 12.54 ERA and a 19.6 percent walk rate over his final 12 outings prior to the injury.

Richards will join Triple-A Durham to start Sunday, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

Richards was converted to a bullpen role during his last week in Miami, but the Rays seemingly still view him as a starter. He should spend a fair amount of time in Tampa over the last two months once he's stretched out again.

Covey was recalled from Triple-A Charlotte on Saturday.

Covey spent less than a week in the minors, returning Saturday with Carson Fulmer (hamstring) landing on the injured list. Covey has had a rough time in the big leagues this season, recording a 6.99 ERA in 47.2 innings, though he owns an excellent 1.85 ERA in 24.1 frames for Charlotte.

Fulmer landed on the 10-day injured list Saturday with a strained right hamstring.

Fulmer had only just gotten recalled Tuesday, throwing three scoreless innings in his latest stint in the big leagues and lowering his season ERA to 5.30. Dylan Covey was recalled in a corresponding move.

Blach was claimed by the Orioles and optioned to Triple-A Norfolk on Saturday.

Blach spent parts of four seasons in the big leagues with the Giants but never really established himself, recording a 4.56 ERA and a poor 12.4 percent strikeout rate. He owns a 5.93 ERA in 91 innings with Triple-A Sacramento this season.

Jimenez, who allowed just two hits over his final seven appearances of July, appears set to close for Detroit after Shane Greene was traded to the Braves.

It's been a bit of a rocky year overall for Jimenez, but he leads the team by a wide margin with 15 holds and has long been thought of as the closer in waiting. Further, he worked the ninth inning in a non-save situation July 31 just hours after Greene was officially dealt. Buck Farmer and Trevor Rosenthal are names to keep in mind in case Jimenez hits another rough stretch.

Johnson (intestinal issue) was activated ahead of his start in Game 2 of Saturday's doubleheader against the Yankees.

Manager Alex Cora says the team is hoping for 12-15 outs from Johnson, per Bill Koch of The Providence Journal, so he likely won't get a win. This is a spot start and he is out of minor-league options, so he will return to a bullpen role following this outing.

Leclerc gave up two runs on two hits and two walks in the ninth inning Friday to record his sixth save of the season in a 5-4 win over the Tigers.

While it's encouraging to see Leclerc get another chance to close -- he hadn't picked up a save since mid-April -- he isn't exactly seizing his opportunity, coughing up four runs with a 0:5 K:BB over his last two appearances, including a blown save Sunday against the A's. Shawn Kelley (biceps) doesn't have a timetable yet for his return, but the Rangers may be forced to give someone else a look in the ninth before he gets healthy if Leclerc can't turn things around.

Alexander (0-2) took the loss Friday, giving up four runs on 10 hits over 5.2 innings while striking out four as the Tigers were downed 5-4 by the Rangers.

A late rally nearly got the rookie lefty off the hook for the loss, but Detroit fell just short. Alexander threw 60 of 85 pitches for strikes, and he's pitching well enough to keep his spot in a Tigers rotation that lacks better options at the moment. He'll carry a 4.50 ERA and 18:2 K:BB through his first 22 big-league innings into his next start Wednesday, at home against the White Sox.

Peters didn't factor into the decision in Friday's 7-3 loss to Cleveland, allowing three runs on eight hits while striking out five over 7.2 innings of relief.

While entering the game after opener Taylor Cole didn't allow Peters to qualify for a quality start, the southpaw provided the bulk-relief equivalent, throwing 64 of 104 pitches for strikes to finish out the game and give the rest of the Angels' bullpen the night off. Peters will take a 3.20 ERA and 19:7 K:BB through 25.1 innings into his next outing Thursday in Boston.