MLB Player News

Gomez was designated for assignment by the Rangers on Monday.

The move hardly comes as a surprise, as Gomez recorded an 8.22 ERA and a 1.89 WHIP in 15.1 innings of relief this season. He'll make room on the roster for Kyle Bird.

McHugh's sore elbow hasn't made any progress lately, so he'll take some more time to rest his arm, Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle reports.

An MRI on McHugh's elbow last week revealed no structural damage, but he remains not close to a return. He's played catch since landing on the injured list but his elbow did not respond particularly well. There doesn't appear to be any clear timeline for his return.

Norris (2-3) tossed 5.2 innings Monday, yielding four runs (two earned) on six hits and three walks in the loss to Baltimore. He struck out five and took the loss.

Things started poorly for Norris right from the start, allowing a two-run blast to Renato Nunez in the first inning. He did drop his ERA slightly, though, from 4.30 to 4.18 across 51.2 frames. He'll try to get back to a .500 record in a tough road start against the Braves on Sunday.

Armstrong walked one batter and struck out another in a scoreless ninth inning to earn the save in Monday's win over Detroit.

With Mychal Givens removed from the closer role for the time being, Armstrong should be Baltimore's go-to option for save opportunities. He came in with a runner on first and eventually had two men in scoring position but ended the nailbiter with a popout. The 28-year-old owns a 2.45 ERA and should be worth a look in most leagues, though the Orioles don't get too many save chances.

Phillips was optioned to Triple-A Norfolk on Monday.

Phillips was up for just two days, striking out one batter and walking another in one third of an inning. The short appearance was only enough to lower his season ERA to 6.92. A corresponding move will be made Tuesday.

Cordero was claimed off waivers by the Mariners on Monday and optioned to Triple-A Tacoma.

Cordero joins his third organization of the month after previously spending time with Toronto and Washington. He'll be a depth piece in Seattle for now, though the Mariners' bullpen isn't one of the harder units in the league to break into.

Armstrong is a potential candidate to pitch in the ninth inning with Mychal Givens temporarily demoted to a low-leverage role, Joe Trezza of MLB.com reports.

Givens' recent struggles have led manager Brandon Hyde to take him out of the firing line, at least for now. Armstrong's 5.93 season ERA is poor, but he's posted a 2.70 mark in 10 innings since getting claimed off waivers by the Orioles in late April. His career 21.8 percent strikeout rate is hardly closer material, but the Orioles' bullpen isn't exactly full of premium arms, so Armstrong is a candidate to move up from a medium-leverage role to a high-leverage one.

The Royals aren't listing Lopez as one of their starting pitchers for the four-game series with the Rangers that begins Thursday, Lynn Worthy of The Kansas City Star reports.

Kansas City has confirmed six of its seven probable starters for the week, with the lone vacancy coming Wednesday in Chicago against the White Sox. Unless they're comfortable deploying Lopez on three days' rest with a limited pitch count, the Royals look poised to make a change with their fifth starter. If Lopez is in fact demoted to the bullpen or to Triple-A Omaha, it wouldn't come as much of a surprise given that he's posted a 6.79 ERA and 1.57 WHIP across 51.2 frames this season. Long reliever Glenn Sparkman would likely represent the top candidate to replace Lopez in the rotation if a change is made.

Rijo was placed on the 7-day IL at Low-A Cedar Rapids, retroactive to May 25, with a left hamstring strain.

Rijo, who came over to the Twins in last year's Lance Lynn trade to the Yankees, has a 3.47 ERA and a 7.4 K/9 in 36.1 innings. He'll need to improve his strikeout rate and reduce his walks (3.5 BB/9) to thrive at higher levels.

Green will serve as the Yankees' opening pitcher for Monday's game against the Padres, Bryan Hoch of MLB.com reports.

Green will make his third "start" of the season after previously opening games May 19 and 25. In those two contests, Green has yielded three runs on six hits and a walk over 2.2 innings, so the Yankees' experiment has yet to pay dividends. Once Green likely exits after covering one or two frames, it's unclear if the Yankees will lean on a primary pitcher like Luis Cessa or David Hale or treat the contest as more of a bullpen game.