MLB Player News

Boxberger threw a scoreless inning for High-A Charlotte in his first official rehab appearance Sunday, Josh Vitale of Suncoast Sports reports.

The Rays closer actually opened the game for the Stone Crabs, and worked around a leadoff double and two-out walk to finish the frame. Boxberger threw 14 of his 24 pitches for strikes, and induced a swinging strike three on a 92 mph fastball as well. "It was good to get through this one leaving those guys out there," Boxberger said. "It's kind of like spring training for me, because I didn't really have one this year. It's about getting my pitch count up, being able to get my arm in shape, and just repeating my delivery and getting a feel for it again." He's expected to make another appearance for Charlotte later in the coming week, and then is expected to head to Triple-A Durham as the next step toward his return to the big league club.

Boxberger threw a scoreless inning for High-A Charlotte in his first official rehab appearance Sunday, Josh Vitale of Suncoast Sports reports.

The Rays' closer actually opened the game for the Stone Crabs, and worked around a leadoff double and two-out walk to finish the frame. Boxberger threw 14 of his 24 pitches for strikes, and induced a swinging strike three on a 92 mph fastball as well. "It was good to get through this one leaving those guys out there," Boxberger said. "It's kind of like spring training for me, because I didn't really have one this year. It's about getting my pitch count up, being able to get my arm in shape, and just repeating my delivery and getting a feel for it again." He's expected to make another appearance for Charlotte later in the coming week, before heading to Triple-A Durham as the next step toward his return to the big league club.

Graveman surrendered six hits, four earned runs, and three walks in Saturday's 6-0 loss to the Rays.

The 25-year-old continued his season-long struggles, as he's now surrendered 14 earned runs over the last 14.2 innings on the mound. He's also given up eight homers over the last four starts, which have pushed his figures to an unsightly 5.84 ERA and 1.49 WHIP to date in 2016. While he does have a pair of early April quality starts on his ledger, those are looking more and more like a distant memory with each of his successive turns in the rotation.

Andriese (2-0) fired a shutout against the A's on Saturday, allowing only two hits. He struck out five.

The 26-year-old came up with a gem in his second major league start of 2016, consistently neutralizing the A's lineup all afternoon. He fired 78 of his 106 pitches for strikes, and recorded first-pitch strikes on 21 of the 29 batters he faced. He also induced 11 swinging strikes, and after two starts, appears thoroughly capable of thriving at the big league level. He's surrendered only one earned run over 16 innings, leading to minuscule and matching 0.56 ERA and WHIP figures. Currently slated only for fifth starter duty, his performances may prompt the Rays to re-think how they'll deploy him going forward.

Layne pitched a scoreless inning, giving up a hit and two walks while striking out one in Saturday's extra-inning win over the Astros.

Layne's primary job is that of a lefty specialist, and in that respect he did his job Saturday. He closed out the seventh inning, striking out left-handed hitter Colby Rasmus. However, Layne was asked to give Boston multiple outs, and he ran into trouble in the eighth, giving up a leadoff double to Marwin Gonzalez. Layne got lucky when Gonzalez strayed off the bag and was put out in a rundown. On the whole, Layne has performed well with a 1.93 ERA in 12 appearances, including limiting right-handed hitters to a .619 OPS.

Johnson allowed six runs on four hits and five walks while striking out three in five innings for Triple-A Pawtucket.

Johnson, one of a handful of starters in the organization considered as potential depth options for Boston, has pitched himself out of consideration early on. Noted for his pin-point command, Johnson's walked 22 batters in 33 innings.

Chapman secured his second save in Saturday's 2-1 victory over the White Sox, pitching a perfect ninth inning and recording two strikeouts.

The 28-year-old is now 2-for-2 in save opportunities, and has already mowed down three of the seven hitters he's faced over that span. Chapman looks to be in prime form after only three appearances, and has quickly taken ownership of the closer role after recording between 33 and 38 saves over the last four seasons in Cincinnati.

McHugh didn't factor into the decision in Saturday's 6-5 extra-inning loss to the Red Sox, surrendering 10 hits, four earned runs and three walks over six innings. He struck out two.

The 28-year-old pitched to plenty of contact, inducing only four swinging strikes and giving up 10 hits for the third start this season. He also surrendered a homer for the fourth straight appearance, despite eliciting double-digit ground balls. McHugh also struggled with his control over his six frames on the mound, issuing a season-high three walks, and now has a 1.71 WHIP on the season to go along with a 5.58 ERA.

Farquhar was designated for assignment following Saturday's win over the Athletics, freelance Tampa Bay writer Roger Mooney reports.

Though he'll be bumped from the 40-man roster, Farquhar is expected to remain with the organization and report to Triple-A Durham on Monday. The former Mariners closer was recalled from Durham earlier Saturday, but didn't appear in the game against the Athletics after starter Matt Andriese went the distance. Farquhar has a 3.38 ERA and 1.68 WHIP over six appearances with the Rays this season.

Boxberger (abdomen) will need 4-5 outings on his rehab assignment before he's activated from the 15-day disabled list, Rays beat writer Roger Mooney reports.

An abdominal injury that required surgery has kept Boxberger on the shelf since spring training, but he's been upping his activity of late and he's set to begin his rehab assignment Sunday at High-A Port Charlotte. He told reporters that he'll need at least four outings on that stint before coming off the DL, so a return in the next week or so could be on the horizon.