MLB Player News

Gray (0-1) took the loss against Oakland on Thursday, allowing one run on three hits and one walk while striking out nine batters over five innings.

Gray yielded seven runs (five earned) over 7.1 innings across his first two starts of the campaign but managed to emerge without a loss on his record. Naturally, he took defeat for the first time Thursday in what was easily his best outing of the season, as he gave up just one run (on a Seth Brown solo homer) and punched out a campaign-high nine batters while inducing 13 swinging strikes. The outing at least gave Gray's fantasy managers a reason to hope for better days moving forward after his poor initial pair of starts, and he'll look to build on Thursday's performance in his next outing, which projects to be another good matchup versus Detroit next week.

Sears (1-1) earned the win against Texas on Thursday, pitching 6.1 scoreless innings during which he allowed one hit and three walks while striking out five batters.

Sears didn't allow a hit until the seventh frame, when Adolis Garcia knocked a one-out single to left field. While the left-handed hurler did issue three leadoff walks, only one of those batters got past first base. Oakland scored just one run in support of Sears, but it was enough for him to pick up his first win, as the Athletics' bullpen managed to complete the shutout. This was the first good outing of the season for Sears -- he entered the game having allowed nine runs across 9.1 innings over his first two starts.

The Blue Jays plan to promote Rodriguez to the major-league club sometime this weekend, Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.ca reports.

Rodriguez joined the Blue Jays this offseason on a multi-year deal after pitching in Japan for the previous four seasons. He's started a pair of games with Triple-A Buffalo, working a total of 6.1 shutout innings with a 10:3 K:BB. It's unclear how the club intends to deploy Rodriguez, though he may take the rotation spot of Bowden Francis, who has struggled significantly early on in the campaign.

Singer (2-0) earned the win over the Astros on Thursday, allowing one run on five hits over five innings. He struck out four.

A Yainer Diaz home run in the fourth inning was the lone mark against Singer on Thursday. The 27-year-old right-hander has allowed just two runs through his first three starts (18.1 innings) this season, lowering his ERA to a pristine 0.98 with a 0.76 WHIP and 18:4 K:BB. Singer looks to be back on track after a tough 2023 campaign, during which he went 8-11 with a 5.52 ERA. He's tentatively lined up for a road matchup with the White Sox in his next outing.

Brown (0-2) took the loss against the Royals on Thursday, allowing nine runs on 11 hits and a walk in just two-thirds of an inning.

Brown could only record two outs Thursday while the Royals nearly batted around twice en route to a nine-run opening frame. The 25-year-old right-hander hasn't missed many bats to start the season -- he's now allowed 14 runs on 19 hits over just 3.2 innings in his last two starts, pushing his ERA up to 16.43. Brown is currently in line for another tough matchup next week versus Atlanta, though a trip to the minors could be in order if he can't right the ship.

Plesac cleared waivers Thursday and was sent outright to Triple-A Salt Lake.

The Angels designated Plesac for assignment Monday, but the 29-year-old righty will remain with the organization after passing through waivers. He has turned in a 4.66 ERA and 1.41 WHIP through his first two Triple-A starts, and some improvement will likely be necessary before he gets another opportunity in the majors.

The Tigers are expected to call up Manning from Triple-A Toledo to start the second game of Saturday's doubleheader with the Twins, Jason Beck of MLB.com reports.

Even before the series opener with the Twins was officially postponed Thursday, the Tigers were seemingly prepared for the possibility of a doubleheader being created this weekend due to a rainout. As Jason Beck of MLB.com notes, Manning was scratched from his scheduled start with Toledo on Wednesday for what appear to be non-injury-related reasons, so he's the logical choice to fill the opening in the rotation with Saturday's doubleheader creating a stretch of six games in five days for Detroit. Manning previously made his season debut with the Tigers on April 4, striking out three over 5.2 scoreless, no-hit frames in a no-decision against the Mets in the second game of a twin bill.

Silseth (elbow) said Wednesday that he expects to return from the 15-day injured list in around three weeks, Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com reports.

Silseth received good news earlier in the week, when both of the doctors who evaluated his injured elbow determined he was dealing with nothing more than inflammation. While Silseth thus appears likely to resume throwing soon and steer clear of an extended absence, he'll still need more than the minimum 15 days to make a full recovery from the injury and get fully ramped up. Jose Soriano was moved from the bullpen earlier this week and will serve as the Angels' No. 5 starter while Silseth is on the shelf.

Bradley (pectoral) has thrown a bullpen session recently but is not close to a return, MLB.com reports.

It's not clear exactly when Bradley last threw, but manager Kevin Cash described it as a positive session. The expectation is that Bradley will return in early to mid-May, but there's no specific timeline at this point.

Littell came away with a no-decision in Wednesday's 4-2 win over the Angels, allowing one run on six hits and three walks over 4.1 innings. He struck out four.

The right-hander ran his pitch count up to 99 (62 strikes) before getting the hook, missing out on a chance to secure his second win of the year. Littell has a 1.17 ERA, 1.30 WHIP and 15:5 K:BB through three starts and 15.1 innings, and he has yet to serve up a homer despite the fact that one of his outings came in Coors Field. The latter could be key to his fantasy fortunes in 2024 after he was tagged for 13 home runs in 87 innings with Tampa Bay last season. Littell lines up for a rematch with the Halos back at home early next week.