MLB Player News

The Astros plan to activate Odorizzi (forearm) from the 10-day injured list and have him start Saturday's game against the Padres, Danielle Lerner of the Houston Chronicle reports.

Houston's rotation is inching closer to full health; in addition to Odorizzi, Framber Valdez (finger) will be activated from the IL to start Friday's series opener against San Diego, while Jose Urquidy (shoulder) looks poised to return from the IL to start Monday against the Red Sox. Meanwhile, Lance McCullers was placed on the IL on Wednesday with a sore shoulder, though manager Dusty Baker suggested that the right-hander would likely miss a short period of time. Odorizzi's spot in the rotation should be secure at least until McCullers is reinstated, but the former may need to deliver better results than he showed prior to being shut down with the strained forearm to ensure he stays in the rotation throughout the season. After a delayed start to the season due to signing with Houston until early March, Odorizzi posted a 10.13 ERA and 1.62 WHIP over three short starts before landing on the IL with the arm issue.

Astros manager Dusty Baker said Wednesday that Javier would be moved to the bullpen, Jake Kaplan of The Athletic reports.

Though Lance McCullers (shoulder) was moved to the 10-day injured list Wednesday, the Astros are expected to return two starters (Framber Valdez and Jake Odorizzi) from the IL this weekend, and another on Monday (Jose Urquidy). Those reinforcements leave no room in the rotation for Javier, whose move to the bullpen was likely sealed after he issued a season-high six walks in 4.2 innings during his last start Sunday against the Rangers. The 24-year-old is probably overqualified for a long-relief role, so if the Astros can't find consistent, high-leverage work for him, Javier could be headed for Triple-A Sugar Land in the near future in order to pick up regular starts.

The Astros plan to activate Valdez (finger) from the 10-day injured list and have him start Friday's game against the Padres, Danielle Lerner of the Houston Chronicle reports.

Houston will get two starters back from the IL this weekend, as Jake Odorizzi (forearm) will be reinstated ahead of Saturday's game. Valdez, meanwhile, will take the rotation spot that belonged to Lance McCullers, who was placed on the IL on Wednesday with a sore shoulder that manager Dusty Baker believes is a short-term concern. The Astros will have some tough decisions to make with their rotation once McCullers is back in the fold, but Valdez should be in good shape to hold down a permanent spot after he delivered a 3.57 ERA, 1.12 WHIP and 76 strikeouts in 70.2 innings in 2020. The 27-year-old looked like he would be at risk of missing most of 2021 when he fractured the ring finger on his throwing hand in spring training, but he progressed more rapidly in his recovery than expected and was able to build up for starting duty in just under three months. Valdez covered four innings and tossed 54 pitches in his final rehab start for Triple-A Sugar Land on Sunday, so he could be capped at around 75 pitches in his season debut for Houston.

Astros manager Dusty Baker said McCullers will be placed on the 10-day injured list Wednesday with a sore right shoulder, Jake Kaplan of The Athletic reports.

Per Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle, Baker said McCullers received an ultrasound for the shoulder injury, but he wasn't certain whether an MRI would be necessary. In any case, the skipper is optimistic that McCullers' sore shoulder is "short term" in nature, but a clearer timeline for the right-hander's return won't come into focus until he's able to start throwing again. McCullers' temporary shutdown should ease the crowding in Houston's rotation to some degree, as the Astros will get both Framber Valdez (finger) and Jake Odorizzi (forearm) back from the IL for this weekend's series with the Padres.

Groome (lower leg) owns a 10.64 ERA, 2.36 WHIP and 18:10 K:BB over 11 innings in his four starts with High-A Greenville this season.

Groome was lifted in his second start of the season May 11 after being struck in the leg by a line drive, but he's been able to make his last two turns through the rotation. The results haven't been impressive, however, with Groome's poor control particularly standing out. The 22-year-old lefty has posted walk rates north of nine percent in each of his seasons at Low-A or High-A ball, and that trend is on track to continue in 2021.

The Rangers transferred Arihara (shoulder) to the 60-day injured list Wednesday.

Arihara will be on the mend for at least three months after undergoing surgery on his right shoulder last week, so his move to the 60-day IL won't have any bearing on his recovery timetable. The transaction opens up a spot on the 40-man roster for outfielder Jason Martin, who was promoted from Triple-A Round Rock in a corresponding move.

Mariners manager Scott Servais said Wednesday that he's hopeful Gonzales (forearm) will be able to return from the 10-day injured list when his next turn through the rotation comes up June 1 versus the Athletics, Daniel Kramer of MLB.com reports.

Seattle has mostly kept its six-man rotation intact since Gonzales strained his forearm during an April 27 start, relying mostly on bullpen days for the lefty's turns through the rotation due to the lack of healthy starting options available on the 40-man roster. Gonzales, meanwhile, has made solid progress in his rehab program of late, most recently throwing an extended simulated game. Servais doesn't believe that Gonzales will require a minor-league rehab assignment before being activated, and the southpaw isn't expected to require any major restrictions with his workload once he's deemed ready to go.

The Orioles optioned Kremer to Triple-A Norfolk on Wednesday.

Kremer heads back to the minors one day after he was roughed up by the Twins for five runs on six hits and three walks over four innings to drop to 0-5 on the season. The Orioles haven't named an immediate replacement in the rotation for Kremer, but long reliever Keegan Akin would appear to be the most logical option to fill the opening.

Cleveland plans to recall McKenzie from Triple-A Columbus to start Wednesday's game against the Tigers, Mandy Bell of MLB.com reports.

McKenzie was optioned to Columbus last weekend after he was lit up for 11 earned runs in 7.2 innings across his last two outings. Cleveland ideally would have wanted McKenzie to find some success at Triple-A before bringing him back, but the 23-year-old will be summoned to the majors sooner than anticipated after Zach Plesac (thumb) was placed on the 10-day injured list Tuesday. According to Bell, McKenzie will be optioned to Triple-A following Wednesday's start, but he could still return to Cleveland early next week. The Indians have a doubleheader against the White Sox on Monday, and McKenzie could be designated as the 27th man for the twin bill if the team wants him to start one of the two contests.

The Yankees are sending Kluber in for an MRI on Wednesday strictly as a precaution after he was diagnosed with right shoulder tightness following his start in Tuesday's 6-2 loss to the Blue Jays, Jon Heyman of MLB Network reports.

The club is apparently confident that Kluber isn't dealing with any structural damage to his shoulder or a strain, so the MRI will ideally confirm the Yankees' medical staff's initial findings. Kluber appeared to downplay the injury himself when he spoke to reporters after Tuesday's game, mentioning that the issue isn't similar to the teres muscle tear in his shoulder that sidelined him for the majority of the 2020 campaign. Even so, Kluber should be considered questionable at best to make his next turn through the rotation, which comes Sunday in Detroit. The two-time Cy Young Award winner dropped to 4-3 after being tagged for two runs while striking out five over three innings in Tuesday's start, his first since tossing his first career no-hitter May 19 in Texas.