MLB Player News

Montgomery (1-0) allowed four hits over six scoreless innings in Monday's win over the Orioles. He struck out seven batters.

Montgomery was terrific from the jump Monday, retiring the first six batters he faced and allowing just one baserunner through four innings. The only time he was in danger was a first-and-third situation during the fifth inning, but he managed to escape with a timely groundout. The 28-year-old southpaw will look for similar results in Tampa Bay on Sunday.

Bundy will start Tuesday's game against the Astros, Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com reports.

Bundy posted a quality start during his Opening Day outing against the White Sox and was initially lined up to make his second start of the season Thursday. Griffin Canning was scheduled to start Tuesday, but he warmed up in the bullpen during Sunday's win over the White Sox. As a result, Bundy will start one game earlier than expected, although he'll still be pitching on normal rest.

Canning won't start Tuesday's game against the Astros, Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com reports.

Canning was warming up in the bullpen during Sunday's game against the White Sox, so Dylan Bundy will step in as the starter on normal rest Tuesday. The Angels have a day off Wednesday, but Canning will make his first start of the regular season on the road against the Blue Jays on Thursday, Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times reports.

Rodriguez (dead arm) will throw a bullpen session Monday, Jen McCaffrey of The Athletic reports.

Rodriguez's velocity was down during a simulated game Friday, but the team attributed the issue to cold conditions and a lack of game environment. The team will evaluate the southpaw's progress after his throwing session Monday, and manager Alex Cora called the bullpen session the "last hurdle" in Rodriguez's recovery. If all goes well, Rodriguez could be activated from the injured list in the near future.

Cease threw 4.2 innings Sunday against the Angels, allowing three runs on five hits and three walks while striking out three. He did not factor into the decision.

It wasn't a particularly encouraging start to the season for Cease, whose 6.35 FIP didn't come close to supporting his 4.01 ERA last year. The Angels got to him right away, with Shohei Ohtani homering in the first inning and Justin Upton hitting a sacrifice fly later in the frame. David Fletcher added another run with an RBI single in the fourth. Cease will look to get back on track in his next start, which should come Saturday against the Royals.

Bielak (1-0) earned the win Sunday against Oakland, striking out four in 4.2 innings of relief without allowing a single baserunner.

It's rare that the reliever who picks up a win after a starter fails to throw five innings truly deserves the honor, but this is not one of those cases. Bielak's innings weren't particularly stressful, as he entered with a four-run lead in the bottom of the fifth and saw that extended to seven runs in the top of the sixth, but he couldn't have handled his assignment much more impressively. Bielak isn't the sort of pitcher who would be expected to retire 14 straight batters, as he struggled to a 6.75 ERA and 1.75 WHIP in his 32-inning debut last season, but it's possible his outing signals the start of something new.

Urquidy threw 4.1 innings Sunday against Oakland, allowing two runs on four hits and two walks while striking out five.

Urquidy pitched well enough in his season debut, though his inefficiency represents a potential concern. Unlike many starters who were pulled before being eligible to earn a win in their first outing of the season, Urquidy handled a full workload, throwing 101 pitches, but that still wasn't enough for him to complete the fifth inning. Most of his trouble came early, as he faced seven batters in the first inning before facing just 10 over the next three frames. Urquidy's next outing should come Saturday, also against the Athletics.

Whitlock allowed three hits and struck out five over 3.1 scoreless innings in Sunday's 11-3 loss to the Orioles.

There wasn't a whole lot for Boston to feel good about in its three-game series against Baltimore, but it can be pleased with how Whitlock performed Sunday. The Red Sox were outscored 18-5 and batted .160 during the three games. Whitlock, the Rule 5 pick from the Yankees, was needed early following the eggs laid by starter Garrett Richards (six runs, two-plus innings) and reliever Josh Taylor (four runs, two-thirds). The Tommy John survivor, who hadn't pitched since 2019, pounded the zone with a fastball that topped out at 96.9 MPH. Sunday's effort was a continuation of a remarkable spring training during which Whitlock struck out 12 and walked none over nine innings. His role to open the season is that of a multi-inning reliever, but the 24-year-old right-hander could operate as a starter if the need arises.

Skubal allowed two runs on four hits and two walks while striking out four over 5.1 innings against Cleveland on Sunday. He did not factor in the decision.

The young lefty was impressive Sunday, yet he fell two outs short of a quality start. The 24-year-old debuted in 2020 and will have a lot of eyes on him moving forward given how highly touted of a prospect he is. Skubal will take the rubber against Cleveland again this upcoming Saturday.

Civale (1-0) allowed three runs on two hits while striking out six and walking three over seven innings to pick up the victory over the Tigers on Sunday.

The righty was dominant in his debut, throwing 57 of his 91 pitches for strikes. The 25-year-old looked sharp as he did in his 2019 rookie campaign, when he recorded a 2.34 ERA. Civale has recorded a 3.69 ERA throughout his brief career, and with the outlier of last year's small sample size, he looks to be complementary to Zach Plesac and Shane Bieber in a top-heavy rotation that can give opponents headaches.