MLB Player News

The Astros optioned Whitley (elbow) to their minor-league camp Sunday, Jake Kaplan of The Athletic reports.

Whitley's demotion was merely procedural, as the right-handed pitching prospect is already slated to miss the entire 2021 season due to his impending Tommy John surgery. Due to the timing of his procedure, Whitley will more than likely miss the first half of the 2022 campaign as well.

Perez allowed two hits and a walk while striking out five over four scoreless innings in Saturday's spring game against Atlanta.

Perez stayed around the zone, delivering 45 strikes among his 66 pitches, and has breezed through six scoreless innings over two Grapefruit League outings. The 29-year-old left-hander has battled inconsistency since his rookie days with the Rangers. He's not overpowering, so Perez needs to locate and avoid hard contact. He's cemented into Boston's starting rotation.

Garcia struck out two batters in a scoreless inning during Saturday's "B" game against Washington, Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle reports.

Garcia is emerging as an important piece for the Astros, whose starting depth has been challenged during spring training. This was Garcia's debut in Grapefruit League play, and the right-hander hit 95 MPH with his fastball. He could get another three starts during the final two-plus weeks of spring training, which could put him in the five-inning range if he's needed for the first regular-season turn of the rotation.

Kluber hurled four innings in Saturday's Grapefruit League game against Pittsburgh, allowing two runs on four hits and no walks while striking out two.

Kluber wasn't quite as effective as in his spring debut, when he pitched two perfect innings against Toronto. However, he got his pitch count up to 54 -- the most by any Yankees pitcher so far this spring. That's promising for a pitcher who combined for only 36.2 innings while dealing with injuries over the past two campaigns. Kluber is slotted to fill the second spot in New York's rotation in 2021.

Medina was optioned to High-A Hudson Valley on Friday.

The organization has expressed high optimism for Medina, but he's only 21 years of age and needs more seasoning, so he'll open the campaign in High-A ball. The right-hander has made one Grapefruit League appearance this spring, allowing one run on four walks over two-thirds of an inning. Control has been Medina's primary struggle in his short professional career, so he'll need to work that issue out before he's ready to tackle the majors.

Gil was optioned to Double-A Somerset on Friday.

Gil is on the Yankees' 40-man roster, but he has yet to pitch beyond the High-A level and wasn't in contention to make the Opening Day roster. The right-hander has appeared in one game during spring training, pitching a perfect inning against Detroit.

Dunn, competing with Nick Margevicius for the sixth starter role, allowed an unearned run on three hits and a walk over three innings in a Cactus League win over the Reds on Friday. He struck out three.

Daniel Kramer of MLB.com reports Dunn's fastball velocity and location both continue to be highlights of his impressive performances thus far, with the heater touching 96 mph Friday and the right-hander issuing just the one free pass. Dunn's diligent offseason conditioning work has paid dividends to date in the form of an unblemished ERA through five spring frames, certainly catching his boss' eye. "His body is moving differently down the mound, and he's got something behind it," Mariners manager Scott Servais said. "There's life on the ball."

Kopech (calf) is expected to pitch during Monday's Cactus League matchup against the Cubs, Scott Merkin of MLB.com reports.

Kopech experienced calf tightness Friday and threw a side session rather than pitching in the spring game against the Rangers. Manager Tony La Russa said that the right-hander didn't experience any calf issues Saturday, and he'll return to Cactus League action Monday as a result.

Teheran has averaged 92 mph with his fastball in his last two Grapefruit League starts, which is up from last season, Jason Beck of MLB.com reports.

Teheran sat below 90 mph during most of 2020, and he struggled with a 10.05 ERA and 1.76 WHIP across 10 appearances (nine starts) with the Angels. The Tigers are hoping the righty reverts to his 2019 form, when he posted a 3.81 ERA and 1.32 WHIP across 33 starts with Atlanta. Teheran is a non-roster invitee to camp, but he could push his way onto the roster if he looks more like his old self.

Quantrill gave up three runs on four hits and two walks while striking out one in three innings in his most recent Cactus League appearance against the Angels.

He was scoreless over two frames in his first outing of the spring, but has given up multiple runs in each of his most recent appearances, during which he has been piggybacking with Triston McKenzie. Cleveland has been keeping its cards close to the vest thus far regarding how the rotation will shake out behind its top three starters, but the general assumption is that McKenzie will be the No. 4 starter while Quantrill and Logan Allen vie for the final spot. Allen has had better results in their respective tiny samples this spring, while Quantrill has a more impressive track record dating back to previous seasons.