MLB Player News

Rodriguez will pitch a two-inning simulated game Saturday, Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com reports.

Rodriguez, who is expected to be Boston's Opening Day starter, has not yet been scheduled to start a Grapefruit League game. Nathan Eovaldi (Sunday) and Garrett Richards (Monday) will throw the first two games, and all of Boston's starters will throw two innings in their spring debuts.

Arihara is set to start the Rangers' third spring game Tuesday against the White Sox, Kennedi Landry of MLB.com reports.

Arihara, who is a likely member of the rotation, will follow Kyle Gibson, the presumptive Opening Day starter, for Monday's spring game. The right-handed Arihara had a 3.46 ERA over 132.2 innings in Japan last season.

Gibson will start Monday's spring game against San Francisco, Kennedi Landry of MLB.com reports.

The Rangers kick off the Cactus League on Sunday when swingman Wes Benjamin starts. Gibson is the first established starter scheduled to throw, and he's the putative Opening Day starter for Texas.

Dunn entered camp 10 pounds lighter than last season, Ryan Divish of The Seattle Times reports.

Dunn made several improvements during the offseason, including an increased fastball velocity that he displayed during his first bullpen session Friday while striking out Kyle Seager, Evan White and J.P. Crawford. The right-hander also altered the grip on his changeup and shed some pounds. Manager Scott Servais said that his weight loss could help him "move down the mound better and hopefully improve his stuff." Dunn made 10 starts for the Mariners last year but isn't guaranteed a spot in the team's six-man rotation to begin the season.

Kluber tossed two innings of live batting practice Friday, Bryan Hoch of MLB.com reports.

The veteran hurler was tested in the session, facing the likes of Aaron Judge, DJ LeMahieu, Luke Voit and Gleyber Torres. Voit smashed a homer against Kluber, but that didn't stop manager Aaron Boone from feeling positive about the right-hander's session. "I feel really good about his progress," Boone said. "I thought he finished better than he started, and I think the stuff is overall pretty crisp. I'm encouraged where he's at." Kluber figures to slot in as the No. 2 starter for the Yankees this season.

German tossed a 20-pitch batting-practice session Thursday, Max Goodman of Sports Illustrated reports.

This was German's first time on the mound with the Yankees since his September 2019 suspension, and manager Aaron Boone said the right-hander looked "sharp" against the five batters he faced. German is expected to compete for the team's final rotation spot during spring training, though Deivi Garcia may be the favorite to land the fifth-starter role.

Rodon has a clearer path to the No. 5 starter job than expected, after the White Sox announced Friday that Michael Kopech would open the year in the bullpen, Bruce Levine of 670TheScore.com reports.

Kopech was the obvious choice for the role on talent alone, but he's missed two full seasons due to Tommy John surgery and an opt out. The White Sox will manage his innings to start the year, opening up a rotation spot for someone else. Rodon hasn't been officially named the winner of the job, but he's the obvious candidate when the alternatives are players like Reynaldo Lopez and Jonathan Stiever. Rodon recorded a 4.01 ERA over his first four big-league seasons but has to prove he's healthy and effective this spring after struggling to a 5.74 ERA in 42.1 innings over the last two campaigns while missing most of both years due to Tommy John surgery.

Kopech will begin the year in the bullpen, Bruce Levine of 670TheScore.com reports.

Kopech's profile is the sort that always carried with it a bit of relief risk, as he has big stuff but shaky command and a history of injuries. That doesn't appear to be what's happening here though, as the move can be explained as an effort to manage the young righty's innings. He hasn't pitched in a game in over two years, as he missed 2019 while recovering from Tommy John surgery before opting out of the 2020 season. Kopech was never going to be able to last the full year in the rotation, so the White Sox will simply start him in the 'pen rather than moving him there over the summer. He could still provide a bit of fantasy value as a reliever, but his value will ultimately be determined in large part by when he gets the chance to start again, and the White Sox have yet to make clear when that will happen. Carlos Rodon looks like the favorite to win the No. 5 starter job to open the season with Kopech out of the picture.

Eovaldi will start the Red Sox's spring opener against the Twins on Sunday, Ian Browne of MLB.com reports.

Eovaldi is slightly ahead of other starters in terms of progression. While Eovaldi will kick off the spring season, Eduardo Rodriguez is expected to be Boston's Opening Day starter.

Bielak will start the Astros' first Grapefruit League contest Sunday, Jake Kaplan of The Athletic reports.

Bielak contributed significantly to the Astros in 2020, throwing 32 innings both as a starter and reliever. However, he didn't have consistent success, posting a 6.75 ERA and 1.75 WHIP with a 26:17 K:BB. Houston made a number of additions to its bullpen this offseason -- the most significant of which were Pedro Baez and Steve Cishek -- which means Bielak is likely to begin the season at Triple-A Sugar Land.