MLB Player News

The Red Sox announced Saturday that Rodriguez (illness) will not pitch this season, Alex Speier of The Boston Globe reports.

Rodriguez developed myocarditis, an inflammation of the heart muscle, as a result of his battle with COVID-19. Strenuous activity is unsafe for his heart at the moment, and a recent examination indicated that's not expected to change soon enough for him to pitch at any point this year. The team remains hopeful that he'll make a full recovery and will be able to pitch next season.

Keller (not injury related) impressed manager Mike Matheny in a live batting practice session Saturday and could be activated from the COVID-19 injured list soon, Lynn Worthy of The Kansas City Star reports.

A positive coronavirus test wiped out most of Keller's camp and sent him to the injured list to start the year, but it doesn't sound as though he'll wind up missing too much time. He'll be needed in the rotation and should be one of the Royals' top starters after posting a respectable 4.19 ERA in 28 starts last year.

Cole may still make his scheduled start Monday, Joel Sherman of the New York Post reports.

Monday's game against Philadelphia was initially slated to be postponed, but the decision was reportedly reversed Saturday. With so much uncertainty surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic, whether the game will be played as scheduled remains to be seen. If the two teams are able to suit up Monday, Cole should be in line to take the mound for the Yankees, although no official announcement has been made.

Cole won't make his scheduled start Monday after the game against the Phillies was postponed, Jon Heyman of MLB Network reports.

Cole was in line to face the Orioles on Monday before the schedule was changed so the team plays the Phillies early in the week instead. However, the Yankees won't play at all Monday after the series opener against the Phillies was postponed as a precautionary measure amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The teams are still scheduled to play the following three days, so Cole should make a start early next week instead, but no announcement has been made about the Yankees' rotation to begin the week.

Turnbull (1-0) allowed two runs on three hits and one walk while striking out six over six innings in a win over the Reds on Friday.

Aside from the fifth inning, when he allowed a pair of extra-base hits, Turnbull was excellent. He showcased a quality four-pitch mix with good command. Through two starts this season -- both against Cincinnati -- Turnbull has a 2.45 ERA and 1.91 FIP. He was a lot better last year than his 3-17 record would indicate, but this level of dominance so far is still quite surprising. The right-hander will look to keep it going next week in St. Louis.

Clevinger (0-1) took the loss Friday as Cleveland was downed 4-1 by the Twins, coughing up four runs on six hits and five walks over four innings. He struck out five.

Just as he did in his first start of the season, Clevinger had a rough first inning that saw him give up three runs, but he was able to right the ship somewhat after that. The Twins' patience ultimately chased him from the game, however, and the right-hander needed 88 pitches (47 strikes) to record 12 outs. Clevinger will try to get out of the blocks more quickly in his next outing Wednesday, at home against the Reds.

Bielak (2-0) walked three batters and struck out two over two innings to earn the win Friday versus the Angels.

Starter Lance McCullers was only able to pitch four innings, with Bielak serving in a multi-inning role to collect his second win of the year. Bielak has a 1.69 ERA and 1.31 WHIP with six strikeouts in 5.1 innings through two appearances. The 24-year-old righty likely won't maintain those ratios -- he had a 4.41 ERA in 85.2 innings with Triple-A Corpus Christi in 2019 -- so it's unlikely he'll make much of a splash in fantasy this season.

McCullers allowed four runs on six hits and four walks while striking out four in four innings in a no-decision versus the Angels on Friday.

McCullers needed 91 pitches (53 strikes) to get through the inefficient outing. The 26-year-old has a 5.40 ERA and 10 strikeouts in 10 innings this season. He'll need to do a better job of limiting baserunners in future starts if he's going to rack up wins. McCullers is expected to make his next start in Arizona on Wednesday.

Bubic (0-1) took the loss Friday as the Royals fell 3-2 to the White Sox, giving up three runs (two earned) on three hits and a walk over four innings. He struck out three.

Making his big-league debut, Bubic threw 45 of 76 pitches for strikes and mostly looked like he belonged in the Show, but he caught too much of the plate with a second-inning changeup that Adam Engel deposited over the left-field wall for a three-run shot. The young southpaw will stick in the rotation for now, with his next outing scheduled for Wednesday at home against the Cubs.

Walker (1-1) earned the win Friday by holding the A's scoreless and striking out eight across seven innings. He allowed one hit and a pair of walks.

Walker retired his first eight batters before issuing a walk to Tony Kemp in the third inning. The only hit he gave up was a leadoff double to Ramon Laureano in the fourth. It was a long awaited successful outing for the 27-year-old, who underwent Tommy John surgery in 2018. Walker will look to stay in the win column with a favorable matchup against the Angels on Thursday.