MLB Player News

Montgomery was optioned to the team's alternate training site Tuesday.

The 27-year-old was expected to begin the season as the Yankees' No. 5 starter, but instead he won't be included on the 30-man roster to open the season. Montgomery delivered five scoreless frames during Sunday's exhibition contest with the Mets, so he finished summer training with a strong performance. New York has the benefit of an off day Friday after the season opener Thursday, so it appears manager Aaron Boone will take advantage with an extra reliever out of the gate. Montgomery could still join the rotation early in the season, but until he's recalled or the team provides more information, his immediate outlook remains uncertain.

Schmidt was sent to the Yankees' alternate training site Tuesday, Randy Miller of The Newark Star-Ledger reports.

Schmidt received glowing reviews from the pitching staff during his camp, but he won't begin the season on the major-league roster. Manager Aaron Boone said, "He has delivered in every way," when describing Schmidt's performance during camp. Given the team's belief in his potential, the 24-year-old could make his major-league debut at some point during the abbreviated 2020 season.

Means' arm fatigue will prevent him from starting in Friday's season opener versus the Red Sox, Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com reports.

Means was named the team's Opening Day starter earlier in the month, but he was scratched from his exhibition start this past weekend due to arm fatigue and is evidently still dealing with the issue. It's not clear exactly when he's expected to return. Tommy Milone will now start Friday in Boston in Means' absence.

Milone will be the Orioles' Opening Day starter Friday against the Red Sox, Jon Meoli of The Baltimore Sun reports.

Milone wouldn't be the Opening Day starter for many teams in the league, as his unimpressive 4.76 ERA in 111.2 innings for the Mariners last season was his best mark since 2015. He wouldn't earn the honor for the Orioles, normally, but he's been called upon with John Means unavailable due to arm fatigue.

Greinke threw 80 pitches in a simulated game Tuesday, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.

Getting to 80 pitches in his final tuneup outing suggests that Greinke should be able to come close to 100 pitches in his first outing of the regular season. While he's seemingly the Astros' second-best starter, he lines up to start the third game of the year Sunday against the Mariners, with Lance McCullers, who made his final preseason appearance Monday, in line to start Saturday.

Keller (not injury related) will begin the season on the injured list, Alec Lewis of The Athletic reports.

A positive COVID-19 test prevented Keller from arriving at camp until Friday, and he's not expected to be quite in game shape for the start of the year. It's uncertain when the Royals expect him to make his debut. They'll need a fifth starter on July 28 against the Tigers, but it sounds like Keller may not be ready to take the mound by that point.

McCullers allowed one run on four hits while striking out six over five innings in Monday's exhibition game against the Royals, Chandler Rome of Houston Chronicle reports. He threw 76 pitches (47 for strikes).

McCullers was sharp in his final tuneup before the regular season. His elite curveball confounded hitters per usual, but the right-hander also mixed in his two-seamer and changeup to elicit 14 swings and misses. He's in line to start the second game of the season, Saturday at home against the Mariners.

Keuchel allowed one hit over five scoreless innings in Monday's exhibition game against the Cubs, Scot Gregor of the Daily Herald reports.

Keuchel faced the minimum of 15 batters as the one lone baserunner was wiped out by a double play. This marked the first time in summer camp that he reached five innings, the minimum number of innings required to qualify for a win. The left-hander is expected to start the second game of the season, Saturday at home against the Twins.

Perez allowed three hits and no walks while striking out six over six shutout innings in Monday's intrasquad game, Ian Browne of MLB.com reports. He threw 80 pitches (52 strikes).

Perez said he found his cutter, which he had problems with in earlier intrasquad games, and that was the difference Monday. The left-hander authored his best outing of camp in his final tuneup and will next start the second game of the season, Saturday at home against Baltimore.

Canning took the win in Monday's exhibition game against San Diego, completing six scoreless innings and allowing three hits and two walks while striking out five.

Canning breezed through six innings against a Padres lineup consisting of projected starters, allowing only five baserunners while fanning five. The right-hander has looked solid in summer camp and has shown no signs of being affected by the elbow issue that shut down his throwing in February. Canning could be a solid source of strikeouts at the back end of the rotation after whiffing 96 batters in 90.1 innings last season.