MLB Player News

Manager Dusty Baker said Verlander made a precautionary exit from Sunday's Grapefruit League game against the Mets due to right triceps soreness, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.

The 37-year-old was scheduled to throw four innings but was removed after two frames once the soreness cropped up. The right-hander dealt with a similar injury in 2015 and was unable to make his season debut until June. Baker may have labeled Verlander's removal as precautionary, but there won't be any sort of timetable for his return until the testing is completed.

Verlander exited Sunday's Grapefruit League start against the Mets after two innings to "get some testing done," Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle reports.

The veteran right-hander dealt with groin discomfort earlier in spring training, but it's unclear if he aggravated that injury during Sunday's outing or is dealing with a different issue. Verlander had one strikeout and allowed three hits over two innings (28 pitches), but he was scheduled to throw four frames as he builds up for Opening Day. The team announced that manager Dusty Baker will provide an update after the game.

Heaney will be the Angels' Opening Day starter March 26 at Houston, Maria Torres of the Los Angeles Times reports.

Heaney took a step back in 2019 with a 4.91 ERA, 1.29 WHIP and 118:30 K:BB over 95.1 innings as he battled multiple injuries, but he'll be the first hurler to take the mound for the Angels this season. The left-hander began the last three seasons on the injured list but utilized a different offseason approach in his preparations for 2020.

Hart was optioned to Triple-A Pawtucket on Sunday.

Hart had an outside chance at a spot in the starting rotation, but he'll end up beginning his season at Triple-A. The 27-year-old started 15 games for Pawtucket during 2019 and had a 3.86 ERA, 1.27 WHIP and 80:36 K:BB across 100.1 innings.

Luzardo started a Cactus League win over the Mariners on Saturday, recording eight strikeouts over 3.1 innings while allowing an earned run on two hits and a walk.

As his final line indicates, the Mariners had few answers for Luzardo, whose only true blemish was a run-scoring double he allowed to Cal Raleigh in the second inning. Chris Haft of MLB.com reports Luzardo frequently flummoxed the Mariners with a mix of sliders, curveballs and changeups alongside a fastball that consistently remained in the 96-97-mph range. Notably, the aforementioned two-bagger by Raleigh brought home the only run Luzardo has allowed through his first 8.1 spring innings, leaving him firmly in control of his destiny for a spot in the starting rotation to open the season.

Milone (neck) completed a bullpen session Sunday and could return to spring games in a week, Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com reports.

The left-hander was scratched from his simulated game last Tuesday after dealing with a trapezius issue, but his quick return to mound work indicates it's a minor concern. Milone is in camp as a non-roster invitee and is competing for a back-end rotation spot.

Eovaldi allowed one hit and one walk while striking out four over three scoreless innings in Saturday's spring start against the Blue Jays.

Eovaldi came out firing, hitting 97 mph during the first inning. He navigated traffic in the first before setting down the final seven batters faced. He's looked great thus far, tossing zeros and fanning 41.4 percent of batters faced through eight Grapefruit League innings.

Gibson allowed one hit and one walk while striking out two over three scoreless innings in Saturday's spring game against the Brewers.

Gibson worked another scoreless spring start, but it didn't happen without drama. The Brewers loaded the bases with one out in the third inning, but the right-hander escaped unscathed by getting Orlando Arcia to ground into an inning-ending double play. Of Gibson's repertoire, he throws the sinker the most, so it's not surprising to see him generate the double-play groundout. He leads MLB with 136 double plays over the last six seasons. "Definitely glad those haven't left me," Gibson told T.R. Sullivan of MLB.com. "I feel really confident in those situations that I can get out of them. Definitely like to see those happen early on in spring." There was some concern that Gibson, who battled ulcerative colitis in 2019, might be behind other starters. However, he was able to throw another 15 pitches in the bullpen following Saturday's stint and, with another three scheduled Cactus League starts, should have his pitch count up in time to take his first turn through the rotation.

Keuchel allowed four runs on eight hits and one walk while striking out three over 3.2 innings in Saturday's spring game against the Giants.

While he was pulled in the middle of the fourth inning, Keuchel told Scott Merkin of MLB.com that he could have pitched another couple of innings. Despite the runs, the veteran left-hander is pleased to get his work in. He'll next throw in an in-camp format Thursday, when the White Sox have a scheduled off day.

Gonzales threw 61 pitches in a "B" game on the back field of the Mariners' spring training complex Friday, Daniel Kramer of MLB.com reports.

The left-hander was scratched from Friday's Cactus League start against the Dodgers in order to clear the path for some younger arms to gain game experience, but Gonzales still got his work in versus Shed Long, Dee Gordon, Cal Raleigh and Austin Shenton. Gonzales is slated to return to Cactus League action at some point next week.