MLB Player News

Chirinos fired three scoreless innings in a Grapefruit League loss to the Twins on Friday, allowing two hits and striking out two.

The right-hander turned in a much-needed strong effort after getting knocked around for five earned runs by the Braves last Saturday. Chirinos is in a battle for a back-end rotation spot with Ryan Yarbrough, who's now fired six scoreless frames this spring.

Watson is recovering from Tommy John surgery that he underwent last May, Jeffrey Flanagan of MLB.com reports.

The 33rd overall pick in 2015, Watson's career has been derailed by injuries to date, as he also dealt with a shoulder injury in 2017. He is expected to throw in extended spring training and could be sent to High-A Wilmington this summer.

Canning (elbow) is hopeful that he will be cleared to resume throwing in three weeks, Jeff Fletcher of The Orange County Register reports.

He had a single PRP injection Friday to address right elbow discomfort. Canning said nothing is torn and it's just some tissues rubbing against each other. He said surgery was never presented as an option by any of the doctors he has seen. Injuries have been a problem for Canning in pro ball, but it sounds like there is a chance we could see him in the big-league rotation sometime in the first few months of the season.

Snell (elbow) has been confirmed as Monday's starter against the Blue Jays, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

Snell received a cortisone shot last week to help him deal with pain in his elbow and has successfully thrown a bullpen session and is now confirmed to return to game action. He still carries more risk than the typical starting pitcher due to this elbow scare, but it sounds like fantasy managers can proceed with the expectation that Snell will be ready for the start of the season.

Carrasco is dealing with mild elbow inflammation, Mandy Bell of MLB.com reports.

Manager Terry Francona said Carrasco has been backed up a few days for maintenance and didn't seem concerned that it would be problematic. Carrasco will work out with weighted balls Saturday and the team will see how he feels. This is obviously not good news, but there have not been any tests scheduled yet, which is encouraging.

Rodriguez allowed two runs on three hits and one walk while striking out four over four innings in Friday's spring game against Atlanta.

Interim manager Ron Roenicke was pleased with Rodriguez's execution for a second straight start, reports Dawn Klemish of MLB.com. "He really threw some good breaking balls today. The fastball and changeup are always there, the cutter is good, but he threw some really nice curveballs. It was nice to see," said the manager. The left-hander used his offspeed arsenal to induce several swings-and-misses against the Braves' "A" lineup. Rodriguez is on schedule to start Opening Day.

Kluber allowed one run on two hits and two walks while striking out two over four innings in Friday's spring game against the Padres.

Kluber worked from behind more than is typical of him, but he limited the damage and met his goal of pitching four frames. He was better this time out than in his Cactus League debut this past Sunday. He didn't allow a hit through the first three innings while working around a pair of walks. So far, the 33-year-old right-hander looks normal after missing a significant amount of time in 2019 due to a broken forearm.

McCullers allowed two runs on two hits while striking out two in Friday's spring game against the Mets.

McCullers made his second Grapefruit League start -- and second since recovering from Tommy John surgery -- throwing 29 pitches (17 strikes). The right-hander told Brian McTaggart of MLB.com he mostly worked on his four-seamer during the outing. It's a pitch he's gotten away from recently, but he wants to feel comfortable with it again. McCullers is a curveball-heavy thrower who mixes in sinkers and changeups. He came out of Friday's outing pleased with those three pitches.

Snell (elbow) is on track to pitch Monday against the Blue Jays, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

Snell will play catch before a final decision on his next appearance is made, but he felt good Saturday morning after throwing a bullpen session Friday, and barring any setbacks he will take the ball Monday for the first time since Feb. 26. He still has time to make a few appearances before the regular season begins, but it remains to be seen if his absence will affect his availability for Opening Day.

Morton is slated to work multiple simulated games over the next week and make just one more Grapefruit League appearance in anticipation of a likely Opening Day start, Juan Toribio of MLB.com reports.

The veteran right-hander was originally scheduled to make his next Grapefruit League start Sunday against his old Pirates squad, but he'll instead work four innings and build up to approximately 60 pitches in a simulated environment on the backfields of the Rays' spring training complex. Morton will then repeat the process approximately five or six days later, with the goal of reaching 75 pitches in that outing. That would leave Morton an opportunity to make a final spring start March 20 against the Nationals, and then have the benefit of six days rest before the regular-season opener against Pittsburgh.