MLB Player News

Rodriguez allowed one run on six hits with six strikeouts and two walks across six innings in a victory over the White Sox on Saturday.

With major run support, Rodriguez settled in for one of his best starts of the year. The right-hander allowed his run in the first inning and then had to work around trouble in the second, but he was perfect in three of his final four frames. Rodriguez had an absolutely awful start to the year, but he has given up just one run in two of his last three outings. He is 3-2 with a 5.40 ERA, 1.50 WHIP and 41 strikeouts in 36.2 innings. His next start is scheduled for Friday at home against the Mariners.

Lynn (4-2) allowed five runs on eight hits and five walks while striking out three over six innings in a win over the Blue Jays on Saturday.

This was not a strong performance from the right-hander, but the Rangers' offense powered him to another win, his fourth in his last five turns. Lynn is doing a good job keeping the ball in the yard and his walk rate is down overall -- the ERA estimators suggest he deserves quite a bit better. That said, you need not look further back than April 23 for an example of the type of downside Lynn brings to the table (eight runs over 3.1 innings). Lynn gets the Astros in Houston next week.

Heaney (elbow) will face hitters Sunday, Jeff Fletcher of The Orange County Register reports.

Heaney has been battling an elbow issue since early March. His expected return date remains unclear, but the length of his absence means he'll likely need a few rehab outings before returning to the roster.

Chirinos will start Saturday against the Orioles, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

Chirinos had been expected to follow opener Ryne Stanek, but potential weather issues caused a change of plans. Chirinos has averaged over five innings per appearance this season, though only three of his six outings have come as starts.

Odorizzi (4-2) picked up the win Saturday over the Yankees, hurling six scoreless innings in a 7-3 victory while permitting just two hits and four walks. He struck out eight.

Odorizzi cruised through the Yankees lineup, wriggling out of trouble in the first and fourth innings when he issued two walks in both frames. The 29-year-old has has won his last four starts, allowing just three runs over 24.1 innings with a 23:6 K:BB. For the season, Odorizzi has an outstanding 2.78 ERA and 1.09 WHIP. He'll look to keep it rolling in his next start, which is scheduled for Friday at home against the Tigers.

Paxton (knee) received a cortisone shot Saturday and will be shut down for 5-7 days, Brendan Kuty of The Newark Star-Ledger reports.

It's not clear how much time the lefty will need to build back up after being shut down, but he may wind up missing more than one start. Jonathan Loaisiga will take his place in the rotation.

Paxton was placed on the 10-day injured list Saturday with left knee inflammation.

The team has not yet provided a clear timetable for when Paxton could return to game action, but the hope is that it will be a short stay on the IL. Manager Aaron Boone said Paxton is still feeling sore but didn't have any swelling Saturday, Lindsey Adler of The Athletic reports. The earliest Paxton would be able to return would be May 14. Jake Barrett was recalled from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre in a corresponding move. Jonathan Loaisiga, who is at Triple-A, and Luis Cessa, who is in the big-league bullpen, seem like the two most likely options to take Paxton's rotation spot in the short term.

Sale (1-5) picked up the win against the White Sox on Friday, striking out 10 and walking one while giving up no earned runs on three hits over six strong innings in the Red Sox' 6-1 victory.

The left-hander has endured a tough start to the season, but he looked like his old lights-out self in this one, recording his second double-digit strikeout effort of the year and finally getting his first win. Sale's ERA still sits at a bloated 5.25, but he's now given up just two earned over 13 innings in his past two starts, so he certainly looks ready to put the slow start behind him and get back to his Cy Young-caliber form of past seasons.

Boyd (3-2) picked up the win Friday over the Royals, allowing two runs on five hits and one walk across seven innings. He struck out nine.

Outside of the fourth inning Friday -- during which Boyd allowed both runs to score -- the southpaw didn't allow a baserunner to reach second base. Boyd has now registered six consecutive quality starts, posting a 2.75 ERA, 0.97 WHIP and 47:10 K:BB in 39.1 innings during that stretch. He'll look to keep it rolling in his next scheduled start, which will come at home against the Angels.

Kikuchi allowed one run on three hits with 10 strikeouts and one walk in a no-decision against the Indians on Friday.

The extra rest Kikuchi received by being used purely as an opener in his last start April 20, in which he threw only one inning, seemed to be helpful, as the southpaw turned in the best performance of his young MLB career. He is 1-1 with a 3.98 ERA, 1.16 WHIP and 35 strikeouts in 40.2 innings this season. His next scheduled start is on the road Wednesday against the Yankees.