MLB Player News

The Rangers hope Smyly (arm) will rejoin the rotation May 5, Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News reports.

Smyly has started playing catch but will not be ready to go Tuesday. Adrian Sampson is expected to start Tuesday while off days give manager Chris Woodward room to extend Smyly's throwing program through the week.

Kikuchi will return to his normal starting routine during his next turn in the rotation Friday at the Indians, Greg Johns of MLB.com reports.

As expected, Kikuchi worked a sole frame Friday against the Rangers, part of a maintenance plan to help him through the rigors of his first season stateside. However, manager Scott Servais confirms the Japanese import will be expected to return to a normal workload Friday, and it will be interesting to see if the extra amount of rest he's enjoyed will yield positive results versus Cleveland.

Morton struck out five and allowed no runs on two hits and four walks over six innings in a victory over the Red Sox on Saturday.

The veteran right-hander has dealt with control problems all season, but his four free passes Saturday was a season high. Still, he worked around the extra traffic and didn't yield a run for his second start this season. Morton has minimized the damage from walks this season by holding opponents to a .184 batting average. He is 3-0 with a 2.76 ERA, 1.13 WHIP and 39 strikeouts in 32.2 innings. His next scheduled start is Thursday against the Royals on the road.

Boyd will still start Sunday for the Tigers after Saturday's game was postponed due to inclement weather, Anthony Fenech of the Detroit Free Press reports.

Saturday's Tigers-White Sox game in Chicago was postponed due to wintry weather and will be made up as part of a doubleheader July 3. Boyd will stay on his regular schedule and start as planned Sunday, as the Tigers can use off days Monday and Thursday to get their rotation lined up next week. The lefty has been off to a good start this season, with a 3.16 ERA and 1.02 WHIP over five starts (31.1 innings).

Canning will make his major-league debut Tuesday against the Blue Jays, Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register reports.

Canning has allowed just one earned run and has a 17:1 K:BB through three starts for Triple-A Salt Lake this season. He's a promising prospect, with a fastball that sits in the mid-90s and a potentially plus slider, backed up by decent command. He'll reach the majors within two years of being taken 47th overall in the 2017 draft.

Clevinger (back) could play catch as soon as next week, Coley Harvey of ESPN.com reports.

Reports from the time of Clevinger's injury in early April suggested that Clevinger wouldn't be able to pick up a baseball for 6-8 weeks. If he does indeed play catch within the next few days, he could be as much as two weeks ahead of the fast end of that timeframe. It remains to be seen when he's expected to be activated from the 60-day injured list.

Berrios (4-1) struck out eight and was credited with the win in the Twins' 9-2 win over the Orioles on Saturday after pitching six innings and allowing two runs on seven hits and no walks.

Berrios allowed single runs in the fourth and fifth innings on RBI singles to Rio Ruiz and Hanser Alberto. The 24-year-old has won his last three starts and has pitched at least six innings in each of his six starts this season. Berrios has a 2.97 ERA and a 0.97 WHIP and lines up to face the Astros in his next start at home Thursday.

Lively was called up by the Royals on Saturday.

Lively has 20 career big-league starts and five relief appearances, though he's likely up as a reliever this time around. His unimpressive 4.61 ERA is an overachievement according to his 4.95 FIP and 5.50 xFIP. His 7.5 percent walk rate is good, but his 15.3 percent strikeout rate means his best fit is in a low-leverage relief role. Heath Fillmyer was optioned to Triple-A Omaha in a corresponding move.

Paxton (3-2) allowed three runs on five hits and two walks while striking out eight over 5.2 innings in a win over the Giants on Friday night.

This qualifies as making your layup in San Francisco, although fantasy owners were likely expecting more after back-to-back 12-strikeout performances in Paxton's previous two starts. He is pitching like a legitimate ace right now with a 32:4 K:BB in his last 19.2 innings. Paxton gets the Twins at home next weekend.

Kikuchi threw a perfect first inning with two strikeouts in Friday's win over the Rangers in extra innings.

The lefty threw one frame, as planned, before turning things over to rookie Justus Sheffield. Manager Scott Servais said in late March that the team would do this with Kikuchi every few starts to ease his transition to affiliated baseball's more demanding pitching schedule. He should be available for something close to a normal pitch count next week against Cleveland, and we should know when his next abbreviated outing is coming several days in advance.