MLB Player News

Sale was solid in a no-decision against the Tigers on Tuesday, giving up two earned runs on five hits over five innings. He struck out 10 and walked two as the Red Sox lost 7-4 in the first game of a doubleheader.

Sale shut out the Tigers over the first three innings, but yielded single runs in the fourth and fifth, the latter on a Grayson Greiner solo homer. The left-hander struck out two batters in each inning, throwing 97 pitches. He'll look to build on this effort in his next start, Sunday at home against the Rays.

Giolito (hamstring) threw 25 pitches off flat ground Wednesday, Daryl Van Schouwen of the Chicago Sun-Times reports.

Giolito threw all of his pitches without discomfort. He reportedly expects to miss just one start. A side session Friday will likely be his final test.

Snell (toe) will return from the injured list to start Wednesday against the Royals, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

Reports over the weekend suggested that Snell would need at least a few more days to recover from his broken toe, but a bullpen session Tuesday apparently went well, allowing the team to push his timeline back up. He'll wind up missing just the minimum 10 days on the injured list.

The Red Sox relayed that Eovaldi is expected to resume pitching in six weeks after undergoing successful surgery Tuesday to remove loose bodies from his right elbow, Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com reports.

Manager Alex Cora wouldn't confirm how long Eovaldi would be sidelined when discussing the matter with the media Tuesday, but a team representative has since offered more definitive word regarding the 29-year-old's recovery timeline. Eovaldi had previously missed around two months after requiring a similar procedure in 2018, but the Red Sox are apparently optimistic that he'll be facing a slightly shorter absence this time around. Hector Velazquez will get the first crack at replacing Eovaldi in the rotation while taking the hill for the second game of Tuesday's doubleheader with the Tigers.

Manager Alex Cora said Eovaldi's elbow surgery Tuesday went as expected, but the skipper wouldn't confirm a timetable for the right-hander's return from the 10-day injured list, Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com reports.

Eovaldi's procedure involved the removal of loose bodies from his throwing elbow, a surgery nearly identical to the one he required a year ago. That surgery sidelined Eovaldi for about two months, and it's likely that he's facing a similar length of absence this time around, with Rob Bradford of WEEI.com relaying that the 29-year-old is expected to be out for 4-to-6 weeks. The Red Sox should hone in on a more defined target date for Eovaldi's return once he's on the cusp of starting a minor-league rehab assignment. In the meantime, Boston will turn to long reliever Hector Velazquez to fill Eovaldi's spot in the rotation.

German will make his next start Tuesday against the Angels, Pete Caldera of The Bergen Record reports.

German was initially slated to have his Tuesday start bumped to Wednesday to afford him an additional day of rest, with Jonathan Loaisiga in line to receive a promotion from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre to take the hill Tuesday. However, with the Yankees playing 14 innings in Monday's series-opening win, Loaisiga is now slated to work in long relief Tuesday to aid a depleted bullpen, allowing German to pick up the start. It's an ideal development for German's fantasy managers, as the right-hander is now lined up to make his second start of the week Sunday in San Francisco.

Bassitt (1-0) got the win against the Rangers on Monday, scattering two hits over five innings while giving up no runs, striking out seven and walking four as the Athletics prevailed 6-1.

It was a successful first big-league start of 2019 for the right-hander, who was recalled from Triple-A Las Vegas after Marco Estrada (lumbar strain) was forced to the injured list. Bassitt worked as both a reliever and a starter last season, so he could go back to a bullpen role at some point, but he made a strong case with this outing to remain the option in the rotation as long as Estrada is out.

Chirinos didn't factor into the decision in Monday's 6-3 win over the Royals, giving up three runs on six hits and a walk over six innings while striking out three.

Three of the six hits Chirinos allowed left the yard, but the right-hander did a good job keeping runners off base before the blasts. Two of his three starts this season have proven to be quality starts, but Chirinos will likely continue to be used as the primary pitcher behind an opener on a regular basis rather than becoming a full member of the rotation. Whatever his role, he'll take a sturdy 3.55 ERA and 22:5 K:BB through 25.1 innings into his next outing.

Keller (2-2) took the loss Monday, coughing up five runs on seven hits and three walks over 6.1 innings while striking out three as the Royals fell 6-3 to the Rays.

The right-hander was nursing a 3-2 lead after six innings, but coming out for the seventh proved to be a bad idea when Mike Zunino clubbed a two-run shot to center field to help chase Keller from the game. He'll take a 3.41 ERA and 29:20 K:BB through 37 innings into his next start, tentatively set for Sunday at home against the Angels. Due to the Royals having two off-days this week, it's also possible that Keller drops his appeal of a five-game suspension stemming from an April 17 start, which would allow Kansas City to get by without having to recall a spot starter from the minors.

Odorizzi (2-2) gave up two runs on eight hits with no walks while striking out two through 5.2 innings in a win over the Astros on Monday.

Odorizzi fell just short of a quality start but pitched well enough to earn the victory. The 29-year-old has won his last two starts even though he hasn't been able to make it through six innings more than once this season.The right-hander has a 2-2 record with a 4.37 ERA and a 9.1 K/9 through five outings.