MLB Player News

Clevinger won't require surgery to address his upper-back strain, Ryan Lewis of the Akron Beacon Journal reports.

The news is certainly positive for Clevinger, but his timeline doesn't appear to have changed. He'll continue with his rest and rehab process and won't throw until late May at the earliest.

The Red Sox placed Eovaldi on the 10-day injured list Saturday with a loose body in his right elbow.

Eovaldi is eligible to return from the IL on April 28, but there's a good chance he'll be shut down for more than the minimum amount of time while dealing with the same elbow issue that required arthroscopic surgery and sidelined him for two months in 2018. The setback is especially disappointing after Eovaldi turned in what was by far his best outing of the season in his last turn Wednesday, when he limited the Yankees to one unearned run over six frames and struck out six. Boston will first require a replacement for Eovaldi in next week's series with the Tigers, with long reliever Hector Velazquez perhaps representing the top candidate to fill the opening in the rotation.

Stroman (1-3) allowed one run on six hits and two walks while striking out six over eight innings in a win over the A's on Friday.

This was a strong showing against an offense in the top 10 for wRC+. Stroman got 24 called strikes and 11 swinging strikes on 109 pitches. The right-hander is one of most prolific groundball starting pitchers in the game, and his strikeouts are way up early on this year (29 in 30.2 innings). There will be some tough divisional matchups down the line, but Stroman is looking like a high-end streamer in standard mixed leagues.

Gonzales allowed three runs on eight hits and two walks while striking out six over seven innings in a no-decision against the Angels on Friday.

Manager Scott Servais left Gonzales in to begin the eighth and it didn't take long for that decision to backfire; Gonzales allowed a single and then a game-tying homer to Mike Trout before being pulled. That long ball was the first Gonzales had allowed since he gave up two in his first start back on March 20 in Japan. While Gonzales is not a dominant strikeout pitcher, he's done a good job of limiting walks and suppressing homers since the start of last year. The Mariners figure to use Monday's off-day to go without a fifth starter this time through the rotation, and if that is indeed the route they go, Gonzales will next start Wednesday in San Diego.

Smyly (0-2) took the loss Friday as the Rangers fell 7-2 to the Astros, allowing four runs on five hits and three walks over 3.2 innings while striking out eight.

The latest skirmish in the Battle of Texas didn't go the Rangers' way and Smyly took the worst of it. serving up back-to-back homers to Jose Altuve and Alex Bregman in the first inning. The southpaw has yet to last more than five innings in a start, and he'll limp into his next outing Wednesday in Oakland with a 7.80 ERA and 19:10 K:BB through 15 innings.

Verlander (3-0) picked up the win Friday, allowing one run on three hits and three walks over seven innings while striking out eight in a 7-2 victory over the Rangers.

The veteran ace was staked to a 3-0 lead before he even set foot on the mound, and Verlander never gave Texas a chance to get back into the game. He'll take a 3.00 ERA and dominant 38:9 K:BB through 30 innings into his next start Wednesday, at home against the Twins.

Perez is slated to start the second game of Saturday's doubleheader against Baltimore, Phil Miller of the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports.

Friday's matchup was postponed due to weather, although this won't change the plan for Perez. He'll toe the rubber for the nightcap in search of his second win of 2019.

Berrios is in line to start the first half of Saturday's doubleheader against the Orioles, Phil Miller of the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports.

Berrios was scheduled to take the mound Friday before weather postponed the contest, but after taking advantage of an extra day of rest, he's listed as the probable pitcher for the first game of Minnesota's twin bill. Martin Perez is expected to start the nightcap for the Twins.

Rodon (3-2) picked up the win in Friday's 7-3 victory over the Tigers, giving up one run on three hits and three walks over six innings while striking out six.

A solo home run by Josh Harrison was the only blemish on Rodon's line for the evening. The southpaw has produced quality starts in three of his last four outings, and he'll take a 2.89 ERA and impressive 35:12 K:BB through 28 innings into his next trip to the mound Wednesday in Baltimore.

Rodriguez allowed four runs (three earned) on seven hits with six strikeouts and a walk across 5.1 innings during a no-decision against the Rays on Friday.

An error in the sixth led to Rodriguez giving up two runs, one of which was unearned, but it cost him the win. He couldn't finish the frame, and the Rays tied the game with the two runs. Still, this was a better outing for Rodriguez. He has ugly numbers, but he's pitched better in his last two appearances. Overall, he is 2-1 with a 7.20 ERA, 1.65 WHIP and 21 strikeouts in 20 innings across four starts. His next start should come at home against the Tigers on Wednesday.