MLB Player News

Cobb was diagnosed with a mild right groin strain after exiting Saturday's spring game against the Twins, Dan Connolly of The Athletic reports.

Cobb was forced from Saturday's game after tossing a scoreless first inning. The 31-year-old was slated to start Opening Day against the Yankees on Thursday, but his availability for that game is now up in the air as he is set to be evaluated over the next few days. According to Roch Kubatko of MASN Sports, Cobb has no additional tests scheduled and will throw a bullpen session Monday or Tuesday to help determine his status.

Kluber will be the Indians' Opening Day starter next Thursday against the Twins, Mandy Bell of MLB.com reports.

Klubot posted a 2.89 ERA, 0.99 WHIP and 222:34 K:BB over 215 innings last season, so it's not much of a surprise he'll get the chance to start things off for the Indians again in 2019. The 32-year-old did show a drop in velocity toward the end of 2018, but Kluber took things slow in spring training in an attempt to manage his workload. Kluber has exceeded 200 innings during each of the last five seasons, with a 2.85 ERA and 1.02 WHIP in that span.

Cobb left his start Saturday against the Twins with right groin soreness, Roch Kubatko of MASN Sports reports.

Cobb had been named the Orioles' Opening Day starter, but suffering an injury just five days before the season begins casts some doubt over his availability. It's unclear if his removal was simply precautionary or if he's expected to miss an extended period.

German will open the season as the Yankees' fourth starter, Bryan Hoch of MLB.com reports.

CC Sabathia (knee, chest) isn't expected to miss too much time and will bump German back one spot when he returns, but German's starting role should be relatively safe until Luis Severino (shoulder) gets back on the mound in May. Gio Gonzalez, Jonathan Loaisiga and Luis Cessa loom should German fail to impress in his first few starts.

Montgomery (elbow) was placed on the 60-day injured list Saturday.

Per Lindsey Adler of The Athletic, Montgomery revealed earlier in the day that he doesn't expect to be ready to pitch in the majors until mid-August, thus making it unsurprising the Yankees will stash him on the 60-day IL. At this point in his rehab from Tommy John surgery, Montgomery is throwing off a half mound, but not at full effort. He's expected to resume tossing fastballs off a full mound next week, but will again be barred from throwing at full capacity.

Valdez will make the Astros' Opening Day bullpen, Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle reports.

Valdez beat out Reymin Guduan as the Astros' only left-handed reliever. The 25-year-old started five games for Houston last season and relieved in three more, finishing with an impressive 2.19 ERA. His 4.65 FIP casts some doubt on that number, however, as he walked 15.6 percent of opposing batters, though he keeps the ball on the ground very well, generating a 70.3 percent groundball rate.

Farrell will have wires removed from his fractured jaw Monday, T.R. Sullivan of MLB.com reports.

Since undergoing surgery on his jaw earlier this month, Farrell has been limited to a liquid diet while the wires have been in place. Once the wires are out, he'll work to regain the weight and strength he lost over the past three weeks before resuming a throwing program. Farrell will be placed on the injured list ahead of the regular season, but it's unclear if he'll be stashed on the 10-day or 60-day IL.

Verlander and the Astros agreed to terms Saturday on a two-year, $66 million contract extension, Mark Berman of Fox 26 News Houston reports.

Reports surfaced within the past few days that both player and team were eager to work out an extension prior to the season, and it didn't take long for a new deal to materialize. The extension now keeps Verlander in the fold through 2021, his age-38 season. After his career had been trending downward during his final years in Detroit, Verlander has re-emerged as a top-flight ace since joining Houston in August 2017. Verlander was instrumental in the Astros' run to their first World Series title that year and enjoyed arguably the best season of his career in 2018, churning out a 2.52 ERA, 0.90 WHIP and 290:37 K:BB in 214 innings. His advanced age aside, Verlander's underlying metrics suggest no major decline should be in the forecast for 2019.

Miley will start the fourth game of the season, April 1, against the Rays, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.

Manager AJ Hinch finalized his rotation Friday, declaring Collin McHugh, Miley and Brad Peacock will follow Justin Verlander and Gerrit Cole. The left-handed Miley has a 2.12 ERA over 17 spring innings and will benefit pitching in front of a talented offensive lineup.

Rodon allowed three runs on four hits and two walks while striking out three over two innings Friday against the Angels.

Rodon was expected to throw three innings in what was a planned abbreviated outing, but he didn't have his best command and the appearance was cut back to two innings. His spring ERA fell to 5.65. Next up for the left-hander is his first Opening Day start March 28 against the Royals.