MLB Player News

Blackburn (forearm) is scheduled to throw a bullpen session Sunday, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

Blackburn continues to progress in his recovery from the right forearm strain sustained in mid-March, and the bullpen session was expected after he advanced to throwing from 90 feet last week. The 24-year-old is eligible to come off the 60-day disabled list at the end of May, and a return around that time still appears possible.

Ramirez (elbow) was transferred to the 60-day disabled list Friday, Jeff Fletcher of The Orange County Register reports.

The Angels needed a 40-man roster spot for Juan Graterol, who was called up to be the backup catcher while Martin Maldonado (personal) is away from the team. Ramirez was an obvious choice, as he underwent Tommy John surgery on April 18. He will still be out until sometime during the 2019 season.

Nicasio notched his 12th hold in a win over the Athletics on Thursday, allowing a hit and recording three strikeouts over a scoreless eighth inning.

Thursday's outing resulted in his fifth hold over the last seven appearances. Nicasio took the hill in each of the three games against the Athletics, and following a rare hiccup in Wednesday's loss during which he allowed a two-run home run to Jed Lowrie, he was back to his typically dominant self in the series finale. Factoring in Thursday's line, Nicasio now sports an impressive 19:1 K:BB across 16.2 innings.

Odorizzi got a no-decision in the Twins' 6-5 loss to the White Sox on Thursday, giving up five runs (three earned) on six hits over 5.1 innings, logging a season-high eight strikeouts and walking two.

Coming off a strong start in a win against the Reds, Odorizzi came out of this one with a solid final stat line as a couple of errors by his defense meant that two of the five runs he gave up were unearned. He's now got a 4.10 ERA and a 1.39 ERA through 37.1 innings and while he's probably not going to post world-beating ratios, he's been getting just enough strikeouts and limiting enough damage to stay in the conversation as a streaming option - although he probably shouldn't be considered much more than that. He'll take the mound next in a road matchup against the Cardinals on Tuesday.

Carrasco allowed six runs on nine hits -- including a homer -- while striking out seven over 5.1 innings in the first game of Thursday's doubleheader against the Blue Jays. He issued three walks and did not factor into the decision.

The Indians went off for seven runs in the fourth inning, taking Carrasco off the hook for the loss. Carrasco has now given up 10 runs in his last two starts (8.1 innings), but he was on a dominant run before that (2.31 ERA, 0.86 WHIP and 28:6 K:BB in his first five outings) and there has been nothing to suggest he's dealing with a physical issue. He won't have it any easier next week in Milwaukee, but Carrasco still projects comfortably as a top-15 fantasy starter the rest of season.

McCullers allowed three runs on five hits and three walks while striking out five over seven innings in a no-decision against the Yankees on Thursday.

Considering the opponent -- New York leads baseball in run scoring -- this was a big win for McCullers' fantasy owners, even if he didn't get another mark in the win column. The 24-year-old induced 14 swinging strikes on 108 pitches and is now up to four consecutive quality starts. Aside from one eight-run blowup on April 11, McCullers has been masterful, posting a 2.17 ERA in his other six outings. He will look to keep it going next week in Oakland.

Chirinos (elbow) was diagnosed with a mild flexor strain and will likely be sidelined for a month, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

Chirinos landed on the disabled list earlier in the week with a forearm strain. Fortunately, it was confirmed Thursday that the young right-hander avoided structural damage in his elbow, leaving the team optimistic that he could rejoin the big-league rotation around the beginning of June. Ryan Yarbrough was recalled from Triple-A Durham to take Chirinos' spot on the active roster and could ultimately make a spot start in his stead.

Eovaldi (elbow) will start a rehab assignment with High-A Charlotte on Friday, Marc Topkin of The Tampa Bay Times reports.

Eovaldi continues to recover from arthroscopic right elbow surgery that he underwent in late March, as he targets a return to Tampa Bay around the end of this month. The 28-year-old recently hit 99 mph during a live bullpen session earlier this week and has experienced no discomfort in the elbow since beginning a throwing program in mid-April.

Stroman reintroduced his cutter into his repertoire Wednesday, throwing the pitch approximately 20-25 times, Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.ca reports.

Although he took another loss, Stroman had his best performance of the season against Minnesota on Wednesday, and catcher Russell Martin described the cut fastball as the "difference maker." Stroman allowed just two runs on six hits and one walk while striking out five over seven innings, marking his first start this season with fewer than four runs allowed. The right-hander told Martin that he wanted to start throwing the cutter again during their pregame chat. "It's a pitch I'll start to use effectively going forward," Stroman said afterward. He lines up for two starts next week (vs. SEA, vs. BOS).

Carrasco (back) will start Game 1 of Thursday's doubleheader against Toronto, Jordan Bastian of MLB.com reports.

Carrasco was removed from Saturday's start versus Seattle after the third inning due to a case of back stiffness, but he should be fully functional for Thursday's outing. During six starts thus far in 2018, he's posted a 3.08 ERA and 0.95 WHIP with a 32:7 K:BB over 38 innings.