MLB Player News

Groome will begin the 2018 season on the minor-league disabled list with a left arm strain, Alex Speier of The Boston Globe reports.

Groome finished the 2017 season with a similar flexor strain, but he has apparently avoided a serious injury. The 19-year-old is expected to return to Low-A Greenville in a few weeks after starting the season with an injury for the second consecutive year.

Bridwell will start Friday when the Angels face the A's, Jeff Fletcher of The Orange County Register reports.

As expected, Bridwell will fill in for Matt Shoemaker (forearm) and start Friday's series opener against Oakland. Bridwell pitched 21 games (121 innings) for the big club last season. While he posted a sound 3.64 ERA and 1.20 WHIP, his 5.4 K/9 left much to be desired.

Bridwell is expected to start Friday's game against Oakland, Jeff Fletcher of The Orange County Register reports.

Although the Angels have yet to announce Bridwell as Friday's starter, the expectation is that he'll head to the hill when Los Angeles hosts the A's. This move makes sense, as Bridwell was recalled to replace Matt Shoemaker, who was scheduled to start Friday before landing on the DL with a strained forearm.

Blackburn is still dealing with forearm soreness and will remain shut down, Jane Lee of MLB.com reports.

There had been hope that Blackburn would be able to resume throwing in the coming days. However, an MRI revealed that his injury was still lingering, so Blackburn will stay on the shelf. Until Blackburn is ready to come off the DL, Daniel Gossett will remain in Oakland's rotation.

Bridwell was recalled from Triple-A Salt Lake on Tuesday.

With Matt Shoemaker (forearm) landing on the disabled list, the Angels opted to bring Bridwell up to the big club. Shoemaker was expected to start Friday's game against Oakland, so Bridwell will likely be the leading candidate to start in his place. Bridwell pitched in 21 games for the Angels last season, with 20 of said games being starts. In that time he threw to the tune of a 3.64 ERA and 1.20 WHIP.

Boyd (0-1) was saddled with the loss Tuesday despite giving up just one run on four hits over six innings against the Royals. He struck out one batter and did not issue a walk.

It was far from a dominant showing, and Boyd will face much tougher opponents next week in the Indians and Yankees. That being said, for a player who had a 5.27 ERA and 1.56 WHIP in 135 innings last year, this was a step forward and provided some hope that Boyd could stick in the Tigers' rotation all year. That kind of projected volume gives him some appeal in deeper leagues, but even AL-only owners will want to pick their spots carefully. Boyd is not yet a recommended option for standard mixed formats.

Rodriguez (knee) could start Sunday's game against the Rays, Ian Browne of MLB.com reports.

Previous reports suggested that Rodriguez might need a pair of minor-league starts before returning to the big-league rotation, but this makes it seem as if one may be enough (Rodriguez was slated to make a minor-league start at extended spring training Tuesday). The Red Sox haven't officially named a starter, though Chris Sale is another option as he would be on normal rest.

Cobb could join the big-league rotation on Monday at home against the Blue Jays, the Baltimore Sun's Eduardo A. Encina reports.

He will throw a simulated game Wednesday, and if all goes well, his next start could come in the majors. Mike Wright, who is starting Tuesday's game, will likely need to pitch one more game Sunday, as the Orioles don't have an off day again this week. Once Cobb joins the mix, Wright should move to the bullpen, as he is out of minor-league options.

Ramirez (0-1) surrendered five runs -- four earned -- on five hits and two walks through 4.2 innings during Monday's 6-0 loss to Cleveland. He struck out three batters.

The long ball was an issue for Ramirez on Monday, as he surrendered two home runs out of the park while Edwin Encarnacion also hit an inside-the-park homer. After posting an underwhelming 6.4 K/9 through 147.1 innings last season, his fantasy upside is capped to being a potential ratio stabilizer, and the 29-year-old righty could also quickly pitch his way off the fantasy radar entirely. His track record and pedigree aren't encouraging.

Clevinger (1-0) pitched 5.1 scoreless innings with five strikeouts to record his first win of the season against the Angels on Monday. He surrendered four hits and two walks.

The righty threw 65 of 97 pitches for strikes and never allowed a baserunner past second base. Start-to-start inconsistency plagued Clevinger last season, and shaking his high-risk, high-reward profile would be huge for both the Indians and fantasy owners. There's no questioning his upside, and Clevinger's eligibility as a reliever could be particularly useful in formats where it's beneficial to have starters who can also slot into an RP roster slot.