MLB Player News

Milone was outrighted to Triple-A Rochester on Monday, Mike Berardino of the St. Paul Pioneer Press reports.

Milone has shown some promise during his big league career, but his low-strikeout ways paired with his propensity for giving up home runs forced the Twins to push the left-hander off their 40-man roster. If he accepts the assignment, he'll likely go on to act as organizational pitching depth.

Carrasco (hand) shed his cast Monday and expects to begin throwing in about six weeks, Anthony Castrovince of MLB reports.

Carrasco is definitely out for the rest of the postseason no matter how far the Indians go, but this timetable should have the right-hander easily back in time for the start of spring training.

Manager Terry Francona said that Kluber is scheduled to start Game 5 of the ALCS, but he could be bumped up to Game 4 on Tuesday if Trevor Bauer runs into trouble Monday night, Buster Olney of ESPN reports.

Should things go as planned during Monday's contest, Ryan Merritt would take the ball for Tuesday's tilt. However, Francona insisted that Merritt would be available out of the bullpen if Bauer's outing was cut short, which would put the Cleveland ace in a position to start Tuesday on short rest. This doesn't change Kluber's outlook all that much, as both games will take place at the Rogers Centre. That said, if Merritt is able to take the ball for Game 4 and the Indians completed a sweep of the Blue Jays, Kluber would then be lined up to toe the rubber for Game 1 of the World Series. Things should become clear following Monday's contest.

Contrary to prior reports, Clevinger will not be the starting pitcher for Tuesday's ALCS matchup against the Blue Jays.

Clevinger was originally slated to take the mound Tuesday at the Rogers Centre, but it seems manager Terry Francona had a change of heart and decided to deploy Ryan Merritt instead. This means that the right-hander will head back to the bullpen to be used in long-relief situations, likely for the duration of the series.

Montas (oblique) pitched three scoreless innings in relief Friday in the Arizona Fall League. He struck out one in Mesa's win.

The big question regarding Montas, now that he has returned from the strained oblique that had sidelined him since May, is whether he is a starter or reliever long term. Oakland will continue to develop him as a starter, but many evaluators peg him for a late-inning role due to command and pitchability concerns. He will likely begin 2017 at Triple-A, and if he has success he could quickly get an audition in the big league rotation.

Stroman will start Game 3 of the ALCS on Monday against the Indians, Ben Nicholson-Smith of SportsNet reports.

Although he finished the regular season with a 4.37 ERA and 1.29 WHIP, Stroman was much more dialed in during Toronto's Wild Card Game against the Orioles. In said game, he allowed just two runs across six innings. Stroman is slated to face Josh Tomlin in Monday's game.

Clevinger is scheduled to start Game 4 of the ALCS against the Blue Jays.

Clevinger is going to be available out of the bullpen for the prior games in the series, but it seems the Indians feel comfortable enough with the rookie to deploy him as a starter in the playoffs as long as he isn't needed in long relief earlier in the series. That being said, there is some speculation that Game 4 could end up being a bullpen day, which could limit the impact Clevinger really ends up having on the game.

Kluber will start Game 1 of the ALCS against the Blue Jays on Friday, Barry Davis of Sportsnet reports.

Kluber was outstanding in his first start this postseason, stifling the Red Sox over seven scoreless innings while punching out seven of them. This led manager Terry Francona to give the ball to his stud pitcher for the ALCS opener, where he'll go head-to-head with Toronto starter Marco Estrada.

Smyly is a candidate to be moved this offseason from a Rays team looking to cut salary, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

The 27-year-old left-hander struggled through the majority of the campaign, amassing a career-high 12 losses and 4.88 ERA in the process. Smyly's 1.27 WHIP was also his highest in a full season, while the 32 homers he surrendered were nearly double his previous high of 18, which came in his Rays and Tigers tenures in 2014. His first half was particularly poor, with the lefty tallying only a pair of victories against 10 losses, along with a 5.47 ERA. Although he rebounded in the second half to forge a 5-2 record and generate a more respectable 4.08 ERA, the approximate $7 million he stands to be awarded in arbitration would likely prove too costly for a team looking to shore up the bullpen with some proven arms this offseason.

Hamels is expected to start Monday if the Rangers are able to force Game 4 of the ALDS, Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reports.

The Rangers are down 0-2 and will be facing elimination at 7:30 ET on Sunday, but if they are able to extend the series, it sounds like Hamels will take the hill once again. The lefty didn't fare so well in Game 1 of the series, allowing seven runs (six earned) on six hits and three walks over 3.1 innings. He struck out just one Toronto batter in the 82-pitch effort. The Blue Jays are generally pretty unforgiving against southpaws, launching 53 homers and posting a .168 ISO on the year -- both marks have been good for No. 10 in all of baseball.