MLB Player News

Milone will get the start Saturday against the Royals, Mike Berardino of the Pioneer Press reports.

Milone was in line to start Friday, but thanks to a rainy Opening Day, Ervin Santana will get the ball again on Friday, pushing Milone back to Saturday. He went 9-5 with a 3.92 ERA in 24 appearances (23 starts) last season.

Nolasco will have his start pushed back to Sunday for this weekend's series against the Royals, Mike Berardino of the Pioneer Press reports.

The Twins will shuffle their weekend rotation a bit, starting Ervin Santana on Friday, Tommy Milone on Saturday, and pushing Nolasco back to Sunday. Nolasco will have the unenviable task of facing a Royals lineup that knocked him out of his start after just 2.2 innings last season.

Darvish (elbow) will throw to hitters next week in what amounts to live batting practice, Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News reports.

He threw a 50-pitch bullpen session Tuesday, and continues to progress favorably in his return from Tommy John surgery. A mid-May return still seems like the best bet, and while it is unclear what the next step will be after next week's live BP, a minor league rehab assignment doesn't seem too far off, provided there are no setbacks.

Bassitt allowed four runs on eight hits and two walks while striking out four over 5.1 innings against the White Sox on Tuesday. He did not factor in the decision in the A's 5-4 loss.

He was thoroughly outpitched by Jose Quintana, but the A's rallied to tie the game in the eighth, taking Bassitt off the hook for the loss. After allowing just five home runs in 86 innings last year, and just two in 47.1 innings at home, Bassitt served up a three-run shot to Todd Frazier in the fifth inning Tuesday. The 27-year-old lines up to start Sunday in Seattle.

Heaney (0-1) took the loss Tuesday against the Cubs as he allowed four runs on seven hits over six innings. He struck out seven and didn't walk a batter.

Other than a rough third inning, Heaney was brilliant, but the Cubs give little room for error. Matt Szczur and Anthony Rizzo mashed home runs off Heaney to account for three of the four Chicago runs. Heaney induced 13 swinging strikes and was nasty at times. Heaney posted a 3.49 ERA last season in 18 starts.

Quintana took a no-decision Tuesday against the Athletics as he allowed two runs on seven hits over 5.2 innings. He struck out seven and didn't walk a batter.

Quintana threw first-pitch strikes to 19 of 24 batters and induced 12 swinging strikes. The Athletics weren't hitting him hard, either, as he induced five grounders against five fly balls and allowed just two extra-base hits, both doubles, against five singles. Quintana is rarely overpowering, but when he controls the strike zone, he can be very effective, and he would have taken home the win Tuesday night had the White Sox bullpen held up its end.

Perez took a no-decision against the Mariners as he allowed two runs on two hits and four walks over six innings. He struck out three.

Perez was shaky all afternoon but the Mariners couldn't make him pay. Perez induced just six swinging strikes in 88 pitches and gave up seven fly balls, but luckily the only one that left the yards was a solo shot off the bat of Nelson Cruz. Perez struck out just 48 in 78.2 innings last year , and his lack of swing-and-miss stuff puts a hard ceiling on his value.

Verlander took a no-decision Tuesday against the Marlins as he allowed three runs on three hits and two walks over six innings. He struck out five.

Verlander was cruising early as he took a no-hitter into the sixth inning, but Giancarlo Stanton touched him up for a two-run homer as part of a three-run sixth inning to end his night on a sour note. Still, there were lots of positives for Verlander, who drew 17 swinging strikes in his 98 pitches. Verlander won't be the only pitcher to serve up a dinger to Stanton, and if Verlander can harness the stuff he had for the first five innings this year, maybe we'll see some more of the old Verlander again in 2016.

Odorizzi struck out 10 but was stuck with a no-decision in Tuesday's game against Toronto, as he allowed two runs (one earned) on four hits and two walks over 5.2 innings.

Odorizzi was nasty, as he induced 17 swinging strikes and was able to keep Toronto's terrifying lineup from opening up one of the huge rallies that they became known for last year. However, as he was racking up the strikeouts, Odorizzi threw 111 pitches and wasn't able to get out of the sixth inning as a result. Odorizzi has averaged just over 5.2 innings per start over the past two seasons, and he'll need to go deeper in games if he wants to turn his solid results into better win totals.

Keuchel (1-0) allowed two runs on three hits and four walks while striking out five over seven innings and earned the win Tuesday against the Yankees.

Despite giving up two runs in the second inning, Keuchel settled down and held the Yankees scoreless until he left the game after seven innings. However, he'll look to make improvements with his control when he makes his next start Sunday at the Brewers.