MLB Player News

Mariners manager Lloyd McClendon said the tentative plan for starting pitcher James Paxton (forearm) is to long toss from 120 feet Monday and throw off a mound Tuesday.

Mariners pitcher Taijuan Walker will be given the nod for Seattle when the team makes the Cactus League debut Wednesday against the Padres, reports MLB.com.

Walker is battling with Roenis Elias for the final spot in the Mariners' rotation when the season begins. Walker admits to being a little banged up early last season.

"I wasn't available to do anything -- I wasn't even playing catch [at this time last year]," Walker said before the Mariners' workout Sunday morning. "So to be able to start a game in spring and actually have a Spring Training feels good."

Walker posted a 2-3 record with a 2.61 ERA in 38 innings in 2014 and hopes he can make an impression with his start Wednesday.

"It's a game, and it's a competition," Walker said. "I'm just going to go out there and do the best that I can. So if that means I have to go out there and go full speed, then I will."

Rangers pitcher Yu Darvish squarely battled off the notion he quit on the team last season and he did so in English for the first time since joining the club in 2012, reports the Dallas Morning News.

"I never quit on the team," Darvish said. "I love this team. That is not true."

Darvish was diagnosed with elbow inflammation early in August last year and did not pitch again during the season. He felt that some of the problem may have been because of the language barrier.

"I know that when people come to Japan and they don't speak Japanese, we feel bad," he said Sunday. "I have to look at it the same way since I'm here. If I can speak English more and we can communicate better, it's good for all of us."

White Sox manager Robin Ventura was not optimistic pitcher Chris Sale would be ready to pitch by Opening Day, reports ESPN.com.

“He was slated to go for Opening Day and there is a slim chance that he would be able to do that," Ventura said. "I would expect it not to be that way, but being that it's his ankle, we can treat that. It's not as though it’s his elbow where we would really be cautious."

Sale is recovering from a broken foot and if he is not ready by opening day, pitching coach Don Cooper said Brad Penny, Scott Carroll, Frankie Montas or Chris Beck would be given a chance to replace Sale.

"I think all of the guys that I've mentioned have a shot at making the rotation if [Sale] is not ready to go," Cooper said. "And then we'll make some adjustments to the schedule. Maybe it's me, but it feels like we've dealt with stuff like this before. That's OK, it is what it is. It sucks and I wish it didn't happen, but there are a lot of things people wish didn't happen. This is one with Chris and we'll deal with it."

After watching pitcher Justin Verlander pitch during a live batting practice session Sunday, Tigers manager Brad Ausmus said he's never seen Verlander throw better, reports MLB.com.

"That's the best I've seen [Verlander throw] off the mound, stuff-wise since I got this job," Ausmus said.

With the Indians considering giving pitcher Corey Kluber a contract extension, Kluber said the only thing on his mind is performing well, reports Newsradio WTAM 1100.

The Yankees will open the first three games of spring training with pitchers Adam Warren, Nathan Eovaldi and Esmil Rogers as their starting pitchers, reports Newsday. All three are expected to compete for a fifth or sixth starting rotation spot.

With pitcher Chris Sale sidelined with a broken foot, White Sox pitching coach Don Cooper said Carlos Rodon will start Friday in place of Sale, reports MLB.com.

Rodon has never pitched in a major-league game.

The White Sox pitching staff got a little thinner on Saturday. The team announced ace Chris Sale will miss at least three weeks with a broken bone in his foot, leaving an open spot in the rotation for the time being. 

General Manager Rick Hahn suggested Carlos Rodon , Brad Penny, Scott Carroll, and others could see more time in the rotation in the Cactus League this spring, reports ESPN.com.

"You make adjustments," manager Robin Ventura said. "You just keep going. I know guys would like to have him in there but it's not going to be that way. So you keep going, keep rolling. Next man up, fill in, get it done. When he’s back ready, he's going to come in and fill his spot."

Rodon may have the best chance to crack the starting rotation when the season begins, if Sale if out for an extended period of time.

"It doesn't change anything, just stay on the same path I've been on," Rodon said Saturday. "Just take it day by day and work just as hard."

Red Sox starting pitcher Justin Masterson said after Saturday's live batting practice session that he feels "a lot better" this spring after dealing with injuries throughout the 2014 season, MLB.com reports.

"I feel a lot better. I feel more flexible, I'm getting more rotation and things are going better," Masterson said. "I just wasn't in a good spot last year, and I was trying to battle real hard through some stuff. This year, I'm much better, but I'm still working and still fighting."

Masterson is healthy again but unsure whether he's throwing at peak velocity.

"Like every guy, he's getting his timing in," manager John Farrell said. "I thought the second half of his BP session was more crisp. The sinker and the action of his pitches were on the plate more consistently. He's just following the progression towards games here next week."

Masterson went 7-9 with a 5.88 ERA and 116:69 K:BB ratio in 126 2/3 innings with Indians and Cardinals in 2014.