MLB Player News

Varland is tentatively scheduled to start Wednesday for Triple-A St. Paul, but he could instead be called up from the minors that day to start for the Twins in Chicago against the White Sox, Do-Hyoung Park of MLB.com reports.

With Kenta Maeda (triceps) landing on the injured list Saturday and Tyler Mahle (elbow) likely to be deactivated no later than Tuesday, the Twins have two openings in their five-man rotation. Bailey Ober was already summoned from Triple-A to fill in for Maeda this past Saturday, and Varland looks like the next man up to replace Mahle. As Park notes, Varland's pitching schedule is synchronized with Mahle, so the Twins wouldn't have to alter their rotation order to swap Varland in. The 25-year-old right-hander previously impressed in his lone spot start with the big club April 14 against the Yankees (eight strikeouts, three earned runs allowed in six innings), and he's continued to perform well at St. Paul, with whom he's logged a 4.20 ERA, 1.27 WHIP and 25:4 K:BB across 15 frames on the season.

Urquidy is scheduled to undergo an MRI on Monday after he exited Sunday's 4-3 win over the Phillies with a sore right shoulder, Mark Berman of Fox 26 Houston reports.

Urquidy captured the win and struck out three while allowing two earned runs on three hits and one walk across 5.1 innings before being lifted from the contest after experiencing pain in the back of his right shoulder. Though the right-hander did some range-of-motion work without issue after exiting the start, the MRI will shed more light on the extent of his injury. Houston has an off day on tap Thursday, so if Urquidy's injury isn't too significant but he still needs more time off between starts, the team could get by with a four-man rotation until a fifth starter is needed again May 9.

Wainwright (groin) covered 5.2 innings and gave up four earned runs on seven hits and one walk while striking out nine Sunday in his rehab start for Triple-A Memphis.

Though he surrendered a three-run home run in the second inning that dinged his final line, Wainwright otherwise looked much sharper in his third rehab outing after he struck out only four batters in 7.1 innings across his first two starts at Double-A Springfield. He finished the day with 89 pitches, spotting 61 of them for strikes. With Wainwright now fully stretched out and faring well in a rehab start, he looks poised to return from the 15-day injured list to make his season debut with the Cardinals during this upcoming weekend's series with the Tigers. Expect either Jake Woodford or Steven Matz to move to the bullpen to open up a rotation spot for Wainwright.

Walker (forearm) is listed as the Phillies' starting pitcher for Monday's road game against the Dodgers.

Walker exited his last start Wednesday against the Mariners with right forearm tightness, an injury that often foreshadows a stint on the injured list. The right-hander surprisingly received good news after being examined a day later, with team doctors determining that Walker didn't even need an MRI. He resumed throwing a bullpen session Friday and checked out fine following the workout, so Walker looks like he'll head into Monday's outing with no restrictions. Walker tentatively lines up for a two-start week, with his second turn set to come against Boston during the upcoming weekend.

Rasmussen allowed three runs on nine hits while striking out three over five innings against the White Sox on Sunday. He did not walk a batter nor did he factor into the decision.

The White Sox got to Rasmussen in the opening frame with a pair of singles and a sacrifice fly. He faced little resistance through the order until the sixth inning, during which he allowed a leadoff base hit before Yasmani Grandal sent one over the wall in center to put the Sox ahead 3-2. Rasmussen's day would conclude abruptly following the home run ball. It was just the second homer he's allowed this year, but he's been knocked around quite a bit, allowing at least eight hits in three of his last four outings while failing to surpass five innings. The 27-year-old has been hit or miss in six starts this season and now owns a 3.66 ERA, 1.28 WHIP and 34:9 K:BB over 32 innings. He's lined up to take the mound in a divisional clash with the Yankees next weekend.

Clevinger allowed two runs on seven hits and a walk while striking out eight over five innings against the Rays on Sunday. He did not factor into the decision.

Clevinger delivered one of his better performances of the early season Sunday after he was knocked around for six runs his last time out. The 32-year-old was taken deep on back-to-back at-bats from Taylor Walls and Luke Raley in the fourth but otherwise did not face much pressure on the bases and tied a season high with eight strikeouts. Clevinger has now given up five home runs over this last three starts after not allowing any in his three outings of the year and has managed to complete six innings just once. He now holds a 4.60 ERA, 1.60 WHIP and 26:15 K:BB over 29.1 innings and lines up to face the Reds in Cincinnati next weekend.

Perez (4-1) got the win over the Yankees on Sunday, allowing one run on six hits and a walk while striking out two over six innings.

It was an efficient outing for Perez, who needed only 70 pitches to navigate through six innings. He undoubtedly could have kept going, but there was no need to risk a possible injury with the Rangers up 14-1 by the end of the sixth. The 32-year-old induced plenty of weak contact, and his only blemish on the day came in the third, when a single, a double and a groundout plated a run for the Yankees. Perez continues to find ways to get the job done despite his velocity being down a tick (91.4 mph vs. 92.7 last season) and while giving up more fly balls than last year in the early going. He sits at a 2.41 ERA, 1.40 WHIP and 26:9 K:BB over 33.2 innings and tentatively lines up to face the Angels on the road next weekend.

Cortes (3-2) took the loss Sunday against the Rangers after allowing seven runs on five hits and four walks while striking out seven.

Cortes was punished by the long ball and a lack of command in this one while needing 100 pitches to get through 4.2 innings. The southpaw retired Marcus Semien to kick things off but then issued consecutive walks and a single to load the bases for Josh Jung, who capitalized with a grand slam to right. Cortes settled down from there, retiring 12 of the next 14 hitters before running into some more problems in the fifth. The 28-year-old gave up another walk and proceeded to give up back-to-back home runs to Nathaniel Lowe and Adolis Garcia to put the Yanks in a 7-1 hole. All-around it was an uncharacteristic outing for Cortes, who had not given up more than four runs in any of his prior 33 starts dating back to the start of the 2022 campaign. He now holds a 4.91 ERA, 1.18 WHIP and 35:9 K:BB over 33 innings and lines up to face the Rays next weekend.

Rodon (forearm/back) tossed 22 pitches in a bullpen session Friday, per MLB.com.

Rodon was shut down from throwing in mid-April after experiencing continued discomfort in his back. The issue appears to have subsided, as the left-hander was able to throw off a mound in Friday's session. The good news is that the forearm strain that initially sent him to the IL in late March appears to be a thing of the past, and Rodon could up his pitch count and intensity in additional bullpen sessions before eventually embarking on a rehab assignment. However, he appears to still be multiple weeks away from a return even in a best-case scenario.

Battenfield allowed three runs on three hits and four walks while striking out two over two relief innings in Sunday's 7-1 loss to the Red Sox.

Battenfield started his first three appearances of the season with mixed results. The strong debuts of Logan Allen and Tanner Bibee, combined with an off day in each of the next three weeks means that the Guardians can get by with five starters, and Battenfield looks as though he'll be the odd man out. Battenfield has a 4.67 ERA, 1.56 WHIP and 14:11 K:BB across 17.1 innings, and there's always a chance the 25-year-old right-hander could be optioned out to Triple-A Columbus for a fresh bullpen arm if he continues to struggle.