MLB Player News

May (elbow) began throwing off the slope of a mound Tuesday and is expected to throw his first post-Tommy John surgery bullpen session April 1, Bill Plunkett of The Orange County Register reports.

Considering May underwent the elbow procedure May 12 of last year, his recovery program is expected to extend deep into the 2022 campaign. The Dodgers already possessed ample rotation depth before May suffered the UCL tear last year, and the offseason pickups of Andrew Heaney and Tyler Anderson plus the potential return of Trevor Bauer from administrative leave lessens the need for Los Angeles to rush the 24-year-old back to action. If May makes enough progress to eventually rejoin the Dodgers in 2022, he may have to settle for a bullpen role.

Kopech (not injury related) is throwing a bullpen session Wednesday and is scheduled for two innings of live batting practice Friday, Daryl Van Schouwen of the Chicago Sun-Times reports.

Kopech is behind schedule in spring training due to an illness that affected his buildup program over the winter, but he's progressing toward game action. The 25-year-old primarily pitched out of the bullpen last season in his first MLB action since 2018 and had a 3.50 ERA, 1.12 WHIP and 103:24 K:BB over 69.1 innings. The White Sox figure to be cautious again this season given his lack of innings over the past couple years, but he's expected to work as a starter, or at least a primary pitcher in 2021. Whenever he's ready to go, Kopech figures to be on a rigid pitch count for his initial appearances.

The Tigers optioned Wentz to Double-A Erie on Wednesday.

Though Wentz was participating in big-league camp, he was never a realistic option for the Opening Day roster. After undergoing Tommy John surgery in March 2020, Wentz made his return to game action last May, ultimately picking up 13 starts for Erie. Over his 53.1 innings with the affiliate, Wentz submitted a 3.71 ERA and 58:33 K:BB. He may need to do a better job of curbing his walks at Erie early on during the upcoming season before a promotion to Triple-A Toledo is considered.

The Marlins optioned Sanchez (shoulder) to Triple-A Jacksonville on Wednesday, Jordan McPherson of the Miami Herald reports.

Sanchez has yet to resume a throwing program since he was shut down earlier this month after experiencing continued discomfort in his surgically repaired right shoulder. At this stage, the Marlins aren't expecting him to be available until around midseason at the soonest, so the decision to remove him from the active roster doesn't come as a major surprise. Because Sanchez will likely be placed on Jacksonville's injured list rather than the Marlins', fantasy managers may not have the luxury of stashing the 23-year-old in a reserve slot during what's expected to be a prolonged absence to begin the season.

Whitlock allowed three hits and two walks over two scoreless innings in Tuesday's spring training game against the Rays.

Whitlock followed game starter Rich Hill, who threw two scoreless innings himself, albeit with less base traffic than Whitlock. The two are ostensibly competing for the No. 5 starter job, but the Red Sox understand what Whitlock meant to them last season as a bullpen workhorse. He came up through the Yankees' system as a starter but underwent Tommy John surgery several years ago, and Boston may have found an ideal spot for him as a multi-inning reliever who could also potentially fill a closer role.

Hill allowed two hits and one walk over two scoreless innings in Tuesday's spring training game against Tampa Bay.

Hill kicked off his bid to become the Red Sox's fifth starter Tuesday. Boston manager Alex Cora set the first four in the rotation after he named Michael Wacha as the fourth starter Tuesday. That leaves one job for Hill or Garrett Whitlock, who followed Hill on Tuesday with a couple of scoreless innings himself. However, the Red Sox grew fond of Whitlock's versatility in the bullpen last season, and Cora hasn't ruled out using him to close out games. The 42-year-old Hill will likely be the fifth starter when the regular season opens, but that leaves him on shaky ground when Chris Sale (rib) eventually returns.

Wacha will slot in as Boston's fourth starter, Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com reports.

Red Sox manager Alex Cora confirmed that news Tuesday morning after Wacha worked around four hits to throw three scoreless innings Monday. The right-hander's overall numbers in 2021 -- 5.05 ERA and 4.47 FIP in 29 games (23 starts) for Tampa Bay -- may not entice fantasy managers, but Wacha's final eight appearances tell a different story. He posted a 3.20 ERA and 3.14 FIP to end the season, while holding batters to a .193 batting average and .331 slugging percentage. The difference, he told Christopher Smith of MassLive.com, is that he scrapped the cutter he was throwing in favor of throwing his curveball more often.

Heaney pitched 2.1 innings against the Reds in a Cactus League game Tuesday, allowing five runs on five hits and no walks while striking out two.

Heaney's first appearance of the spring got off to a disastrous start, as he allowed five sixth-inning runs, including three on a long ball off the bat of Kyle Farmer. He retired just one batter in that frame before he was pulled for a reliever, but thanks to modified spring training rules, Heaney was able to return to the game in the following inning. The left-hander recovered from there, completing two scoreless frames during which he gave up only one hit, yet he still ended up with an ugly line in the box score. Heaney will likely need to pitch much better moving forward this spring to beat out his competition for a starting spot in the Dodgers' rotation.

Buehler tossed 4.2 innings against Cincinnati on Tuesday, allowing two runs on five hits and no walks while striking out five.

Buehler made it through three scoreless innings before allowing a solo homer to Jonathan India in the fourth and yielding another run in the fifth. The right-hander threw 53 pitches in the outing, which is a good sign considering this was his first appearance of the spring. Clayton Kershaw may be the sentimental favorite to take the mound for the Dodgers on Opening Day, but in fantasy circles, Buehler is without question the team's top pitcher.

Montas started Tuesday's Cactus League loss to the Royals and fired 2.2 scoreless innings, allowing four hits while recording a strikeout.

The right-hander, who, along with rotation mate Sean Manaea has been the subject of trade rumors in recent days, faced 11 batters. Martin Gallegos of MLB.com reports Montas hit 96 mph on the radar gun in four of his first five pitches and logged 41 offerings overall. Montas also utilized both his splitter and slider effectively, and if he remains with the team, he's considered the leading candidate to serve as the Opening Day starter versus the Phillies on April 8.