MLB Player News

Cisnero looked sharp in an intrasquad game Saturday and should be able to secure a bullpen spot with a decent showing the rest of summer camp, Chris McCosky of The Detroit News reports.

Cisnero was thought to have a pretty firm grip on a bullpen spot heading into spring training earlier this year, but he struggled before play was suspended. He looked good Saturday, however, striking out three of the six batters he faced, and he should be able to solidify his spot with a few more strong showings. Cisnero tallied a 4.33 ERA and 40 strikeouts across 35.1 innings for the Tigers last season.

Tate underwent a precautionary MRI on his right forearm Saturday, Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com reports.

Tate left Friday's intrasquad game after being struck in the arm by a line drive. The severity of the issue should become clear once the results of the MRI are released.

Thornton will likely begin the season as the Blue Jays' fifth starter, Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet.ca reports.

Thornton's hold on the number five spot is unlikely to be a firm one, as highly rated pitching prospect Nate Pearson could be ready to claim the job quite early in the year, since the Blue Jays only have to keep him in the minors for a week in order to gain an extra year of service time. Thornton's 4.84 ERA, 22.0 percent strikeout rate and 1.41 WHIP as a rookie last season weren't terrible but hardly make him an exciting fantasy option.

Chapman tested positive for COVID-19 on Saturday, Bryan Hoch of MLB.com reports.

Chapman is reportedly showing mild symptoms. He'll have to be symptom-free with a pair of negative tests before he's allowed to return to the field. While it's possible he's able to do so before Opening Day, which is less than two weeks away, missing out on so much time during an already abbreviated summer camp may mean the Yankees will want him to get a few low-leverage innings under his belt before handling his customary closing duties.

Red Sox manager Ron Roenicke said McHugh (elbow) needs "to start progressing a lot faster" to be ready for the Opening Day roster, Christopher Smith of MassLive.com reports.

McHugh has thrown a few bullpens and was scheduled to throw another one Friday, but the right-hander hasn't thrown live batting practice, an activity Roenicke said is needed for him to be on the active roster July 24. The manager isn't even ready to commit to McHugh as a starter. "Not yet because we're not at that point where he feels comfortable with really getting after it in his bullpen sessions," Roenicke said. "Once he gets to where he feels his arm's there - and he's where he needs to be - then those discussions will happen. But he's not at that point yet." There are a few uncertain elements in Boston's starting rotation and McHugh is just one of the stories. Eduardo Rodriguez (illness) has not yet reported to camp, and there has been no announcement as to whom will be the No. 4 and 5 starters.

Hearn could emerge as a top left-handed reliever for the Rangers, T.R. Sullivan of MLB.com reports.

Hearn is a starter but is not expected to be needed in that role this season. As such, the Rangers are looking at the southpaw for a potential bullpen role. That became more likely in light of recent events. The team's top two left-handed relievers are Joely Rodriguez and Brett Martin. Rodriguez has been sidelined with a lat muscle strain and has not thrown off a mound yet, while Martin is out indefinitely after testing positive for COVID-19. Hearn has just one game of MLB experience, but he impressed coaches during spring training and could be needed early.

Palumbo allowed one run in 2.2 innings as a starter in Friday's intrasquad game, T.R. Sullivan of MLB.com reports.

Palumbo enters 2020 as a depth starter and should be considered as a sixth or seventh starter. That means the left-hander will be one of the first fill-in starters if the Rangers need one. "I am just going to show up every day and be ready to go when I get that chance to get the ball on the mound and give it 110 percent," said Palumbo. Should a starter suffer an injury that keeps him out indefinitely, Palumbo could vault into a fantasy relevant role.

King is a candidate to open the campaign in the starting rotation if Masahiro Tanaka (concussion) is not ready at the start of the season, Brendan Kuty of NJ Advance Media reports.

The Yankees appeared to have their starting rotation set and healthy heading into summer camp, but Tanaka's scary encounter with a line drive off the bat of Giancarlo Stanton has his status for Opening Day in question. Should Tanaka be unable to go, a trio of pitchers -- including King, Jonathan Loaisiga and Clarke Schmidt -- are candidates to fill in. Even if he doesn't grab a temporary starting spot, King could make the team as a long reliever.

Banda, who recorded two strikeouts over two scoreless innings in Friday's simulated game, is a candidate to potentially see some spot starts if the current absences of multiple Rays pitchers extend into the regular season, Juan Toribio of MLB.com reports.

The trio of Tyler Glasnow, Yonny Chirinos and Brendan McKay are all currently missing from summer camp workouts for undisclosed reasons, leaving open the possibility at least some of them may have produced a positive COVID-19 test. Any such scenario would make the potential return date of the affected player difficult to pin down, and Toribio reports Banda could be one of the options manager Kevin Cash turns to if there are spot starts for the taking early in the season. Banda is now more than a year removed from Tommy John surgery, and he's reportedly looked better with respect to velocity and his breaking pitches as compared to his September big-league stint last season. Additionally, Banda has now added a cutter to his arsenal, and manager Kevin Cash has praised the young left-hander for pitching "fearlessly."

Beeks, who threw 49 pitches over three innings in a simulated game Friday, is a candidate to handle some spot starts early in the season if the current absences of Tyler Glasnow (undisclosed), Yonny Chirinos (undisclosed) and Brendan McKay (undisclosed) extend into the 2020 campaign, Juan Toribio of MLB.com reports.

The left-hander is certainly capable of handling rotation assignments if called upon to take them, as he started 94 minor-league games over four-plus years in the Red Sox organization. Beeks also logged three starts for the Rays last season and threw two or more innings on 40 occasions overall. Given the aforementioned temporary vacancies on the pitching depth chart, the expectation is Beeks will continue to have his arm built up over what remains of summer camp.