MLB Player News

Armstrong (oblique) fired a scoreless first inning in Triple-A Tacoma's win over El Paso on Wednesday and could be ready for activation during the upcoming homestand, Greg Johns of MLB.com reports.

Armstrong now has back-to-back scoreless one-inning rehab outings under his belt, and he's been exceedingly sharp in both while throwing 25 of 33 pitches for strikes overall. Thus, the news of impending activation isn't overly surprising, although it remains to be seen if Armstrong will take one more minor-league turn before being deemed ready for his 2019 big-league debut.

Treinen pitched a perfect ninth inning with two strikeouts to record his fourth save in an 8-5 victory against the Orioles on Thursday.

This is certainly the way owners wanted Treinen to respond after blowing his first save April 7. The 30-year-old was extremely efficient, retiring the side in 10 pitches while throwing seven strikes. He is 4-for-5 in save opportunities with a 1.00 ERA, 1.11 WHIP and 11 strikeouts in nine innings.

Giles (0-1) allowed two earned runs on two hits and three walks while striking out none in the ninth inning to blow the save chance and take the loss Thursday against the Red Sox.

Giles came on to begin the ninth inning with a one-run lead, and after recording the first outs without issue, he quickly ran into trouble before allowing a walkoff single with the bases loaded. Though one of his free passes was intentional, Giles struggled to throw strikes as just 12 of his 26 pitches found the zone. The two earned runs were the first surrendered by Giles this season, so there's likely no reason to panic over the security of his role yet.

Boxberger blew a save after surrendering two runs on three hits while striking out one during the ninth inning Thursday against Seattle.

Boxberger had put together a pair of scoreless appearances heading into Thursday's series finale, but he managed to squander a two-run lead and the Royals would ultimately give up the winning run in the top of the 10th inning. The 30-year-old continues to have a rough go of it in 2019, accruing a 9.95 ERA with 10 strikeouts over 6.1 frames. Kansas City has struggled to find a reliever who can close out games to this point, with Boxberger and Ian Kennedy blowing save opportunities this week.

Sadzeck notched his first save of the season after tossing a scoreless inning and striking out one Thursday against Kansas City.

Following a late rally by the Mariners, Sadzeck was deployed for his first save chance of the 2019 campaign and managed to get the job done without any trouble. The 27-year-old seems like an odd choice with the game on the line, although with Anthony Swarzak and Roenis Elias ruled unavailable due to recent usage, Sadzeck's name was called to work the bottom of the 10th inning.

Lopez surrendered two runs on three hits and two walks while striking out five over six innings Thursday against Seattle. He didn't factor into the decision.

Lopez cruised through the first five frames of his outing and entered the sixth inning with a 4-0 lead, but he'd allow a pair of runs on two hits and the Royals would cough up the lead in the later innings, preventing the 26-year-old from securing his first victory of the season. He owns a 3.71 ERA with 13 punchouts over 17 frames in his first three outings of the 2019 campaign.

Stanek will serve as the Rays' opening pitcher in Friday's game against the Blue Jays, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

Since the Rays had an off day Thursday, they'll be able to get by with only three traditional starters this week while having both Yonny Chirinos and Ryan Yarbrough on hand as "bulk relievers." Per Topkin, manager Kevin Cash hasn't tipped his hand regarding who might follow Stanek, making it somewhat risky to rely on either Chirinos or Yarbrough as streaming options. Rather than asking one of the two to pitch the majority of the innings out of the bullpen, it's conceivable that the Rays turn to both Chirinos and Yarbrough for multiple frames apiece.

Norris won't make his scheduled start Friday against the Twins after the game was postponed due to inclement weather.

Norris had been in line to make his first start of the season in place of the injured Matt Moore (knee), but the postponement will allow the Tigers to reset their rotation. According to Cody Stavenhagen of The Athletic, the Tigers now intend to start Tyson Ross and Jordan Zimmermann for the final two games of the series Saturday and Sunday, respectively, when both pitchers will be available on their normal four days' rest. Norris, meanwhile, will work in the bullpen for the short term before the Tigers require a fifth starter April 20 against the White Sox.

Barlow is an option to start Monday's game against the White Sox, Jeffrey Flanagan of MLB.com reports.

Heath Fillmyer and Glenn Sparkman are also considered options to make that start, as the Royals lack a trusted fifth starter with Danny Duffy (shoulder) still a couple weeks away from returning to the rotation. Barlow has never made a big-league start but logged a 6.11 ERA in 45.2 innings at Triple-A last year, working primarily as a starter.

Scott was recalled from Triple-A Norfolk on Thursday, Rich Dubroff of BaltimoreBaseball.com reports.

Richard Bleier (shoulder) landed on the injured list, so Scott was summoned to take his place in the big-league bullpen. He has a big fastball from the left side but has struggled with control in his big-league career (4.9 BB/9).