MLB Player News

Castro (knee) pitched two innings and allowed one run on two hits and no walks in a B-level game against the Pirates on Friday, Eduardo A. Encina of The Baltimore Sun reports.

Prior to Friday's game, Castro had been battling tendinitis in both of his knees. While he did give up a run, which came via a solo home run, Castro said that he felt even better than expected. He was pleased with his level of control, and for good reason, as he logged three strikeouts over two frames.

Pomeranz (forearm) says his level of concern for his elbow injury is "very low," Ian Browne of MLB.com reports.

Pomeranz was removed from Friday's game against the Cardinals with forearm tightness but claims that the decision was merely precautionary. He has dealt with forearm issues in previous springs but has managed to start at least 30 games in each of the past two seasons. The diagnosis of forearm tightness often foreshadows serious injury, but Pomeranz's lack of concern suggests that the issue may not be as bad as initially feared. More should become clear after further tests.

Pomeranz was pulled from Friday's game against St. Louis with forearm tightness, Michael Silverman of the Boston Herald reports.

"Forearm tightness" is sometimes the initial diagnosis made public before an eventual Tommy John surgery. Pomeranz suffered a late-season drop in velocity in 2017, a common indicator of an impending serious arm injury, so there's some concern here even though it's way too early to know for sure. The exact severity of the issue won't be clear until further tests are performed.

Pomeranz left in the second inning of Friday's game against St. Louis with an apparent injury, Michael Silverman of the Boston Herald reports.

The nature and severity of Pomeranz's injury are not yet known. The 29-year-old has been fairly durable in the past two seasons, making at least 30 starts each year, though he did suffer a drop in velocity late last season, which sometimes is a precursor to an arm injury.

Saupold, who said he dealt with arm fatigue toward the end of last season, will do less between outings in an effort to stay fresh, Evan Woodbery of MLive.com reports.

Saupold gave the Tigers some good innings in 2017 and entered September with a 3.88 ERA, only to see that balloon to 4.88 by the end of the month. "I handled the workload. I think the stuff between outings killed me. I just think I threw way too much and it just caught up to me after the All-Star break," Saupold said. The 28-year-old Australian will focus on lighter work between outings this season in an effort to finish the year strong. Saupold figures to either make the MLB roster as a long reliever or head to Triple-A as a starter at the end of spring training.

Lopez allowed a run on one hit and two walks while striking out two over two innings in Thursday's game against the Reds.

Lopez overcame a shaky first inning and finished his first spring outing strong. The 24-year-old right-hander will look to build off a middling eight starts for the White Sox last year, when he posted a 4.72 ERA, permitted seven home runs over 47.2 innings and posted a career-low 5.7 K/9. Perhaps last year's experience will make him more comfortable competing against big-league hitters. Lopez will open the season in Chicago's rotation, but he has something to prove in 2018.

Manaea (back) is scheduled to make his Cactus League debut Tuesday against the Rangers, Jane Lee of MLB.com reports.

Manaea was able to throw a 30-to-35 pitch simulated game Wednesday without any problems. He was previously scratched from his scheduled start Tuesday with middle back tightness but there doesn't appear to be any real concern over his status as the calendar flips to March. Expect him to be at full health by Opening Day barring any setbacks.

Moore did not throw a cut fastball during his two scoreless innings Wednesday against the White Sox, Gerry Fraley of the Dallas Morning News reports.

The Rangers would like Moore to get away from throwing the cutter, a side-to-side pitch. The club feels he's been more effective when working up and down. The pitch tends to be really good or really bad, and the left-hander threw a lot of bad ones in San Francisco last season when opponents hit .322 with a .525 slugging percentage against Moore's cutter.

Kimbrel has left camp to be in Boston for his daughter's surgery, Jason Mastrodonato of the Boston Herald reports.

Kimbrel's daughter was born in November with a heart ailment, and this surgery will be her second. It's unknown how long Kimbrel will be away from the team.

Moore retired six of seven batters faced over two scoreless innings Wednesday against the White Sox. He allowed one hit and struck out one.

Moore is looking to bounce back from an aberrant 2017, when he lost a National League-high 15 games and posted a 5.52 ERA in 31 starts for the Giants. The Rangers traded for the left-hander, believing they'll be getting the guy that went 45-33 with a 3.91 ERA over six seasons, mostly for Tampa Bay.