MLB Player News

Boxberger (back) will officially start the season on the disabled list and is scheduled to take a week off throwing before building back up, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

It was announced Monday that Boxberger was unlikely to be ready prior to Opening Day, as he continues to deal with a strained lat muscle that has plagued him since early March. The penciled-in setup man won't be ready for the opener, but still aims to return to the Rays at some point in April. Until then, the Rays will have to mix and match with the likes of Xavier Cedeno, Erasmo Ramirez and Danny Farquhar in the seventh and eighth innings.

McHugh allowed one run on two hits while striking out five over three innings in a minor league game Wednesday, Jake Kaplan of the Houston Chronicle reports.

McHugh's on a tight schedule to be ready for the first rotation of the season. The right-hander's building his pitch count following a delay due to a dead arm period. He threw 41 pitches and will have another two opportunities to increase that. The prudent approach would be to have him begin the season on the 10-day disabled list and back-date the DL assignment. He would miss the first turn and be ready to go for the rotation's second turn.

Rogers has a 2.00 ERA this spring (2 ER in 9 IP) and appears to be a lock to win a spot in the Minnesota bullpen, Patrick Reusee of the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports.

Rogers will be the top lefty specialist in the bullpen. His rookie season featured a decent 3.96 ERA, but an impressive 9.4 K/9 and a 51.4 percent groundball rate. He was even better against left-handed batters with a .547 opponents' OPS. If he can improve against right-handed batters, he could become a top setup man.

Andriese struck out six but allowed three earned runs on seven hits over 4.2 innings Wednesday against Triple-A Rochester, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

The Rays' projected No. 5 starter wasn't exactly at his most impressive considering the lower level of competition, but did get his work in. Andriese threw 86 pitches overall, keeping him on schedule with his throwing program. He's been a mixed bag this spring, with his solid 2.84 ERA offset by a .345 BAA and 1.89 WHIP.

Loup failed to record an out while allowing three runs on two hits and two walks in Monday's exhibition contest against Minnesota.

The left-hander had run off a string of four scoreless -- and ultra-efficient -- outings before Monday's implosion. Loup's disaster couldn't have come at a worse time. He's among a handful of relievers fighting for one of the team's final bullpen vacancies. Coming off an injury-plagued campaign, Loup may need to log extra innings at the minor-league level before he's ready to contribute for the Jays.

Milner, a Rule 5 pick, will likely be offered back to the Phillies in the coming days, SB Nation reports.

Milner's Cactus League stats (9.00 ERA and 1.71 WHIP) are largely inflated by an implosion against the Brewers on March 6 when he allowed five runs on three hits and two walks in one inning. Outside of that, the 26-year-old has put on a respectable show that still isn't good enough to crack one of MLB's better bullpens.

Zych (biceps) plans to throw in a minor-league game Thursday, Greg Johns of MLB.com reports.

It will be Zych's first appearance in a game setting since he underwent biceps surgery last October. With less than two weeks remaining before Opening Day, Zych isn't likely to build up his arm strength in time and will likely open the season on the DL, but he won't necessarily be in store for an extended absence.

May (elbow) was placed on the 60-day disabled list Wednesday, Mike Berardino of the St. Paul Pioneer Press reports.

May injured his elbow on March 8 and was diagnosed with a torn UCL shortly thereafter, ruling him out for the 2017 season. He'll hope to return in 2018, while Jose Berrios, Adalberto Mejia, Tyler Duffey and Justin Haley are left to compete for the final spot in Minnesota's rotation.

Kahnle was optioned to Triple-A Charlotte on Wednesday, the Chicago Tribune's Colleen Kane reports.

Kahle was fortunate to post a 2.63 ERA in 27.1 innings out of the Chicago bullpen last season, as an ugly K:BB ratio (25:20) displayed his continued struggles with control. He surrendered three walks and five earned runs over 7.2 innings in the Cactus League, losing his shot at a middle relief job on the Opening Day roster.

Pomeranz was confident that he'll make his scheduled start Friday after throwing a bullpen session Tuesday, Rob Bradford of WEEI.com reports.

Pomeranz didn't speak with reporters but gave a thumbs-up from a distance when asked how the session went. The left-hander appears to have avoided any serious injury after cutting short his previous spring start with tightness in his triceps. After throwing just four innings all spring, he intends to ramp up to four Friday. He's on a pretty tight schedule, but with Boston not needing a fifth starter until April 8, Pomeranz could build up enough pitches.