MLB Player News

Medina (knee) was getting around on crutches in the Athletics' clubhouse Wednesday, Martin Gallegos of MLB.com reports.

Medina had to depart Monday's appearance against the Reds due to a right knee sprain, and while there's no word yet on how long he'll be sidelined, it would appear the absence could be a lengthy one. The 24-year-old was competing for a spot in the Athletics' rotation.

Red Sox manager Alex Cora said that Giolito will receive a second opinion on his injured right elbow Monday, Jen McCaffrey of The Athletic reports.

While he didn't explicitly confirm reports that Giolito has a partially torn UCL and flexor strain in his right elbow, Cora conceded that surgery is a possibility for the hurler. A decision on Giolito's treatment plan will be made after Monday's exam. If he does wind up needing Tommy John surgery, Giolito would be sidelined for the entire 2024 season, and perhaps the early part of 2025 as well.

The Red Sox reassigned Olivarez (shoulder) to minor-league camp Wednesday, Mac Cerullo of the Boston Herald reports.

Once a promising pitching prospect in the Rockies organization, Olivarez's star has faded after shoulder problems limited him to just two total regular-season innings in the minors over the past two years. He joined the Red Sox on a minor-league pact in November and is seemingly healthy again, as he made two Grapefruit League appearances, giving up two earned runs on three hits and two walks over 1.2 innings. Given that Olivarez has yet to appear above the High-A level, he could be a candidate to open the campaign at Double-A Portland rather than Triple-A Worcester.

Valdez will not make his scheduled Grapefruit League start Wednesday against the Mets and will instead face hitters in a simulated game, Matt Kawahara of the Houston Chronicle reports.

With a threat of rain in the afternoon, the Astros have changed plans and will now have Valdez throw on the back fields in the morning to ensure he gets his work in. Seth Martinez will step in to face the Mets, weather permitting. Coming off a second straight All-Star season, Valdez looks like a lock to start for Houston on Opening Day, especially given that Justin Verlander (shoulder) has been ruled out for the start of the season.

Stroman adjusted his hand position in Saturday's Grapefruit League outing against the Orioles and is "probably tinkering with something every single time he walks to the mound," Bryan Hoch of MLB.com reports.

Hoch notes that Stroman held his hands a bit higher in the outing, and while it's unclear how much of an impact that made on his performance, the veteran hurler's results were excellent -- he tossed four scoreless innings, giving up two hits and no walks while striking out three batters. That was considerably better than his first start this spring, when he gave up three runs (two earned) on four hits and a walk while striking out two over 2.1 frames against Philadelphia. Stroman is set to slot into the middle of New York's rotation behind Gerrit Cole and Carlos Rodon this season after signing a two-year deal with the team in January.

Civale is working on narrowing his pitch mix this spring to more effectively retire right-handed hitters, Kristie Ackert of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

Civale has minor reverse platoon splits for his career, surrendering a .319 wOBA to righties as opposed to a .290 wOBA to lefties. The Rays have asked him to focus on retiring righties by narrowing his pitch mix, as he currently throws four pitches at least 12 percent of the time. Given that context, he wasn't particularly concerned with his first appearance in the Grapefruit League, during which he surrendered five earned runs across 2.2 innings Monday against the Pirates.

Whitlock allowed two runs on four hits with two strikeouts over three innings in Tuesday's spring start against Tampa Bay.

Whitlock made his third Grapefruit League start and has now allowed runs in all three. When the day began, he was in a competition with Tanner Houck and Josh Winckowski for a single rotation spot; however, circumstances changed by the time he took the mound. The club announced Lucas Giolito is experiencing elbow soreness. One report called it a partial UCL tear and flexor strain, which is likely season-ending injury. That would mean two of the Whitlock/Houck/Winckowski trio will enter the rotation, unless the organization reaches out to an existing free agent, such as Jordan Montgomery or Blake Snell. Whitlock has allowed four runs on eight hits while striking out 10 over eight innings.

Olson tossed three scoreless innings in Tuesday's Grapefruit League game against Atlanta. He allowed two hits and struck out four.

Olson pitched well against an Atlanta lineup that featured a few of the team's regulars. The young righty came into the contest having allowed four runs across his first 3.2 innings this spring. Olson is locked into a battle for one of Detroit's final rotation spots, with Matt Manning and Alex Faedo presumably in the mix as well.

Lyles experienced lower back tightness Tuesday but is feeling better, Anne Rogers of MLB.com reports.

Lyles exited Tuesday's "B" game versus the Rangers with the injury after fielding a grounder. The details regarding the injury were initially not available, but he was feeling better when he left the complex and will be reevaluated Wednesday morning.

Lyles (undisclosed) exited Wednesday's "B" game versus the Rangers with an injury after fielding a grounder, Anne Rogers of MLB.com reports.

The severity or nature of Lyles' injury wasn't immediately available. Until further details are provided, it's unclear how long the injury could sideline the right-hander.