MLB Player News

Perez gave up one run on four hits and one walk while striking out four over five innings Monday against the Orioles. He didn't factor into the decision.

Perez surrendered a solo blast in the second inning, the only run he would surrender in his outing. Unfortunately for the 30-year-old southpaw, the Red Sox produced just one run on the evening, resulting in the no-decision. Perez continues to show consistent stuff early in the year, allowing two or fewer runs in five of his first seven starts. He sits with a 4.01 ERA, 1.40 WHIP and a 32:12 K:BB across 33.2 frames.

Dunn, whose next scheduled turn in the rotation would normally come Tuesday, will instead start Wednesday against the Dodgers, Daniel Kramer of MLB.com reports.

The young right-hander will flip spots with Yusei Kikuchi on a temporary basis, with manager Scott Servais calculating the latter is a better bet to require fewer innings out of his bullpen. Dunn has pitched to an impressive 3.51 ERA and serviceable 1.29 WHIP through his first five starts, but he's yet to go deeper than 5.2 innings in any of those outings.

Kikuchi, whose next turn in the rotation would have normally come Wednesday, will instead switch places with Justin Dunn and start Tuesday's series opener against the Dodgers in Los Angeles, Daniel Kramer of MLB.com reports.

The logic behind the switch is to up the chances of the bullpen getting additional rest after Monday's team off day. Kikuchi has gone seven innings in each of his last two starts, and despite the temporary move up in the rotation, he'll still operate on five days' rest versus Los Angeles.

Suarez will follow Junior Guerra out of the bullpen Monday against the Astros, Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com reports.

It's unclear if this is a traditional opener and follower setup, as the Angels haven't specified exactly how many innings Guerra is supposed to pitch. Suarez has made 17 starts and four relief appearances thus far in his big-league career but hasn't had much success, struggling to a 7.99 ERA and 6.95 FIP.

Valdez (finger) could throw a bullpen session in Houston this week, Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle reports.

Manager Dusty Baker said Sunday that Valdez could return from the injured list in June. The left-hander threw a 20-pitch bullpen session Friday and could do so once again at Minute Maid Park before beginning a rehab assignment in the near future. Valdez recorded a 3.57 ERA and 1.12 WHIP in 70.2 innings across 11 appearances (10 starts) for Houston in 2020.

Springs (3-1) earned the win over the Athletics on Sunday, firing a perfect fifth inning during which he recorded two strikeouts.

The left-hander got through his frame by impressively firing 11 of his 15 pitches for strikes and then became the pitcher of record when the Rays snapped 3-3 tie with a Mike Brosseau solo home run in the top of the sixth and held onto the one-run lead that afforded them. Springs has posted five scoreless efforts in the last six appearances, securing two wins and two holds during that span while lowering his ERA and WHIP to 2.30 and 0.83, respectively.

Dunning (2-2) earned the win Sunday, allowing two runs on six hits and three walks while striking out a career-high 10 batters over five innings against Seattle.

Dunning shut down the Mariners through the first four innings before Seattle got to him in the fifth. The right-hander limited the damage to two runs after escaping a bases-loaded jam. He induced 17 swings-and-misses, using mostly his sinker and slider. Dunning is next projected to pitch Saturday at Houston on five days rest, although with an off-day coming Wednesday, he could start Friday on normal rest.

Kopech is being considered to start one of Friday's doubleheader games against the Royals, Scott Merkin of MLB.com reports.

Used primarily has a multi-inning reliever in 2021, Kopech has started two games, including a 10-strikeout performance over five innings April 25 against the Rangers. He most recently pitched Saturday, when the right-hander allowed one run and three hits while striking out one over two innings (28 pitches).

Quintana allowed one run on two hits and five walks while striking out six across four innings in the Angels' win over the Dodgers on Sunday. He did not factor into the decision.

Quintana's only run allowed came on a Chris Taylor RBI-single in the third inning. The 32-year-old is off to the worst start of his career, sporting a 9.00 ERA and 2.14 WHIP in 21 innings. He's allowed at least four earned runs in half of his starts, and he's pitched into the fifth inning only once. His five walks allowed Sunday were a season high. Quintana could end up falling out of the rotation and into a bulk-inning relief role if this continues.

Kaprielian is a candidate for promotion from Triple-A Las Vegas if the Athletics decide to fortify their short-handed rotation for their upcoming road trip, Martin Gallegos of MLB.com reports.

The 27-year-old made his first start of the minor-league season for the Aviators on Thursday, allowing two earned runs on eight hits and a walk over 4.2 innings while recording five strikeouts. Kaprielian would seem to be a strong candidate to help fill the vacuum created by the injured-list stints of Mike Fiers (elbow) and Jesus Luzardo (finger), as he remains a promising prospect who already logged two major-league appearances in 2020 and flashed a mid-90s fastball. The Athletics begin their road trip with a three-game series against the Red Sox that kicks off Tuesday.