MLB Player News

Rodriguez is a "full go" to start camp according to manager Alex Cora, Christopher Smith of The Springfield Republican reports.

The news is great to hear following a rather scary 2020 season for Rodriguez. He developed myocarditis, an inflammation of the heart, as a result of COVID-19, making it too risky for him to exercise in any capacity, let alone play professional baseball. He's seemingly made a full recovery and should have plenty of time to ramp up for Opening Day, though exactly where his stuff sits after a year away from the mound remains to be seen.

Sale's elbow remains on track in his recovery from Tommy John surgery despite a setback in his rehab due to neck stiffness, Chris Cotillo of The Springfield Republican reports.

Sale had been planning on throwing a bullpen by the end of January, but the neck setback means he's still yet to do so. The delay presumably pushes back his overall timeline, though he doesn't appear to have a clear one. He underwent the procedure back in March of last year, so a typical recovery timeline would place his return to game action sometime in the middle of the upcoming season.

Texas manager Chris Woodward expects Arihara to be part of the rotation in 2021, Kenndi Landry of MLB.com reports.

Woodward sketched out his rotation Wednesday, noting Arihara, Mike Foltynewicz and Kyle Gibson are expected to be part of it. Beyond that, Kyle Cody, Dane Dunning and Jordan Lyles will be in the mix. The 28-year-old Arihara posted a 3.46 ERA and 1.17 WHIP with 106 strikeouts and 30 walks over 132.2 innings for Nippon of Japan Pacific League in 2020.

Dunning will not pitch more than 200 innings this season, Kennedi Landry of MLB.com reports.

Texas manager Chris Woodward did not specify an innings limit for Dunning or Kyle Cody, but he said neither hurler will reach 200. The Rangers are taking a conservative approach with Dunning, who underwent Tommy John elbow surgery in March of 2019 and threw only 34 innings in 2020. The manager added that Kohei Arihara, Kyle Gibson and Mike Foltynewicz are set as starters. Beyond that, the rotation is not yet solidified, though Dunning is expected to be part of the rotation in 2021.

Schmidt could be competing for a rotation spot during spring training, Max Goodman of Sports Illustrated reports.

Though Deivi Garcia is likely the favorite to land the fifth-starter role, manager Aaron Boone's indication Wednesday that he foresees a competition for the spot opens the door for Schmidt to challenge for the honor with a strong showing this spring. Schmidt allowed five earned runs over 6.1 innings in his first taste of the big leagues last season.

German could be competing this spring for the fifth spot in the Yankees' rotation, Max Goodman of Sports Illustrated reports.

Deivi Garcia likely has the inside track to the final rotation spot, but manager Aaron Boone's mention of a possible competition this spring means German isn't out of the running. Given the fact that German missed the entire 2020 campaign, he would likely need to turn heads in spring training to wrest the starting spot away from Garcia, who impressed in six starts last season.

Urena (forearm) hasn't yet arrived at spring training due to travel issues, Cody Stavenhagen of The Athletic reports.

Urena signed a one-year deal with the Tigers in December, but he'll be unavailable to begin spring training due to his travel issues. It's not yet clear when he could join the team, but he'll likely serve as a starter for Detroit once he's available. The righty made five starts for the Marlins last season, recording a 5.40 ERA and 1.50 WHIP over 23.1 innings.

Montas has tested positive for COVID-19 and is not in camp to begin spring training, Martin Gallegos of MLB.com reports.

Montas was dominant in 2019 but struggled last season with a 5.60 ERA and 60:23 K:BB over 53 innings. The right-hander ended the season on a high note with a 13-strikeout performance against the Mariners, but he'll be sidelined to begin spring training after manager Bob Melvin revealed Wednesday that he's dealing with COVID-19. It's not clear whether he's experiencing symptoms, and a timetable for his arrival at camp hasn't been revealed. When he's fully healthy, Montas should serve as one of the top starters for the Athletics.

The Rays acquired Springs and pitcher Chris Mazza from the Red Sox on Wednesday in exchange for catcher Ronaldo Hernandez and infielder Nick Sogard, Chris Smith of The Springfield Republican reports.

Both Springs and Mazza were recently designated for assignment by Boston, but the two pitchers will reclaim 40-man roster spots as they make the move to a new AL East organization. Over his 16 relief outings with Boston in 2020, Springs was blasted for 16 earned runs and five home runs across 20.1 innings, but he struck out 28.3 percent of the batters he faced and backed it with a strong 16.9 percent swinging-strike rate. He'll at least give the Rays another left-handed option out of the bullpen, though he actually owns reverse splits for his career (.355 wOBA versus righties, .381 wOBA versus lefties).

Gilbert will be given a legitimate chance to compete with Nick Margevicius and Justin Dunn for the No. 6 spot in the starting rotation during spring training, Shannon Drayer of 710 ESPN Seattle reports.

Gilbert secured a spring training invite back in late January, and the Mariners' decision to deploy a six-man starting rotation to open the season gives him an opportunity to make the jump to the big leagues right from the start of the 2021 campaign. It's a development that arguably would have already occurred a year ago had there been a minor-league season, as the precocious right-hander breezed through three levels of affiliated ball as a first-year pro in 2019. Margevicius and Dunn naturally have the edge in big-league experience on Gilbert, but the 23-year-old had an opportunity to gain some valuable seasoning in the team's alternate training site throughout the duration of the shortened 2020 season.