MLB Player News

Luzardo is likely to pitch Wednesday in some capacity, most likely in relief, Susan Slusser and Matt Kawahara of the San Francisco Chronicle report.

Prior to Tuesday's 8-3 loss to the Rockies, manager Bob Melvin alluded to the possibility of Luzardo even taking the hill as a starter for Wednesday's matinee versus Colorado, which would have given scheduled starter Frankie Montas an extra day of rest. However, the Athletics skipper had couched that remark by noting "we'll see how the bullpen goes today and what we have available tomorrow." The A's ultimately called on the trio of Jordan Weems, Lou Trivino and J.B. Wendelken for five innings and 77 total pitches after Daniel Mengden completed four frames, and the rest of the bullpen was essentially deemed unavailable because of heavy use in the first four games of the season. Therefore, it's likely Luzardo offers the greatest value as a reliever Wednesday, as he last pitched Saturday and therefore brings a fresh arm.

The Orioles added Rodriguez to their 60-man roster pool Wednesday, Dan Connolly of The Athletic reports.

Rodriguez's inclusion in the pool is likely just a measure for Baltimore to more closely monitor the development of its top pitching prospect following the cancellation of the 2020 minor-league baseball season. The 20-year-old right-hander made his full-season debut in 2020 and overwhelmed the South Atlantic League competition, posting a league-leading 24.7 K-BB% to go with a 2.68 ERA in 94 innings. He'll report to Baltimore's alternate training site in Bowie.

Manager Dusty Baker confirmed that Javier would start Wednesday's game against the Dodgers, Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle reports.

Prior to Tuesday's 5-2 loss to the Dodgers, Baker stopped short of locking Javier in to start the series finale, but the rookie will now get the ball Wednesday after he wasn't needed out of the bullpen a day earlier. Javier will face the unenviable task of filling in for ace Justin Verlander (forearm) in what will mark the 23-year-old's first MLB start. Javier split time between the High-A, Double-A and Triple-A levels in 2019, posting a sparkling 1.74 ERA and 0.97 WHIP to go with a 170:59 K:BB in 113.2 innings. Though he had been stretched out to start in summer camp, expect Javier to be capped at around five innings Wednesday.

Lyles allowed one walk and struck out two over two scoreless innings in Tuesday's 4-1 loss to Arizona.

Lyles, who is the Rangers' No. 5 starter, is not part of the first rotation due to off days during the first weeks of the season. To keep him fresh for an expected starting assignment, manager Chris Woodward was able to afford him multiple innings Tuesday. Lyles is expected to start Saturday on the road against the Giants.

Sandoval was charged with two runs (one earned) on four hits over four innings in a no-decision against the Mariners on Tuesday. He struck out four and issued one walk.

The lefty was listed as the Angels' sixth starter to begin the year, but he ended up starting the team's fifth game after Matt Andriese was needed for extensive work behind Shohei Ohtani on Sunday. Sandoval held up his end of the bargain, but he was limited to just 62 pitches and did not make it deep enough into the game to qualify for the win. It's uncertain whether Sandoval will continue to start once Julio Teheran is ready to return from the COVID-19 IL.

Valdez (0-1) took the loss Tuesday, giving up three runs (two earned) on four hits and a walk over 4.1 innings as the Astros fell 5-2 to the Dodgers. He struck out two.

The southpaw took a 2-0 lead into the fifth inning before fading, as the first three Dodgers to the plate in the frame all collected hits en route to Los Angeles batting around. Valdez finished his night having tossed 59 pitches (32 strikes), but his success the first time through the order at least offers some optimism that he can deliver a better result next time out. At the very least, Valdez's rotation spot should be secure given how many other arms the Astros currently have on the shelf.

Gibson (0-1) took the loss Tuesday as the Rangers fell 4-1 to the Diamondbacks, getting charged with three unearned runs on five hits and three walks over five innings. He struck out four.

The only runs against the right-hander came in the first inning, after a two-out throwing error by Isiah Kiner-Falefa at third base kept the line moving for Arizona. Gibson wound up throwing 93 pitches (55 strikes), so he at least got to show he was fully stretched out. With the Rangers' new ballpark looking to be pitcher-friendly, Gibson could be a solid source of ratios this season, but wins might be hard to come by unless the team's offense wakes up.

Chirinos gave up one unearned run on four hits and two walks over four innings during Tuesday's win over the Braves. He had four strikeouts and didn't factor in the decision.

The 25-year-old threw 62 pitches in his final simulated game of camp, so it wasn't a surprise to see him slightly increase his workload to 68 pitches Tuesday. Manager Kevin Cash has made a point of being extra cautious with his starters to begin the season, but Chirinos should be able to push toward 80 pitches his next time out, which is scheduled for Sunday in Baltimore.

Rodon (0-1) allowed five earned runs on four hits and three walks while striking out four across 3.2 innings to take the loss in the second game of Tuesday's doubleheader against Cleveland.

Rodon was hit hard out of the gates, surrendering doubles to Francisco Lindor and Jose Ramirez prior to being taken yard by Carlos Santana in the first inning. He settled in for the middle portion of his start, but appeared to lose energy in the fourth inning, walking the bases loaded prior to being pulled. While it wasn't a strong performance in the box score, Rodon's velocity ticked up as he went deeper into his start, and he also generated 10 swinging strikes on 71 total pitches. He'll look to improve on this performance during his next turn through the rotation, though he's penciled in for a tough matchup at Milwaukee on Monday.

Teheran (not injury related) is scheduled to throw three innings during an intrasquad game Thursday, Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com reports.

The 29-year-old was originally scheduled for a similar outing Tuesday, but he instead completed a light bullpen session. Manager Joe Maddon indicated the change in schedule wasn't injury related. If all goes well Thursday, Teheran could join the Angels sometime next week, though he won't have the workload of a traditional starter out of the gate due to his absence from most of summer camp.