MLB Player News

Rodriguez was hit pretty hard by COVID-19, experiencing a headache and a fever while he had the virus, Julian McWilliams of The Boston Globe reports.

Rodriguez said he had never been that sick in his life. He has been going through workouts since July 8 in an effort to get ready for the season, so there seems to be a decent chance he could start one of the first five games of the campaign, but that is still to be determined. The Red Sox have yet to officially activate Rodriguez from the COVID-19 injured list even though he rejoined the team at summer camp this weekend.

Manager Charlie Montoyo announced Sunday that Anderson (oblique) will begin the season on the injured list, Arden Zwelling of Sportsnet.ca reports.

The team indicated shortly after the right-hander suffered the oblique strain last week that he was unlikely to be ready for the start of the season, so it's not a surprise he's heading to the IL. Anderson continues to throw long toss and is progressing toward mound work, per Scott Mitchell of TSN.ca, but he has no official timeline for his return. Trent Thornton receives some stability in the rotation thanks to the news, while Ryan Borucki, Anthony Kay and Nate Pearson are in the mix for the No. 5 spot.

Ryu will be starting Opening Day against the Rays on Friday, Keegan Matheson of MLB.com reports.

The 33-year-old inked a four-year, $80 million deal with the Blue Jays in December, so it's no surprise he'll be opening Toronto's season on the mound. Ryu threw 80 pitches over five innings during Saturday's intrasquad game, so he shouldn't face any significant workload restrictions early in the campaign.

Odorizzi is no longer starting Sunday's intrasquad game as previously scheduled.

The team made no announcement regarding the change, so it's unclear if Odorizzi is dealing with some sort of injury or if his throwing schedule has changed. The 30-year-old was already built up to 79 pitches early last week and shouldn't face any limitations early in the season, assuming Sunday's news doesn't impact his availability.

Heaney said his back is fine and noted that he'll be ready to start the Angels' season opener Friday in Oakland, Jeff Fletcher of The Orange County Register reports.

He dealt with some back tightness Saturday but said Sunday that he is fine physically. The Athletics ranked fourth in the majors with a 115 wRC+ against left-handed pitchers in 2019, so this is not an ideal matchup for Heaney on Opening Day.

Singer threw four scoreless innings and allowed three hits and zero walks in Friday's intrasquad game, Jeffrey Flanagan of MLB.com reports.

Manager Mike Matheny praised how quickly Singer works, pointing out that it helps his defense stay engaged. Singer has a chance to break camp in the big-league rotation despite having never pitched at Triple-A.

Snell lines up to start either Sunday at home against the Blue Jays or Monday against the Braves, Steve Carney of Sports Radio 620 WDAE reports.

Charlie Morton and Ryan Yarbrough have been announced as the official starters Friday and Saturday, respectively, and with Snell set to pitch in Tuesday's intrasquad game, it seems likely he will take the ball for the finale of the opening series. If the Rays opt to give Snell an extra day's rest, he would get a two-start week against the Braves and then in Baltimore.

Chirinos (illness) will be ready for the start of the season, Juan Toribio of MLB.com reports.

He tested positive for COVID-19 in late June, but manager Kevin Cash said Chirinos was able to get his work in while he was quarantining. The Rays' rotation order has not been officially set after Opening Day starter Charlie Morton and second starter Ryan Yarbrough, but Chirinos seems likely to take the ball in the second series at home against the Braves in what could be a two-start week. Tampa Bay has quality depth in multi-inning guys like Trevor Richards and Jalen Beeks, so it is not a lock that Chirinos will be asked to go five-plus innings in his first start of the season.

Morton threw 31 of 51 pitches for strikes in his final tuneup before his Opening Day start at home against the Blue Jays, Neil Solondz of the Rays Radio Network reports.

Morton struck out five and walked one while allowing three hits in an informal 2.2 innings. He will probably be able to get to five-plus innings Friday if he is efficient with his pitches, but there are other Opening Day starters who have built up well past the 51 pitches Morton threw in this intrasquad outing. His second start of the season will be July 29 in Atlanta, and he lines up for a two-start week the following week.

Chirinos, who arrived at Rays camp Sunday, says he tested positive for COVID-19 in late June and had mild symptoms, Steve Carney of Sports Radio 620 WDAE reports.

He is feeling much better now and thinks he can be ready for Opening Day. However, it is unclear what type of role he will be ready for, or whether the Rays would prefer to stretch him out at the alternate site. Trevor Richards is the top option to slot into the rotation if Chirinos is not ready.