MLB Player News

Gibson (illness) threw two scoreless innings in his spring training debut Monday with three strikeouts and two walks. He lost around 15 pounds after battling E. coli in January, but has gained some of the weight back, the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports.

Gibson weighed 215 pounds before the illness and is back to 205 pounds. It sounds like he's on track to be ready for the start of the regular season, but watch his progress this spring.

Rodriguez allowed three hits and struck out two over two scoreless innings Monday against the Mets.

Rodriguez's line looked good, but manager Alex Cora had a different perspective. "For him to go deeper into games, he needs to attack guys -- his stuff was good, he got some swings and misses but those are things we need to get better and he knows it," Cora told Michael Silverman of the Boston Herald. "We need that next step -- 5 1/3 (innings), it's tough -- we want him to go deeper into games, and his stuff, he can do that whenever he feels like it. It's part of the learning process. He's holding up, he's been in the league a long, long time -- it's time for him to step up." This was Rodriguez's second spring outing, a game when most starters throwing three-plus innings, so Cora has a point. The left-hander has yet to throw more than 137 innings in a season and averages 5.3 innings per start.

Berrios will start for the Twins on Opening Day.

As expected, Berrios will get the ball first for the Twins in 2019 after posting a 3.84 ERA, 1.14 WHIP and 202:61 K:BB through 32 starts (192.1 innings) last season. The young right-hander will face the Indians at home.

Luzardo (illness) struck out three batters across two clean innings against the Dodgers last Wednesday.

Luzardo dealt with a minor illness in between his first two Cactus League appearances, though the young left-hander didn't seem affected by the issue. He's allowed just one unearned run on two hits with a 4:1 K:BB through two outings (three innings) this spring. Luzardo, who is competing for a rotation spot in camp, is slated to start Tuesday against the Rangers.

Farrell (jaw) is scheduled to a visit a specialist later in the week, Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reports.

Farrell, who was diagnosed with a non-displaced jaw fracture after being hit by a line drive Saturday, saw a specialist over the weekend, though a concrete medical plan could not be determined due to the amount of swelling. He's expected to undergo a procedure later in the week to address his fractured jaw, though specifics remain unclear. He'll wait a few days for the swelling to subside before returning to the specialist, after which a timetable for his return will hopefully emerge.

Gonzales, who allowed an earned run on three hits and one walk across four innings in a 7-3 Cactus League win over the Diamondbacks on Sunday, is serving as a mentor to the Mariners' cadre of young pitching prospects, Mark Feinsand of MLB.com reports.

The young left-hander is already enjoying a promising spring in anticipation of serving as the potential co-ace of this year's staff alongside prized Japanese import Yusei Kikuchi. Gonzales, who also struck out four in Sunday's outing, has allowed just one earned run on four hits over seven innings across two spring appearances. In addition to his strong on-field work, Gonzales is also trying to serve as an example for the promising trio of Justus Sheffield, Justin Dunn and Erik Swanson, acquired this past offseason in trades with the Yankees and Mets. His counsel is much more likely to be heeded when backed up by solid performances, and Gonzales is living up to that end of the bargain thus far. "He's been outstanding; that's kind of what I thought we would get," manager Scott Servais said. "He's still working through some things. His last outing, I don't think he had a great changeup the first couple innings and he found it in the third inning. That's what spring training is about. So far, Marco's spring has been really solid."

Heaney (elbow) is scheduled to throw from flat ground Monday, J.P. Hoornstra of the Los Angeles Daily News reports.

Heaney is currently dealing with left elbow inflammation. The southpaw reported feeling good after playing long toss Sunday, and if everything goes off without a hitch during Monday's flat ground session, he could be cleared to resume mound work.

Gibson (illness) has been confirmed as the starting pitcher for Monday's spring game against the Orioles, according to Betsy Helfand of the St. Paul Pioneer Press.

Gibson has yet to appear in a game this spring while recovering from E. coli, but he is now ready to get up on the bump for the first time. It's unlikely he will go more than an inning or two in Monday's contest, but if all goes smoothly, he will presumably be on track to be ready by Opening Day.

Cease is scheduled to make his spring debut Tuesday against the Indians, Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune reports.

The White Sox are taking it slow with Cease, who was shut down in August last year after hitting an innings limit. The goal of the delayed start to spring pitching is to leave bullets in the arm into September, when presumably the right-hander will be in Chicago. With Michael Kopech (elbow) sidelined after Tommy John surgery, Cease moves to the top of the healthy pitching prospects in the system.

Perez threw three scoreless innings with four strikeouts and no walks in Sunday's spring training tie against the Phillies. Perez's four-seam fastball reached 97 mph five times during his outing, after he threw just four pitches faster than 96.5 mph last season, MLB.com reports.

Perez is the leading candidate for the fifth starter role, so it was a little curious he pitched in relief in the game. The Twins have been working with Perez to alter his delivery, and so far the results look promising.