MLB Player News

Brito is in line to serve as a bulk reliever in Monday's game versus the Blue Jays, Chris Kirschner of The Athletic reports.

Though Brito has started in all eight of his appearances to date and was lined up to take the hill for the first game of the series in Toronto, the Yankees are instead having Jimmy Cordero serve as an opener for the contest. Cordero will likely work an inning or two before giving way to Brito, who has posted a 10.57 ERA and surrendered a 1.102 OPS to opposing hitters in the first inning against him this season. Brito could soon be headed to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, as Luis Severino (lat) is nearing a return from the injured list and would presumably take Brito's spot in the rotation.

Champlain has a 3.03 ERA, 0.98 WHIP and 34 strikeouts in 32.2 innings through six starts for High-A Quad Cities.

The 23-year-old righty posted a 9.84 ERA in 32 innings at High-A last season after getting traded from the Bronx in the Andrew Benintendi trade. Champlain worked in the offseason on improving his fastball command while also improving his fourth-pitch changeup. His fastball can reach the upper-90s and he has two quality breaking balls.

The Reds added Williamson to their taxi squad Monday, and he's expected to be formally recalled from Triple-A Louisville to start Tuesday's game against the Rockies at Coors Field, Charlie Goldsmith of The Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

Williamson gets an unfavorable landing spot in hitter-friendly Colorado for his MLB debut, with his promotion to the big-league rotation coming in the wake of Nick Lodolo (calf) landing on the injured list and Luis Cessa getting released. The left-hander holds an ugly 6.62 ERA and 27:20 K:BB over 34 innings at Louisville this season, although he pitched well his last two times out in yielding four runs with 11 strikeouts across 11.2 frames. Williamson was one of three players the Reds acquired in the March 2022 trade that sent third baseman Eugenio Suarez and outfielder Jesse Winker to Seattle.

The Red Sox promoted Drohan from Double-A Portland to Triple-A Worcester on Monday, Chris Henrique of the "Beyond the Monster" podcast reports.

After finishing the 2022 campaign at Portland, Drohan returned to the Eastern League for the start of the 2023 season and proved to be one of the better arms on the circuit. In his six starts with Portland, the 24-year-old lefty submitted a 1.32 ERA (3.03 xFIP), 0.82 WHIP and 21.1 K-BB% over 34 innings. Now on the doorstep of the big leagues, Drohan could have a chance to debut for Boston later in the season if he continues to dominate at Worcester, though the Red Sox's ample starting depth means he may need an injury or two to hit the rotation before he gets a promotion.

Hendricks (shoulder) covered five innings in his rehab start Sunday with Triple-A Iowa, allowing two earned runs on six hits and two walks while striking out four.

After a rocky beginning to his four-start rehab assignment, Hendricks has looked sharp over his last two outings, working five frames in both contests and building up to 79 pitches in Sunday's start. At this point, Hendricks appears to be fully stretched out and ready to return from the 15-day injured list, with his 2023 debut for the Cubs potentially coming as soon as Friday in Philadelphia. Young right-hander Hayden Wesneski surrendered seven earned runs -- including four home runs -- in his most recent start against the Twins over the weekend and would seem most at risk of losing his spot in the rotation to Hendricks.

Ortiz is scheduled to start Tuesday's game against the Tigers at Comerica Park.

After getting a call-up from Triple-A Indianapolis on May 9, Ortiz stumbled in his first start of the season with the big club, giving up five runs (two earned) on seven hits and one walk over five innings en route to taking a home loss against the Rockies. The 24-year-old right-hander was more impressive over a four-start sample with the Bucs in 2022 and had pitched to a 2.23 ERA and 0.97 WHIP in 32.1 innings at Triple-A prior to his call-up, however, so he'll get at least one more chance to redeem himself. Ortiz's performance Tuesday as well as the status of Vince Velasquez (elbow) heading into next week will likely dictate whether Ortiz garners any additional starts with Pittsburgh.

Lauer (4-4) earned the win Sunday, allowing two runs on two hits and two walks over 5.1 innings against the Royals. He struck out six.

Lauer took over for Colin Rea with two outs in the fourth and was able to pitch the rest of the way. He only gave up two hits, both of which went for solo home runs, and tied his season high with six strikeouts. Overall, Lauer had a nice bounce back performance after having given up 12 runs (seven earned) over his last 11.1 innings heading into Sunday. The team could opt to move him back into the starting rotation after he had a better showing than Rea or potentially operate the two as a tandem moving forward, although nothing yet has indicated a change will be made. Lauer now sits at a 4.54 ERA, 1.44 WHIP and 39:18 K:BB over 39.2 innings thus far.

Rea allowed four runs on six hits and two walks while striking out three over 3.2 innings Sunday against the Royals. He did not factor into the decision.

Rea did not turn in an encouraging performance after the team announced he would replace Eric Lauer in the starting rotation, at least for the time being. He allowed runs in each of the first three frames, which was highlighted by a first inning homer from Salvador Perez, and was replaced in the fourth by Lauer after tossing 81 pitches. Lauer went on to pitch the final 16 outs of the game and had a much better showing than Rea. Though nothing has been announced yet, it's possible the Brewers could move Rea back to the bullpen in favor of Lauer or have the two work as a tandem for the foreseeable future. Rea now holds a 5.52 ERA, 1.29 WHIP and 25:13 K:BB over 31 innings.

Lyles (0-7) took another loss Sunday, allowing seven runs on four hits and three walks over 2.1 innings against the White Sox. He struck out two.

Sunday was easily Lyles' worst outing of the season. He let up one run through the first two frames on a Christian Yelich homer and then completely fell apart in the third. He faced seven batters in the inning, allowing three walks, two singles and a double, which amounted to another four runs for the Brewers before he was pulled. Two additional runs were charged to him after Jose Cuas allowed both inherited runners to score off a three-run blast by Brice Turang. Lyles' velocity noticeably dropped down to 88.8 MPH after he had been averaging 90.7 with his fastball for the year. He has allowed at least one homer in seven of his nine starts this year and now owns a 7.14 ERA, 1.34 WHIP and 38:17 K:BB over 51.2 innings. He's lined up for a tentative start against the White Sox next weekend.

Sandoval (3-2) took the loss Sunday, allowing three runs (two earned) on five hits and a walk over 7.2 innings in a 4-3 loss against the Guardians. He struck out five.

Sandoval was sharp Sunday, allowing just an unearned run through his first seven innings before Josh Naylor smacked a go-ahead, three-run homer off Carlos Estevez in the bottom of the eighth, handing Sandoval the loss. Still, the 26-year-old left-hander has gotten off to a solid start in May, going 1-1 with a 3.32 ERA in his last three outings (19 innings). Sandoval now sports a 3.22 ERA with a 1.16 WHIP and 31:16 K:BB through 44.2 innings this season.