MLB Player News

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts made it official on Saturday evening that Kershaw will kick off his lengthy minor league rehab assignment next week at the Triple-A level. The future Hall of Fame southpaw isn’t expected to make his season debut until sometime in late May, at the earliest, barring any setbacks.

The 29-year-old right-hander passed through waivers unclaimed after being designated for assignment by the Orioles, but rather than accepting an outright assignment to Triple-A Norfolk, he has decided to see what’s out there on the open market. Martin has recorded a pair of strikeouts over 1 1/3 scoreless innings at the major league level this season.

Manaea made his season debut as a follower behind Clay Holmes on Sunday, but now he will slide into his normal spot in the rotation. Clay Holmes will follow Manaea as a traditional starter on Saturday, and then David Peterson will pitch on Sunday. That means Kodai Senga will likely start on Monday against the Angels with Frankie Montas following on Tuesday.

The Cardinals will then follow with Sonny Gray on Saturday and Miles Mikolas on Sunday, which means Erick Fedde will likely start Monday against the Rockies in Coors Field, and Matthew Liberatore will follow on Tuesday.

Keaschall fractures his right forearm in late April after hitting .368 (7-for-19) with two RBI and five steals in seven games to start his MLB career. The Twins are likely to give Keaschall plenty of time to get his timing back, but with Willi Castro’s name coming up in trade rumors, it’s possible that we could see Keaschall back with the Twins in August.

It was previously reported that Ober would return shortly after the All-Star break, so this could be his one and only rehab start. If Ober looks good enough in his rehab start, he could return in time to start on Wednesday against the Dodgers; although, fantasy managers might rather he wait and return for next weekend’s series against the Nationals instead.

Topkins had earlier reported that Drew Rasmussen would go back to a five-inning starting role after the All-Star break, so it was assumed Boyle would no longer act as a “follower.” Topkins confirms that Boyle will now serve as a multi-inning reliever, but in shorter two or three-inning stints. While he may still have some potential for wins, him moving into a shorter relief role takes away a lot of his fantasy value unless Taj Bradey or Zack Littell is traded to open up a rotation spot for him.

Beeter was called up before the All-Star break to add some depth to the Yankees’ bullpen, but he will now head back to the minors after the Yankees added Rico Garcia on waivers from the Mets.

Garcia was claimed off waivers from the Mets on Monday after throwing two scoreless innings with the other New York team. He’ll now join the Yankees bullpen with Clayton Beeter being sent back to the minors.

The rest of the Giants’ starting rotation for that first series after the All-Star break has not been confirmed, but we know Verlander will get the ball on Friday, which sets him up for a Wednesday start next week against the Braves.

The Athletics will then follow with Luis Severino on Saturday and Jeffrey Springs on Sunday, which means Jacob Lopez will start on Monday against the Rangers. The Guardians are a platoon-heavy team, so getting two left-handed starters on the weekend means hitters like Nolan Jones and Kyle Manzardo are likely to be on the bench.