The Toronto Blue Jays are granting outfielder Dexter Fowler’s request to be released, Sportsnet reported Tuesday.

The Blue Jays signed the 36-year-old veteran to a minor league deal on March 31 and he appeared in three games at Triple-A Buffalo, batting .417 (5 for 12) with three RBIs.

He has not played in the majors since tearing his left ACL in a game with the Los Angeles Angels on April 9, 2021.

In 14 MLB seasons, Fowler has appeared in 1,460 games, collecting 1,306 hits — 127 of them homers — and 517 RBIs. A lifetime .259 hitter, he was an All-Star with the Cubs in 2016, winning the World Series in the second of his two seasons in Chicago.

Fowler also has played for the Colorado Rockies (2008-13), Houston Astros (2014) and St. Louis Cardinals (2017-20).

–Field Level Media

Oakland is counting on right-hander Paul Blackburn to continue his hot start as he takes the mound when the reeling Athletics host the Tampa Bay Rays in the second contest of a three-game series on Tuesday night.

Oakland has lost four straight games and five of its past six.

Blackburn (3-0, 1.35 ERA) will try for his career-high fourth win of the season. He’s been impressive in carving out a spot in the A’s rotation after going 1-4 with a 5.87 ERA in nine starts last season.

In his most recent start, Blackburn held the San Francisco Giants to three hits and struck out four in five innings of shutout ball to earn the win in Oakland’s 1-0 victory on Wednesday.

“I think we’re all aware that this Paul Blackburn is one we could kind of project to be able to have success at the major league level,” Oakland manager Mark Kotsay said. “And to see it happening now, it should feel good not only for Paul but for us as an organization.”

Blackburn, who has allowed just three runs on 14 hits with 18 strikeouts and two walks in 20 innings this season, picked up his first win of the year when he dominated the Rays during a 13-2 win on April 11.

Blackburn allowed just three hits, struck out seven and walked one as he held Tampa Bay scoreless for five innings in his first appearance against the Rays in his career.

The Rays likely will counter with left-hander Ryan Yarbrough, who would make his season debut after being sidelined with a groin injury. Yarbrough threw 59 pitches over 2 2/3 innings at Triple-A Durham on Thursday and didn’t suffer any setbacks, according to Tampa Bay manager Kevin Cash.

Yarbrough, who went 9-7 last year with a 5.11 ERA and 117 strikeouts and 27 walks in 155 innings, hasn’t pitched against Oakland since 2019. He is 1-0 with a 3.29 ERA lifetime in 13 2/3 innings against the A’s.

Tampa Bay had no trouble in Monday’s series opener, a 6-1 win that ended the Rays’ two-game slide.

Yandy Diaz homered and scored two runs, Manuel Margot had three hits, including two doubles, and starter Drew Rasmussen (2-1) allowed just one run on one hit over five innings.

The win was a welcomed start to the Rays’ 10-game trip after a mediocre homestand.

“We just went 5-4 on the homestand, and that’s not what we’re shooting for,” Cash said. “We need to find a way to get on a run and get the offense going and give the pitchers some breathing room a little bit.”

The Rays scored six runs in the first five innings Monday against Oakland starter Daulton Jefferies (1-4), who allowed six earned runs on 11 hits with four strikeouts and no walks in five innings before being pulled for Domingo Acevedo.

Oakland recorded just two hits — singles by Jed Lowrie and Chad Pinder.

–Field Level Media

One unexpected benefit to Houston Astros closer Ryan Pressly missing his 16th game with right-knee inflammation on Monday was the continued development of late-inning options in his stead.

Houston right-hander Rafael Montero recorded his second save in locking down the host Astros’ 3-0 victory over the Seattle Mariners in the opener of a three-game series that will continue Tuesday night.

Right-hander Ryne Stanek earned the save in the Astros’ 4-3 victory over the Texas Rangers on Wednesday, while right-hander Hector Neris leads the club with seven games finished.

“That’s very important because you have guys (who are capable),” Astros manager Dusty Baker said of the closing options. “Stanek hasn’t done it as much as Neris and Montero, but he’s learning. When Pressly does come back and he goes a couple of days in a row, you have other guys that you feel comfortable putting in that role and situation.”

Right-hander Cristian Javier (1-0, 1.35 ERA) will start the middle game of the set for the Astros. Javier earned the victory in his first start of the season on Wednesday, limiting the Rangers to two runs on four hits and two walks with four strikeouts over five innings. He made his first three appearances out of the bullpen before joining the rotation.

Javier is 2-0 with a 0.53 ERA over five career games (two starts) against the Mariners.

Right-hander Chris Flexen (1-3, 3.38) is the scheduled starter for the Mariners for Tuesday. He has made seven starts of at least seven innings with no more than one run allowed since the start of the 2021 season, the most such starts in the American League in that span.

Flexen took the loss Thursday in his previous outing after allowing two runs on six hits and two walks with four strikeouts over 6 2/3 innings in the Mariners’ 2-1 setback to the Tampa Bay Rays.

Flexen is 0-4 with a 7.01 ERA in five career starts against the Astros. He held Houston to three runs on five hits and one walk with three strikeouts over six innings in a 4-0 loss on April 16.

As part of the league-wide mandate to set 26-man rosters after play on May 1, Seattle optioned left-hander Justus Sheffield to Triple-A Tacoma following Sunday’s victory in Miami.

Sheffield logged four scoreless relief appearances last month, but the club wants him to resume starting. Over the prior three seasons, Sheffield was 9-12 with a 5.28 ERA in 32 starts.

“We’re trying to get him stretched out a little bit if we would need a starter,” Mariners manager Scott Servais said. “Obviously he has starting experience; he’s had some success here.

“He’s always relied on the sinking fastball and the changeup, and the slider kind of got away from him last year. We’re going to focus on him throwing more sliders and getting that back into being a big weapon for him. He was doing that out of the bullpen, but he needs reps. He’s still a young pitcher, and we need to get more out of him than the random inning or two here or there.”

–Field Level Media