Michel Baez Undergoing Tommy John Surgery

San Diego Padres reliever Michel Baez (elbow) will undergo Tommy John surgery and miss the 2021 season. The surprise announcement came as the Friars revealed relievers Ryan Weathers and Nabil Crismatt will crack the Opening Day roster. A former prospect, Baez made a strong debut in 2019 with a 3.03 ERA over 24 appearances, but […]

Tyler Duffey Makes Opening Day Roster Despite Spring Struggles

Minnesota Twins relief pitcher Tyler Duffey has made the team's Opening Day roster. Duffey struggled this spring, allowing 15 hits, nine earned runs, and four homers across 6.1 innings pitched, though he did have a nice 10-3 strikeout-to-walk ratio. The 30-year-old saw a slight dip in fastball velocity in mid-March- but attributed it to his […]

Andre Scrubb Could Return By Mid-April

Houston Astros relief pitcher Andre Scrubb (shoulder) could return to the team by mid-April, according to Jake Kaplan of The Athletic. Scrubb has been out since mid-March after developing shoulder soreness, but he appears to have avoided major injury. Scrubb has shown high strikeout potential throughout his minor league career and posted a 23.5 percent […]

Tyler Rogers Mentioned As Closer Candidate

San Francisco Giants President of Baseball Operations Farhan Zaidi said Tuesday that, in addition to Jake McGee, relief pitcher Tyler Rogers is a good candidate to fill the closer's role for the team this season. The submarine pitcher had a strong 2019 season but a pedestrian 2020 season, posting a 4.50 ERA and 1.32 WHIP. […]

Reyes Moronta Likely To Start Season On Giants Roster

San Francisco Giants relief pitcher Reyes Moronta should likely be on the team's 26-man roster to start the season, per NBC Sports' Alex Pavlovic. There were 27 players left in Giants camp as of Tuesday, and Alex Wood (back) is likely to start the season on the injured list, which would leave 26 players. Moronta, […]

Cesar Valdez To Provide Multiple Innings As Reliever

Baltimore Orioles pitcher Cesar Valdez ended last year saving games for the club but he's been moved to a multi-inning relief role this year. The veteran of numerous Mexican League seasons appeared in nine games for the Orioles last season and saved three games while racking up a K-BB of 12-3 in 14.1 innings. The […]

Tanner Scott Could Rack Up Saves, Strikeouts

The Baltimore Orioles won't name an official closer for 2021 but pitcher Tanner Scott could see his fair share of opportunities. The hard-throwing lefty will need to find the strike zone more consistently than he did in the spring (five walks in 6.1 innings) but he's averaged a strikeout rate near 30% averaged out over […]

Anthony Bass To See Early Save Opportunities

Miami Marlins pitcher Anthony Bass will get the ball with the game on the line — at least early on in 2021. The veteran journeyman hurler had a strong spring with a K-BB of 8-3 in 8.1 innings and he allowed just two runs (2.16 ERA). Bass spent last season with the Toronto Blue Jays […]

Greg Holland In Line For High-Leverage Innings

Kansas City Royals pitcher Greg Holland doesn't have a clear path to saves in 2021 but he's among a group of four arms that are the favorites for high-leverage innings to begin the season. Other names in the closer conversation include Scott Barlow, Jesse Hahn, and Josh Staumont. Manager Mike Matheny advised there would be […]

Daniel Hudson, Tanner Rainey Struggle Through Spring

Washington Nationals relief pitchers Daniel Hudson and Tanner Rainey, both of whom are near the top of the team's bullpen depth chart, both had difficult spring trainings. Hudson allowed three home runs in 5 2/3 innings while Rainey walked four batters in 2 1/3. Tiny samples, of course, and Rainey was strong in 2020 with […]

Josh Lindblom Will Begin Season In Bullpen

Milwaukee Brewers pitcher Josh Lindblom will begin the season in the bullpen. He was competing for a spot in the rotation, but instead, Freddy Peralta has won the final starting job. The 33-year-old was just mediocre in the spring with a 4.66 ERA thus far in the Cactus League. Lindblom can safely be ignored in […]

James Karinchak Will Split Save Opportunities To Begin Season

Cleveland Indians relief pitcher James Karinchak will be splitting save opportunities between a trio of pitchers to begin the season. Cleveland will use a committee of Karinchak, Emmanuel Clase, and Nick Wittgren for save chances this season, manager Terry Francona told MLB.com. "The other thing we talked to them about is because there are so […]

Joe Jimenez Optioned To Triple-A

The Detroit Tigers have optioned relief pitcher Joe Jimenez to Triple-A Toledo. Jimenez had a rough spring. He pitched 5 1/3 innings and allowed six hits, three walks and five runs (three earned) while striking out six. Jimenez had two solid years in a row for the Tigers in 2018 in 2019, earning an All-Star […]

Emmanuel Clase Will Be Part Of Closer Committee In Cleveland

Cleveland Indians relief pitcher Emmanuel Clase will get save opportunities this season. The Indians will use a committee of Clase, James Karinchak, and Nick Wittgren for save chances this season, manager Terry Francona told MLB.com. Clase had a 4.32 ERA this spring with 11 strikeouts and no walks in 8.1 innings. Karinchak entered spring as […]

Bryan Garcia To Have Prominent Role In Tigers Bullpen

Detroit Tigers relief pitcher Bryan Garcia figures to be one of the team's top set-up men to start the 2021 season. Gregory Soto is slated to be the Tigers' primary closer, but Garcia could be next in line if Soto falters. Garcia has pitched 6 1/3 innings this spring, posting a 4.26 ERA and 2.05 […]

Jesse Hahn Set For Prominent Bullpen Role

Kansas City Royals relief pitcher Jesse Hahn had the best year of his career in 2020. Over 18 appearances and 17.1 innings, he posted a 0.52 ERA and 0.69 WHIP while averaging 9.9 K/9. Hahn was a starter over the first four years of his MLB career with the San Diego Padres and Oakland Athletics. […]

Scott Barlow Effective In Spring Action

Kansas City Royals relief pitcher Scott Barlow has had a solid spring with the team. He's pitched 6 2/3 innings over seven appearances and has allowed three hits, five walks and two earned runs while striking out 11. Barlow yielded only 2.7 BB/9 in 2020, so hopefully the walks will go down once the season […]

Gregory Soto Eyes Closer's Role

Detroit Tigers pitcher Gregory Soto, a former starter, has embraced the bullpen but he wants to be the club's closer. However, manager A.J. Hinch stated that he would not announce a closer until at least opening day. Soto, a lefty, had a solid spring with just two runs allowed in 6.2 innings and a K-BB […]

Pete Fairbanks In Line For High-Leverage Innings

Tampa Bay Rays pitcher Pete Fairbanks' spring got off to a terrible start thanks to a nasty case of food poisoning but he's in line for some key innings out of the bullpen in 2021. He was limited to just three games in the spring due to the illness but the long-term injury to Nick […]

Craig Kimbrel Finishes Strong, Looks For Bounce-Back Season

Chicago Cubs reliever Craig Kimbrel had a rough month as shown by his 12.15 ERA in seven games but he ended the spring on a high with two strikeouts over an inning of work on Monday. The right-hander allowed nine earned runs in his first three appearances but none over his final four. His fastball […]

Tejay Antone Makes Roster As A Key Reliever

Cincinnati Reds right-hander Tejay Antone (groin/hip) has made the team's Opening Day roster. Antone has missed the past few weeks with a groin and hip injury but he will be healthy enough to be a key piece of the bullpen when the regular season begins. Antone has not appeared in a Cactus League game since […]

Zach Pop Earns A Spot On The Opening Day Roster

Miami Marlins relief pitcher Zach Pop has earned a spot in the Opening Day bullpen. Pop was a Rule 5 selection by the Diamondbacks, then traded to the Marlins. Per Rule 5 draft rules, he'll need to be offered back to his original team, the Orioles, if he does not remain on the active roster […]

Paul Campbell Makes The Opening Day Roster

Miami Marlins relief pitcher Paul Campbell made it on the Marlins Opening Day roster. Campbell was a Rule 5 selection from the Tampa Bay Rays, so unless he gets hurt, he'll need to remain on the active 26-man roster all year or be offered back to the Rays. Campbell earned his spot by pitching to […]

James Hoyt Traded To The Angels

The Miami Marlins and Los Angeles Angels have agreed to a trade that will send relief pitcher James Hoyt to the Angels in exchange for cash considerations. Hoyt was great for the Marlins in 2020, posting a 1.23 ERA with 20 strikeouts in 14 2/3 innings. Underlying metrics show that regression could be coming, and […]

Daniel Hudson Could See High-Leverage Innings

Washington Nationals pitcher Daniel Hudson could see his fair share of high-leverage situations in 2021, although Brad Hand is the expected closer. The veteran right-hander has had a rough spring with an 11.12 ERA through six appearances but his K-BB of 5-1 in 5.2 innings gives some hope. Hudson's biggest issue has been the homers […]

Rafael Montero Bombed In Final Spring Outing

Seattle Mariners relief pitcher Rafael Montero allowed four runs in 2/3 of an inning Monday, marking a difficult end to his Cactus League season. Before Monday, Montero hadn't allowed a run in five consecutive appearances. Montero finishes with a 7.04 ERA and 1.30 WHIP over eight innings. Without any obvious challengers for the closer role, […]

Vince Velasquez To Start Season In The Bullpen

Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Vince Velasquez seems ticketed for the bullpen to start the 2021 season, according to NBC Sports Philadelphia. Velasquez had been competing with Matt Moore and Chase Anderson who will start the season in the starting rotation. Velasquez has high upside in fantasy when he does start thanks to a swinging-strike rate that's […]

Adam Ottavino Could See Save Opportunities

Boston Red Sox pitcher Adam Ottavino battled with Matt Barnes this spring for the club's closer role. But when Matt Barnes tested positive for COVID-19, the race was left unfinished according to manager Alex Cora. With Barnes now cleared to return to action, he and Ottavino should both work high-leverage situations and both could see […]

T.J. Zeuch Makes Opening Day Roster

Toronto Blue Jays hurler T.J. Zeuch was informed on Monday that he had made the club's 26-man roster for opening day. Veteran pitcher Robbie Ray (elbow bruise) is expected to miss at least one start with an injury. Zeuch has seen his standing with the Jays improve this spring due to a mix of solid […]

Francisco Liriano Granted Release

Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Francisco Liriano was granted his release on Monday. He had an opt-out clause in his minor-league contract which he chose to exercise after he learned he would not be making the club out of the spring. The veteran left-hander pitched well this spring and did not allow a run in 7.1 […]