MLB Player News

The Angels claimed J.C. Ramirez off waivers, opening up a roster spot for Diaz. The 32-year-old has done solid work as Louisville’s closer, converting 11-of-12 saves with a pristine 0.75 ERA. Unfortunately that success has not carried over to the big leagues. He holds a disappointing 6.30 ERA in 11 games for the Reds this season.

The Astros will transition to a six-man rotation around mid-April when they hit a stretch of 13 consecutive games without an off-day. Hunter Brown and Tatsuya Imai are the only locks right now with Cristian Javier, Mike Burrows and Lance McCullers Jr. figuring to break camp in the rotation as well. The battle for the sixth spot in the rotation involves a combination of Spencer Arrighetti, AJ Blubaugh and Peter Lambert. The other option is to bring up someone like Jason Alexander or Colton Gordon a couple weeks into the year.

Boone added that Oswaldo Cabrera will be optioned to Triple-A. This was the most logical outcome after former top prospect Jasson Domínguez was shipped to Triple-A on Friday. Grichuk was in camp as a non-roster invitee vying for a spot on the club’s bench. He’ll get opportunities against left-handed pitching whenever Trent Grisham or Cody Bellinger need a break.

Fuentes has been one of the biggest revelations in the Grapefruit League this spring, compiling a sublime 17/0 K/BB ratio across nine perfect innings over three appearances. The wrinkle fantasy-wise here is that the hard-throwing 20-year-old rookie has made Atlanta’s season-opening roster as a reliever, not a traditional starter. That means José Suarez is likely going to wind up with the fifth spot in the rotation. The stuff should play up in shorter bursts out of the bullpen, which makes Fuentes an intriguing addition for fantasy managers in deeper mixed leagues.

Senger will continue to function as emergency catching depth behind Francisco Alvarez and Luis Torrens. The 28-year-old backstop got into 33 contests for the Mets last year.

Kjerstad is heading to Baltimore to undergo further imaging to determine the severity after suffering the injury earlier this week. The latest development guarantees that he’ll open the season on the injured list and takes him out of the running for a bench role. There should be a clear return timeline at some point next week.

Nootbaar has yet to appear in a spring training contest for the Cardinals as he works his way back from offseason surgery on both heels. The 28-year-old corner outfielder’s absence creates a pathway for Nelson Velàzquez to open the year in the big leagues as a temporary stopgap.

This qualifies as a bit of a surprise since Garcia was off to a sizzling-hot start this spring, batting .405 (15-for-37) with two homers and three steals in 17 games. The calculus for the Pirates likely involves having the 23-year-old corner outfielder playing regularly on the doorstop of the majors as opposed to languishing in a part-time role at the highest level. His departure means that veteran offseason acquisition Ryan O’Hearn will open the year as Pittsburgh’s starting right fielder with Marcell Ozuna at DH.

Fuentes has been an unexpected revelation this spring, posting a stellar 17/0 K/BB ratio across nine perfect innings over three appearances in Grapefruit League action. The hard-throwing 20-year-old clearly wasn’t ready when he was lit up during a brief four-game run with Atlanta last summer as a teenager. He’s looked magnificent this spring and has a decent chance at breaking camp in Atlanta’s season-opening rotation as their fifth starter. He’ll need to beat out veteran José Suarez to make that a reality. It’s too small of a sample size for fantasy managers to overreact but Fuentes is a talented pitching prospect that could be making a leap this spring. He’s worth rostering in deeper mixed leagues based on that possibility alone.

Mendoza added that David Peterson will follow Opening Day starter Freddy Peralta before McLean gets the ball on Sunday against the Pirates at Citi Field. He’ll be followed by Clay Holmes and Kodai Senga with Sean Manaea being used in a piggyback role, as needed. The hard-throwing 24-year-old top pitching prospect will make his season debut with an extremely favorable matchup at home after a starring role in the World Baseball Classic earlier this month. He’s a top-25 range fantasy starter in remaining drafts.

Beavers was scratched from Friday’s lineup after experiencing tightness in his right quad that led to some knee soreness. The 24-year-old top prospect expressed optimism that he’s dealing with a short-term issue before adding that he believes he’ll be ready for next week’s season-opener. Beavers is projected to split time in right field with veteran Tyler O’Neill this season after slashing .227/.375/.400 with four homers and two steals during a 35-game cameo with the Orioles last year.