MLB Player News

Hatch was placed on the 10-day injured list with a right elbow impingement Thursday, Keegan Matheson of MLB.com reports.

Hatch left a mid-March outing with the injury. Tests confirmed that he isn't dealing with any UCL damage, but his return timeline remains unclear.

Pearson (groin) landed on the 10-day injured list Thursday, Keegan Matheson of MLB.com reports.

The move is an unsurprising one, as Pearson aggravated a groin injury in mid-March and has yet to return to mound work. He's been able to throw for over a week, but the Blue Jays will prioritize the long-term health of a pitcher who could be a key piece of the team's rotation for years to come rather than trying to get as many innings as possible from him this April.

Payamps was added to the 26-man roster Thursday, Keegan Matheson of MLB.com reports.

The 26-year-old was optioned to Triple-A Buffalo over the weekend, but Payamps was brought back up after the Jays placed a number of pitchers on the IL to begin the season. He'll likely fill a low-leverage role in the bullpen after posting a 6:3 K:BB over 5.1 scoreless innings this spring.

Merryweather will begin the season on the 26-man roster, Keegan Matheson of MLB.com reports.

The right-hander needed to prove he was healthy after battling back issues in camp, but Merryweather cleared the final hurdle by tossing a scoreless innings Monday in the Jays' last Grapefruit League game. He will likely fill a long-relief role out of the bullpen, but the 29-year-old could still fill key innings, considering the current state of the team's rotation.

Barria was optioned to Triple-A Salt Lake on Wednesday.

The Angels were granted another option year this season for Barria by an independent arbiter earlier in March, and the team will promptly take advantage by sending him to the minors to begin the campaign. Barria had a 3.62 ERA, 1.11 WHIP and 27:9 K:BB over 32.1 innings for the Halos in 2020 and should rejoin the bullpen mix at some point this season.

Detroit manager A.J. Finch said Soto "very much has closer stuff," and he looks likely to assume the role to begin the season, Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press reports.

Soto has the best pure stuff of any Detroit reliever, and with Joe Jimenez demoted to Triple-A, it looks like the lefty will start the season as the Tigers' closer and could lock down the role long term if he's effective. Bryan Garcia and Jose Cisnero could also be in the mix for saves, but Soto has the most fantasy upside among that trio.

Tapia (oblique) was optioned to the alternate training site Wednesday, Daniel Kramer of MLB.com reports.

The 29-year-old suffered an oblique strain in early March and missed out on Seattle's Opening Day roster. Tapia appears to be in the final stages of his recovery after completing a 20-pitch simulated game last week, and he should be available for promotion relatively soon.

Leclerc (elbow) underwent Tommy John surgery Wednesday, Evan Grant of The Dallas Morning News reports.

Leclerc was placed on the 60-day injured list Tuesday, and he'll now begin his lengthy recovery process after his surgery was completed Wednesday. The right-hander will miss the entire 2021 season and is likely slated to miss the start of the 2022 campaign as well. With Jonathan Hernandez (elbow) also on the 60-day injured list, Ian Kennedy and Matt Bush should compete for save chances to begin the season.

Manager Aaron Boone mentioned Green as a candidate to pick up saves while closer Aroldis Chapman serves a two-game suspension to begin the season, Erik Boland of Newsday reports.

Boone noted that any decisions on a closer for games Thursday and Friday versus the Blue Jays would depend on circumstance and matchups, but Green should be one of the more reliable late-inning options available with Chapman out and with Zack Britton (elbow) on the injured list. In deeper mixed leagues or AL-only leagues where every closer is rostered and saves are difficult to come by, Green isn't a bad streaming option for the first week of the season.

Luetge has made the Yankees' Opening Day roster, Bryan Hoch of MLB.com reports.

Luetge was dominant for the Yankees during Grapefruit League play and posted a 1.74 ERA and 0.97 WHIP with 18 strikeouts in 10.1 innings. As a result, he'll return to the majors for the first time since 2015. Luetge is unlikely to pitch in many high-leverage situations this year.