MLB Player News

Yates' elbow injury is serious enough to shut him down for the season and will probably lead to his second Tommy John surgery, Scott Mitchell of TSN.ca reports.

Previous reports indicated that Yates would miss multiple weeks with a flexor pronator strain in his right arm, but it appears as though the diagnosis is far more serious than that. It's not yet confirmed that he'll require Tommy John surgery, but there doesn't appear to be any hope of him pitching this season even if he avoids the procedure. He underwent the surgery once already back in 2006, prior to the start of his professional career, and it's tough to have much optimism for his future given that he'll be 35 years old when he eventually returns. Jordan Romano and Rafael Dolis are the leading candidates to close for the Blue Jays in his absence.

Lopez will continue to stretch out as a starter at the team's alternate training site, Scott Merkin of MLB.com reports.

The desire to keep Lopez stretched out was part of the decision to send him to the alternate site rather than keep him with the big-league squad as a long reliever. That's probably just part of the story, however, as his 9.00 ERA in 11 spring innings didn't do anything to suggest that Lopez was suddenly becoming something other than the guy who struggled to a 5.52 ERA in 41 starts over the last two years. He'll serve as rotation depth in case the White Sox get hit by an injury crisis this season.

Wittgren has impressed manager Terry Francona this spring and could be a candidate to close games to start the season, Tom Withers of the Associated Press reports.

James Karinchak is being drafted as if he's Cleveland's most likely closer, and while he could certainly fill the role, there hasn't been much of an indication from the team that he's the clear favorite. Karinchak struck out an incredible 48.6 percent of batters last season but also walked 14.7 percent, and he's been no different this spring, striking out 18 batters in eight innings while walking six. Wittgren, by contrast, offers a far less extreme package. Both his 28.6 percent strikeout rate and 6.1 percent walk rate last season were strong but not particularly noteworthy, and his 6:1 K:BB in six scoreless innings this spring is similarly solid. If Francona prefers stability over dominance in the ninth inning, it could well be Wittgren who earns the majority of the team's save opportunities this year.

Yarbrough still has manager Kevin Cash's confidence despite his rocky third spring start against Atlanta, Adam Berry of MLB.com reports. "The reason Yarbs is good is because his stuff's good," Cash said. "He can really pitch. His changeup's been a weapon that he can throw at any point, any count, [and] I always feel like the cutter has been the equalizer for him to the right-handed hitter."

Yarbrough had a bit of a rollercoaster outing against Atlanta's regulars Sunday, retiring the first and last four batters he faced but also allowing six runs (five earned) on five hits and a walk over four innings while getting pulled twice by Cash. However, Yarbrough had mostly breezed through his first two spring starts; moreover, he owns a combined 28-16 record and 3.94 ERA over the last three seasons and has generated the lowest average exit velocity (84.6 mph) of any pitcher with at least 300 innings since 2018.

Palumbo (back) is expected to pitch in relief behind starter Jordan Lyles in Tuesday's Cactus League game against the Angels.

Palumbo looks to have moved past his bout with the back spasms that have prevented him from pitching in a spring game since March 4. Unless the Rangers elect to place him on the 10-day IL rather than optioning him, the 26-year-old lefty is expected to open the season as a member of the Triple-A Round Rock rotation.

Peters (back) is listed as an available bullpen option Tuesday for the Angels' Cactus League game against the Rangers.

Peters' inclusion on the lineup card doesn't mean he'll be used in relief behind starter Andrew Heaney, but it implies that he came out of his most recent Cactus League appearance Saturday against the Athletics without any issue. Prior to that outing, Peters had been sidelined for more than two weeks due to back spasms, but he looks like he'll be ready to go for the start of the season. After being outrighted off the Angels' 40-man roster shortly before spring training, Peters is likely ticketed for the Triple-A Salt Lake rotation to begin the 2021 campaign.

The Rays reassigned Krehbiel to their minor-league camp Tuesday, Neil Solondz of the Rays Radio Network reports.

Krehbiel, who was attending camp as a non-roster invitee, was considered a long shot to win a spot in the Rays' Opening Day bullpen. His lone MLB appearances came back in 2018 with Arizona, when he tossed three scoreless innings in relief.

Red Sox manager Alex Cora said Brasier tossed his first live batting practice of the spring Monday, Jen McCaffrey of The Athletic reports.

Brasier will face hitters again in batting practice Thursday as he continues to get his arm conditioned ahead of the regular season. Because Brasier was a late arrival to camp while tending to a personal matter, the Red Sox aren't anticipating that he'll be ready to go for Opening Day, but he shouldn't miss much time beyond that. Once he's fully cleared for game action, Brasier will likely slot into a setup role for Boston.

Wilson (shoulder) is scheduled to undergo an MRI on Tuesday, Marly Rivera of ESPN.com reports.

Once the results of Wilson's MRI become available, the Yankees are expected to provide an update on how long the lefty might be sidelined after he exited Monday's Grapefruit League game against the Phillies with shoulder tightness. He retired none of the four batters he faced prior to departing with the injury, and his spring ERA now sits at 23.14 over four appearances.

Abreu struck out four over three perfect innings in Monday's spring game against the Mets.

Abreu is ramping up his innings in case he's needed in Houston, but he's expected to start the season as part of Triple-A Sugar Land's rotation, per Brian McTaggart of MLB.com. He could, however, be part of the Astros' bullpen with reliever Andre Scrubb suffering from a sore right shoulder.