MLB Player News

Rodriguez is projected open the regular season in the bullpen, T.R. Sullivan of MLB.com reports. He allowed three runs (two earned) on three hits and two walks while striking out two over five spring innings.

Sullivan goes as far as calling Rodriguez a "lock" to make the final roster when MLB eventually begins its season. The 28-year-old left-hander pitched well in Japan over the last two seasons, after posting a 5.40 ERA in two partial seasons with the Phillies in 2016 and 2017. He's a classic reliever, whose mid-90s fastball is his top asset, while he uses a slider to generate swings-and-misses. Rodriguez's strikeout rate jumped to 10.6 per nine innings while he was with the Chunichi Dragons of Nippon Professional Baseball. He could serve as a late-inning lefty option, but he will need to out-perform Brett Martin first.

Martin is expected to be part of the bullpen when the regular season begins, T.R. Sullivan of MLB.com reports.

A job in the bullpen was Martin's to lose entering camp, and he pitched well enough during the spring to hold on to it. He allowed five hits and one walk over 4.2 scoreless Cactus League innings.

Chavez (elbow) is starting a throwing program designed to have him pitching off a mound by mid-May, T.R. Sullivan of MLB.com reports.

Chavez was headed for a stint on the injured list before spring training shut down. He made just one appearance during the Cactus League, as the elbow injury has lingered since the end of last season. The Rangers are using the delayed start to the season to get Chavez ready at a measured pace. He's been throwing out to 60 feet and is expected to be long-tossing by the end of April.

Puk has been long tossing from 120 feet and says his shoulder feels the best it has in awhile, Susan Sulsser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

Puk is one of the most likely beneficiaries of the delayed start to the season, as he appears to be recovering from a shoulder flare-up. "Coming back from Tommy John, a lot of people always seem to talk about how your shoulder kind of flares up and you've just got to work through it. I think I was at that stage," Puk said. A theoretical shortened, compressed season could cause added stress on big-league rotations, so Puk seems likely to get starts if he remains on this trajectory.

The Royals optioned Hernandez to High-A Wilmington on March 7.

Kansas City thought enough about Hernandez's long-term potential to protect him from the Rule 5 draft over the winter, even though he's probably at least a couple years away from being ready for the majors. He'll level up to High-A after finishing the 2019 campaign at Low-A Lexington, where he accrued a 3.50 ERA and 43:9 K:BB in 36 frames.

Armstrong is expected to fill a key setup role for the Orioles to begin the 2020 season coming off a dominant spring training, Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com reports.

Heading into the spring, Armstrong already looked like one of the safer bets to crack the Opening Day bullpen, and he only strengthened his standing on the depth chart with his performance in camp. Over his four Grapefruit League appearances, Armstrong covered six scoreless innings, permitting only one hit and two walks while striking out five. Kubatko relays that Armstrong had shown an uptick in his fastball velocity during spring bullpen sessions after the offering was clocked at an average of 93.9 miles per hour last season, providing some optimism that his strong numbers in exhibition play may be more than a small-sample-size fluke. He still likely won't be worth drafting even in most AL-only leagues, but Armstrong might be someone to keep an eye on if he continues to deliver strong ratios early on during the regular season.

The White Sox optioned Foster to Triple-A Charlotte on March 6.

Chicago saw enough from Foster during his time at Charlotte and Double-A Birmingham to protect him from the Rule 5 draft over the winter, but the right-hander's demotion early in camp suggests he wasn't particularly close to cracking the White Sox's Opening Day bullpen. He'll look to find success with Charlotte again after posting a 3.76 ERA, 1.18 WHIP and 62:19 K:BB in 55 innings with the affiliate in 2019.

The White Sox optioned Burdi to Double-A Birmingham on March 11.

The hard-throwing righty is still viewed as one of the more intriguing reliever prospects in the White Sox's farm system, even though Tommy John surgery and a dislocated knee have cost him much of the last three seasons. Now healthy, Burdi could move quickly to the majors if he's able to dominate against minor-league hitters with his big fastball early on in 2020.

The White Sox optioned Lambert (elbow) to Double-A Birmingham on March 6.

Lambert is expected to miss most of the season while recovering from Tommy John surgery, so his demotion to Double-A was merely a procedural move.

The White Sox optioned Flores to Double-A Birmingham on March 11.

Flores will head to the Southern League for a repeat season after posting a 3.33 ERA and 1.14 WHIP in 78.1 innings in 2019. If he finds early success in his return to Birmingham, he could be in store for a promotion to Triple-A Charlotte before the season ends.