MLB Player News

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.

Trivino has changed his diet and worked on remaining coiled in his pitching motion and staying behind the ball during spring training, Tom Moore of The Doylestown Intelligencer reports.

Trivino is hopeful the adjustments he's made to his body and delivery will help him recapture the form that made him one of baseball's top setup men during his rookie season in 2018, when he posted a 2.92 ERA, 1.14 WHIP, 82:31 K:BB, four saves and 23 holds in 74 innings. Though Trivino didn't lose any velocity from his upper-90s fastball in 2019, he believes poor dieting and a shortening of his arm path on his delivery contributed to his numbers soaring to 5.25 ERA and 1.53 WHIP. The Athletics will likely break him in as a middle reliever to begin the upcoming season, but if his spring adjustments pay dividends early on, he could quickly settle in as the eighth-inning man ahead of closer Liam Hendriks.

Norris will likely be the Tigers' No. 5 starter when the regular season is able to begin, Chris McCosky of The Detroit News reports.

As it stands right now, Detroit's rotation figures to consist of Matthew Boyd, Spencer Turnbull, Jordan Zimmermann, Ivan Nova and Norris. With the MLB season likely to be compacted and feature fewer off days, the Tigers may skip their fifth starter less often than usual, which should benefit Norris. Of course, the lefty will have to perform well in those opportunities to make an impact in fantasy. Detroit did limit him to exactly three innings in each of his final nine outings of 2019, so he might not even function as a traditional starter when he does take the mound in 2020.

Chapman has been lifting weights and strengthening his legs during MLB's hiatus, Bryan Hoch of MLB.com reports.

Chapman recently posted a video to his Instagram account demonstrating the workout routine he is using to stay in shape. The 32-year-old will reprise his role as Yankees closer when the regular season resumes.

Loaisiga is likely to be an important part of the Yankees' pitching staff when the regular season gets underway, Joe Giglio of NJ Advance Media reports.

At one point Loaisiga was considered the frontrunner to fill in for James Paxton (back) in the Opening Day rotation, but that need may no longer exist with the regular season pushed back long enough for Paxton to potentially get healthy. Still, there are many unknowns about what the shortened campaign will look like -- including the possibility of frequent doubleheaders -- which makes Loaisiga's versatility particularly valuable. According to pitching coach Matt Blake, the right-hander was already on the minds of the coaching staff as a player who could fill "a full starter or opener or kind of a Swiss Army Knife role."