MLB Player News

Manaea, who allowed six earned runs on six hits while recording two strikeouts over 1.2 innings in a Cactus League loss to the Brewers on Monday, was nevertheless encouraged by the ongoing refinement of his slider, Martin Gallegos of MLB.com reports. ""It was good. I was pretty happy with it," Manaea said of the movement of his slider. "I was able to control it a little bit. Especially the first inning, it was good. I felt like I threw some really good ones right off my fingertips. I was really happy with it, movement-wise. Not so much location-wise."

The southpaw has been diligently working on sharpening up his slider this offseason and in camp thus far, even getting some one-on-one work in with the legendary Randy Johnson during the Big Unit's recent visit to spring training. Gallegos reports that most of Manaea's problems Monday stemmed from fastballs that were intended to serve as inside pitches and were instead essentially grooved down the middle of the plate. A pair of those resulted in two-run home runs from Orlando Arcia and Lucas Erceg, and the fact Manaea also threw 39 pitches overall may have led to some fatigue. The 28-year-old will look to bounce back in his next Cactus League start, which will likely come toward the end of the week or on the weekend.

Merryweather (elbow) is listed as an available relief option for Toronto in its Grapefruit League game Tuesday against the Yankees, Keegan Matheson of MLB.com reports.

While recovering from March 2018 Tommy John surgery, Merryweather was sidelined for most of the 2019 campaign, making only two rehab appearances for two of the Jays' lower-level affiliates in late June before being shut down. The right-hander returned to action in the Arizona Fall League and is apparently feeling healthy ahead of the 2020 season, as evidenced by the fact that he's available out of the bullpen Tuesday. Expect Merryweather to report to Triple-A Buffalo or Double-A New Hampshire once spring camp concludes.

Jurado (shoulder) is at full strength again, T.R. Sullivan of MLB.com reports.

Jurado dealt with a mild bout of shoulder inflammation over the weekend but has been removed from the Rangers' medical report. Jurado, who has posted unremarkable numbers over 26 starts for Texas the last two seasons, should be on the list of candidates when the Rangers need a spot of fill-in starter in 2020.

Abreu retired all six batters faced, striking out four, in Monday's spring game against the Tigers.

Abreu made an impressive splash in his Grapefruit League debut, pounding the strike zone with 21 of his 30 pitches landing for strikes. He's a starter, but the 22-year-old right-hander could open the season as part of the Astros' bullpen. Monday's outing signals relief could be his role for the organization in 2020. In a small MLB sample size in 2019, Abreu fanned 13 batters in 8.2 innings and was added to the ALCS roster.

Yarbrough, who's often served as a bulk reliever behind an opener over the last two seasons, is vying to secure a role as a traditional starter this spring, Juan Toribio of MLB.com reports.

The 28-year-old did log starts in half of his 28 appearances last season along the way to an 11-6 record, 4.13 ERA and 1.00 WHIP across 141. 2 innings. Yarbrough made a favorable first impression by throwing 14 of 21 pitches for strikes in a scoreless first inning against the Yankees on Sunday, and he boasts a five-pitch repertoire that includes a trademark cutter that he complements with a sinker, changeup, curveball and four-seam fastball. Manager Kevin Cash has already stated he still plans to split Yarbrough's work between the rotation and bullpen again this season, but that won't stop the right-hander from chasing his goal of full-time starter. "It's one of those things where I just try and show them, I've come in and shown I can compete for that [starter] role and prove to them that I can do that," Yarbrough said. "Obviously, that's in my thought process a little bit."

Peters is developing a slider to use against left-handed hitters, Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic reports.

Though Peters registered a 2.08 ERA against lefties last season, he struck out only 12 of the 92 batters he faced. A more consistent slider could help him generate more swings-and-misses; Peters posted a 28.0 Whiff% on the pitch last season but tossed it only 3.9 percent of the time.

Jimenez pitched a scoreless inning in Monday's Grapefruit League game against the Astros. He allowed a hit and struck out one.

For the first time in his MLB career, Jimenez will enter the season as the closer. He struggled some in the role last year, blowing five of 14 save opportunities, though the 25-year-old did record an impressive 82 strikeouts across 59.2 innings. Like a lot of younger pitchers, the key for Jimenez will be controlling his dynamic arsenal, which is something he'll work on this spring.

Manager Joe Maddon called it a "safe bet" that Robles would be the Angels' closer this season, Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic reports.

There wasn't too much doubt that Robles would be the team's primary ninth-inning option, but it's still nice to see it confirmed by the manager. Robles broke out in 2019 after a few mediocre seasons to post a 2.48 ERA and save 23 games while slashing his walk rate from 10.3 percent to 5.7 percent. If Robles stumbles this season, Ty Buttrey, Noe Ramirez, Cam Bedrosian and Keynan Middleton are among the options that could take over the job.

Burke will undergo arthroscopic surgery on his shoulder Friday and will miss the entire 2020 season.

Burke has been battling shoulder problems since early in the 2019 season. The issue persisted throughout the offseason, and while he was able to throw off flat ground early in camp, the Rangers weren't happy with how his shoulder was responding to treatment. He was diagnosed with fraying and a partial tear of his labrum and will sit out for all of 2020 as a result.

Clase is working through some lat discomfort, Zack Meisel of The Athletic reports.

The issue appears to be a minor one, with manager Terry Francona saying that the 21-year-old would pitch through the problem if it occurred during the regular season. Clase has only 23.1 big-league innings under his belt, but his 2.31 ERA in those innings and his 99 mph heat (backed up by a 90.5 mph slider) have him projecting as one of the top alternatives to close in Cleveland should Brad Hand struggle or get injured.