MLB Player News

Norris will not take the hill against Kansas City on Wednesday since the game was postponed due to inclement weather, Jeffrey Flanagan of MLB.com reports.

Norris will have to wait a bit longer to make his first appearance of the 2018 regular season, as the Tigers are the victims of another bout of bad weather in the Midwest. The 24-year-old could wind up being skipped in the rotation altogether, with Jordan Zimmermann, Michael Fulmer and Francisco Liriano scheduled to pitch in this weekend's series against the White Sox. Expect a definitive answer in the coming hours. Wednesday's scheduled game versus Kansas City will be made up April 20 as part of a doubleheader.

Graveman (0-1) gave up four runs, all earned, over five innings on eight hits with a strikeout and a walk in taking Oakland's 4-1 loss to the Rangers on Tuesday.

Graveman was bested by Oakland's division rivals Tuesday and now has an 8.10 ERA and 1.60 WHIP to go along with just two strikeouts through his first two starts of the season. He shouldn't be used for fantasy purposes unless he starts to show consistent improvement.

Diaz struck out two batters during a scoreless ninth inning to collect his third save of the season in Tuesday's 6-4 win over San Francisco.

Aside from hitting two batters in his season debut, Diaz has been flawless through three appearances. He hasn't allowed a hit or issued a traditional walk yet, and the hard-throwing righty has already racked up eight strikeouts through just three innings. It shouldn't have been overly surprising to see him slip slightly to begin last season, as he was fast-tracked to the majors without ever appearing at the Triple-A level. However, he converted 21 of 23 save opportunities in the second half last year and owns the pitching arsenal to dominate opposing hitters. Big things could be in store for Diaz in 2018.

Through his first three appearances of the season, Jimenez has not allowed an earned run over 2.1 innings of work.

It's of course incredibly early in the year, but for a player who posted a 12.32 ERA in 2017, every positive sign is welcome. Jimenez has electric stuff and could be a future closer for the Tigers, but he showed last year that he has work to do if he wants to succeed at the MLB level. The 23-year-old reportedly showed up to spring training in better shape this year, and he worked on developing a more consistent delivery. It will be interesting to see if Jimenez can sustain success for any significant amount of time. If he can, the rebuilding Tigers may choose to turn the ninth inning over to him at some point.

Scott may be used as a reliever at Triple-A Norfolk this season, Eduardo A. Encina of The Baltimore Sun reports.

Scott turned in decent results last season at Double-A Bowie, where he was used as a starter, throwing for a 2.22 ERA and 1.32 WHIP over 24 games. However, the Orioles want to have Scott join their bullpen later in the season, so the club is entertaining the idea of moving the 23-year-old back to his previous role as a reliever. Scott will look to improve his control with Norfolk -- he posted an unsightly 87:46 K:BB in 2017.

Scribner was designated for assignment by the Angels on Tuesday.

To make room on the 40-man roster for the newly-acquired Akeel Morris, the Angels decided to designated Scribner for assignment. Should he clear waivers, expect Scribner to remain at Triple-A Salt Lake, where he posted a 4.35 ERA and 1.34 WHIP over 20 games (103.1 innings) last season.

Heller (elbow) was moved to the 60-day disabled list Tuesday.

Moving Heller to the 60-day DL made room on the 40-man roster for Trayce Thompson, who was claimed off waivers from the Dodgers on Tuesday. Heller is currently dealing with a bone spur in his right elbow, but will join Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre's bullpen once he returns to full health.

Junis (1-0) allowed three hits and one walk while striking out six over seven scoreless innings in a win over the Tigers on Tuesday.

It was a cold, rainy afternoon and he was going against a weak lineup, but this was an encouraging performance nonetheless. Junis induced 12 swinging strikes on 87 pitches and was regularly ahead in the count, issuing first-pitch strikes to 19 of 25 batters faced. Spring stats generally aren't very predictive, but Junis had a 20:1 K:BB in 14.1 Cactus League innings, and small-sample extremes like that sometimes do mean something. Junis lines up to face the Indians in Cleveland on Sunday.

Castro may be used as a multi-inning reliever this year, the Baltimore Sun's Eduardo A. Encina reports.

The team wanted to make Castro a starter this spring, but that was before they signed Andrew Cashner, Chris Tillman and Alex Cobb. With the O's no longer desperate for starting pitching and Zach Britton (Achilles) out indefinitely, Castro offers the most value as a multi-inning reliever. He has already pitched three innings of relief over a pair of outings, logging four strikeouts while allowing one earned run over that stretch. Castro has the stuff (97-mph fastball, useful slider and changeup) to rack up strikeouts in such a role, and could be easily stretched out later this season if a need emerges in the rotation.

Lakins (elbow) was placed on the minor-league disabled list Tuesday, Alex Speier of The Boston Globe reports.

Lakins will open the season on the shelf as he continues to work back from a stress fracture in his elbow that he suffered last summer. Prior to going down with the season-ending injury, Lakins had compiled a combined 4.21 ERA and 62:34 K:BB across 15 starts (68.1 innings) between High-A Salem and Double-A Portland. He's expected to join Portland's rotation once healthy.