MLB Player News

Graveman allowed three earned runs on three hits and two walks over 2.2 innings in Thursday's 7-3 Cactus League win over the Angels. He also recorded two strikeouts.

The first inning was a particular trouble spot, a 35-pitch frame in which Graveman allowed an Albert Pujols RBI single and Kole Calhoun sacrifice fly that accounted for two of the three runs he surrendered. The right-hander did draw a starter-heavy lineup against the Angels, affording him an opportunity to assess his progress against quality bats. While his first-inning location left much to be desired, the potential Opening Day starter was heartened by how he bounced back during the rest of his outing, Chris Gabel of MLB.com reports. "It didn't go the way I planned it in the first," Graveman said. "But to go back out and have a quick second and a decent third, I think you take that and build off that and move forward. The biggest thing next outing is in the first inning to get ahead of that thing without 30 pitches."

Manager Bob Melvin didn't completely rule out the idea of Puk breaking camp on the Opening Day roster, Julian McWilliams of The Athletic Bay Area reports. "Who knows," said Melvin when the question of Puk opening the year in the big leagues was posed to him.

Puk is probably already one of Oakland's top five starting pitchers, even though he has never pitched at Triple-A, so Melvin, as the manager, would probably love it if he got to open the year with the electric 6-foot-7 lefty in his rotation. However, from a business sense, it would be a foolish move for the rebuilding A's to sacrifice a year of team control by putting Puk on the Opening Day roster. The main takeaway is that Puk might make his big-league debut sooner than many expect. He has dominant stuff, led by a fastball and slider that could each be 70-grade offerings. While his ratios may be middling in his rookie campaign, he should have no problem striking out a batter per inning, which will make him relevant in a lot of formats.

Honeywell (elbow) was officially optioned to to Triple-A Durham on Friday, Marc Topkin of The Tampa Bay Times reports.

This was strictly a procedural move for the Rays as Honeywell is set to miss the entire 2018 season after undergoing Tommy John surgery a couple weeks ago. The 22-year-old is expected to get back to game action in early 2019.

Scribner was optioned to Triple-A Salt Lake on Friday.

Scribner posted a 4.18 ERA in 23.2 innings with the Angels last season, though it came with an ugly 7.00 FIP. The 26-year-old righty will return to Triple-A, where he recorded a 4.35 ERA in 103.1 innings last season, and could be back up when someone in the Angels' injury-prone pitching staff inevitably gets injured, though his track record doesn't suggest he'll be a particularly interesting fantasy asset if and when he returns to the big leagues.

Merryweather will undergo Tommy John surgery Friday, Jordan Bastian of MLB.com reports.

Merryweather was diagnosed with a sprained UCL earlier in the week, and a second opinion ultimately deemed the right-hander would require Tommy John surgery. This is a tough break for the 26-year-old, who was a lesser known prospect who had the ability to make an impact in the majors this season. Merryweather will now turn his attention to the long road of rehab ahead of him.

Armstrong cleared waivers Thursday, Greg Johns of MLB.com reports.

It appears Armstrong will stick in camp with the Mariners after passing through waivers untouched. The 27-year-old, who posted a 4.38 ERA across 24.2 innings with the Indians last season, will likely spend the season as organizational pitching depth.

Zych (elbow) is reportedly dealing with a shoulder injury and will undergo further tests for that issue, Shannon Drayer of 710 ESPN Seattle reports.

Zych was already behind the other pitchers in camp due to an offseason procedure on his ailing elbow, but this adds another wrinkle to the equation. It's unclear how severe the issue is, but it seems like he's now even further from making his Cactus League debut and could even start the season on the disabled list if the tests bring back something bad.

Infante (shoulder) is expected to make his spring debut early next week after tossing a live batting practice session Friday, Daryl Van Schouwen of The Chicago Sun-Times reports.

Infante has been sidelined from participating in any Cactus League outings due to shoulder inflammation but should be back to full health in the near future. The 30-year-old is looking to cement a spot in the White Sox's bullpen after posting a 3.13 ERA and 1.19 WHIP over 54.2 innings of relief with the club last season.

De Leon said Thursday that he plans to visit Dr. James Andrews in the coming days for a second opinion on the torn UCL in his right elbow, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

De Leon added that he wanted to get his Tommy John surgery done "as soon as possible," so it sounds like his consultation with Dr. Andrews is more of an assessment of how best to approach the procedure rather than the 25-year-old maintaining hope that he'll be able to treat the injury through non-surgical methods. The year-plus recovery timeline typically associated with Tommy John surgery should effectively eliminate any remaining appeal De Leon may have had in dynasty formats.

Johnson seems to have the lead on the fifth starting rotation spot with both Steven Wright (knee) and Eduardo Rodriguez (knee) unlikely to be ready to start the season, MassLive.com reports.

Johnson is out of options, and his main competition for fill-in duty, Hector Velazquez, is off to a rocky start to spring training (10 hits, two strikeouts in 7.1 innings). The left-handed Johnson has turned in four scoreless frames to begin the spring with two strikeouts and no walks. He hasn't enjoyed much success at the big-league level to this point, and he won't offer much upside given his limited strikeout potential (6.9 K/9), but those in AL-only leagues looking to replace an injured pitcher could probably do worse.