MLB Player News

Soriano earned a spot on the Angels' Opening Day roster as a reliever, Sam Blum of The Athletic reports.

The right-hander stretched out as a starter during spring training but will end up working out of the bullpen with Robert Stephenson (shoulder) likely unavailable. Soriano should continue to stay relatively stretched out and could serve as a spot starter if/when the Angels deal with rotation injuries. The 25-year-old made 38 appearances as a reliever in his first taste of the majors last season and posted a 3.64 ERA, 1.33 WHIP and 56:23 K:BB over 42 innings.

Staumont is having his knee evaluated Tuesday after he slipped in the bullpen, Bobby Nightengale of the Minneapolis Star Tribunereports.

The right-hander is set to make Minnesota's Opening Day roster, but the knee issue could end up sending him to the injured list. Staumont posted a 5.40 ERA in 21 outing for the Royals last season and is likely to fill a low-leverage role for the Twins when healthy.

Diaz has been told he will not make the Tigers' Opening Day roster and is likely to be designated for assignment, Chris McCosky of The Detroit News reports.

Diaz is out of options, so the Tigers would have to pass him through waivers first if they want to send him to Triple-A Toledo. The reliever would also have the ability to reject an outright assignment. The 29-year-old pitched well during his brief time with Detroit over the last two seasons, posting a 1.02 ERA and 19:7 K:BB over 17.2 innings.

The Tigers optioned Brieske to Triple-A Toledo on Tuesday.

He was in the mix for one of the final spots in the Tigers' bullpen, but the team ultimately went with Joey Wentz and Alex Faedo. Brieske has experience both as a starter and a reliever, and it's not clear which role the club has planned for him at Toledo.

Whitlock allowed one unearned run on three hits and one walk while striking out six over six innings in Monday's exhibition game against the Rangers.

Whitlock was impressive against the first-string lineup Texas trotted out Monday. The right-hander threw 67 pitches (51 strikes) and retired nine of the final 10 batters faced. The dominant performance Monday followed a strong Grapefruit League for Whitlock, who finished spring training with a 2.49 ERA and a 22:3 K:BB over 21.2 innings. He's scheduled to start the fourth game of the season Sunday in Seattle against the Mariners.

Church was optioned to Triple-A Round Rock on Monday, Michael Bier of Foul Territory reports.

Church appeared to be on track to make the big-league roster given his 2.53 ERA and 0.94 WHIP across 10.2 innings during spring training, but the club announced Monday that he's headed for the minor leagues. The right-hander's impressive spring is unlikely to go unnoticed, and he should factor into the bullpen mix at some point this year.

Weissert will make the 2024 Opening Day roster, Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com reports.

Weissert was in danger of being left off the roster as long as Brennan Bernardino was projected to begin the year in the bullpen, but skipper Alex Cora stated Tuesday that Weissert had made the team over Bernardino, who was optioned to Triple-A Worcester. Weissert appeared in 17 games a season ago for the Yankees, posting a 4.05 ERA and 1.45 WHIP with 22 punchouts across 20 innings.

Alexander, who's been sidelined with a left rib stress reaction, will progress to playing catch as his next step when he's ready, Jason Burke of SI.com reports.

The southpaw was diagnosed in mid-March and didn't receive an initial recovery timetable, so Monday's report provides only marginally more information. Alexander is eventually expected to serve as a veteran left-handed presence in the sixth and seventh innings for the Athletics, acting as a bridge to the likes of Zach Jackson, Dany Jimenez and Mason Miller in the eighth and ninth frames.

Bernardino was optioned to Triple-A Worcester on Monday, Chris Cotillo of The Springfield Republican reports.

Bernardino was thought to be a sure thing to begin the season with the big-league squad after cruising to a 3.20 ERA and 1.30 WHIP with a 58:18 K:BB over 50.2 frames a season ago for the Red Sox. He also failed to surrender an earned run over 6.2 innings of Grapefruit League action this spring. While this is certainly a surprising move by Boston, the southpaw should be a candidate for a promotion at some point this year.

Banks will be a member of the White Sox's bullpen to begin the regular season, Daryl Van Schouwen of the Chicago Sun-Times reports.

Banks has been a key contributor out of the team's bullpen for the last two seasons, throwing a combined 124 innings. He hasn't been used in high-leverage roles, however, as he has just one career save and two career holds. Even so, manager Pedro Grifol has stated that the White Sox will not enter the season with a defined closer, so Banks could enter the picture if he starts the season well.