MLB Player News

Ort was designated for assignment by the Phillies on Monday, Matt Gelb of The Athletic reports.

Philadelphia needed to clear a spot on its 40-man roster as its contract with Whit Merrifield became official. Ort was claimed off waivers just last week and now could be on the move again. He held an ugly 6.26 ERA over 23 innings in 2023.

Manager Torey Lovullo said Ginkel (elbow) played catch Sunday with no issues, Alex Weiner of ArizonaSports.com reports.

An elbow injury apparently cropped up in early February, but the right-hander's relatively quick return to throwing is an encouraging development. It'll probably be a little while before Ginkel is cleared for game action, but at this point Lovullo expects his setup man to be ready by Opening Day.

Warren (elbow) was placed on the 60-day injured list Sunday, Maria I. Guardado of MLB.com reports.

The move to the long-term IL was an eventuality, as Warren underwent Tommy John surgery last May and isn't expected to be available until midseason. The right-hander joined the Giants on a one-year deal last week and has a 3.55 ERA in 32 big-league appearances over his career.

Hjelle is expected to function as a long reliever in 2024, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

Hjelle came up through the minors as a starter, but all 23 of his major-league appearances so far have come out of the bullpen. The right-hander is not stretching out as a starter this spring, which signals he'll be a multi-inning option out of the bullpen. That role comes with little fantasy interest, especially since it doesn't seem like manager Bob Melvin will deploy an opener as often as his predecessor, Gabe Kapler.

Matzek (elbow) feels healthy to begin the spring and is aiming to be ready for Opening Day, but an IL stint to begin the season hasn't been ruled out, Justin Toscano of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.

Atlanta has the bullpen depth to take things slowly with Matzek as he completes his recovery from Tommy John surgery, so he might end up needing a brief IL stint to allow him to finish ramping up. The 33-year-old southpaw didn't pitch at all in 2023, and his numbers declined in 2022 prior to undergoing surgery that October, but the team is hoping Matzek can return to the form that saw him post a 2.64 ERA, 1.20 WHIP and 120:47 K:BB over 92 innings in 2020-21.

Brice signed a minor-league contract with the Phillies on Sunday that includes an invitation to big-league camp, Matt Gelb of The Athletic reports.

The right-hander spent last season at Triple-A with the Twins and Diamondbacks, and he didn't see big-league action as he struggled to a 6.92 ERA over 40.1 frames in the minors. Brice will need a strong showing during spring training to have a chance of cracking Philadelphia's Opening Day roster.

The Diamondbacks placed Jameson (elbow) on the 60-day injured list Saturday, Bob Nightengale of USA Today reports.

Manager Torey Lovullo said Thursday that Jameson isn't expected back until 2025 after undergoing Tommy John surgery in September, so Jameson's move to the 60-day IL is simply procedural. Jameson's roster spot will be filled by Randal Grichuk, who signed a one-year deal with Arizona on Saturday.

Pagan won't be ready for the start of the Cactus League as he recovers from offseason sports hernia surgery, Charlie Goldsmith of The Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

Though Pagan will miss the first handful of spring training games, he has been throwing bullpen sessions during camp -- a good indication that he'll be able to return to game action sooner rather than later. Once he's able to get into a few Cactus League contests, Pagan's status for Opening Day should become clearer.

Scott will make $5.7 million in 2024 after winning his arbitration case against the Marlins on Saturday, Mark Feinsand of MLB.com reports.

After struggling in his first season with the Marlins, Scott had a fantastic 2023, posting a 2.31 ERA and 0.99 WHIP alongside a 104:24 K:BB across 78 innings. Scott's performance earned him an extra $550,000 compared to what the Marlins offered, and he will enter 2024 as the frontrunner for Miami's closer job.

Manaea worked on his changeup this offseason and also plans to incorporate a cutter into his arsenal, Will Sammon of The Athletic reports.

After a disastrous 2022 campaign with the Padres, Manaea went to Driveline two winters ago and emerged with more velocity -- he posted a career-high 93.6 mph average fastball last year with the Giants -- and a sweeper he began using in games in late May to complement his slider and change. The 32-year-old southpaw didn't get complacent this offseason, heading back to Driveline to refine his pitch mix further. Manaea was a strong fantasy asset as recently as 2021 with the A's, posting a 3.91 ERA and striking out 194 batters in 179.1 innings, and he's at least put in the work to try and regain that form.