MLB Player News

Mena was optioned to Triple-A Reno on Sunday.

Diamondbacks GM Mike Hazen said in early February that Mena is "not a finished product" and was likely to begin the campaign at Triple-A, so this move was to be expected. The 21-year-old spent most of 2023 at Double-A Birmingham and had a 4.66 ERA and 1.35 WHIP over 114 innings, but he showcased his strikeout potential with a 10.7 K/9.

The Rangers optioned Corniell to Double-A Frisco on Sunday, Jeff Wilson of RangersToday.com reports.

Corniell will get his first taste of the Double-A level to begin the 2024 campaign after he split the 2023 season between Single-A Down East and High-A Hickory. Over 101.2 innings between the two affiliates, Corniell posted a 2.92 ERA, 0.99 WHIP and 119:31 K:BB.

The Rangers optioned Kelly to Triple-A Round Rock on Sunday, Jeff Wilson of RangersToday.com reports.

Texas thought enough of Kelly this winter to protect him from the Rule 5 Draft and add him to the 40-man roster, but the 24-year-old lefty still needs more developmental time in the minors. He covered 59.1 innings between Round Rock and Double-A Frisco in 2023 but saw the majority of his action with the latter affiliate, logging a 2.22 ERA, 1.26 WHIP and 72:26 K:BB in 52.2 frames out of the bullpen.

Winn was optioned to Triple-A Round Rock on Sunday.

Winn surrendered eight runs over 7.1 frames in four outings during spring training, essentially eliminating his longshot chance of making Texas' Opening Day roster. The 24-year-old struggled at Round Rock last season with a 7.22 ERA and 97:79 K:BB over 101 innings, and he'll likely need better performance in 2024 to have a real chance at making his MLB debut.

Guardians manager Stephen Vogt said that Williams isn't available to pitch in Sunday's Cactus League game against the Reds after recently experiencing some discomfort in his right elbow, Mandy Bell of MLB.com reports.

Vogt didn't seem overly worried about the young right-hander, who was scratched out of an "abundance of caution" and should resume throwing in a few days. Williams, who has struck out nine batters over 4.2 innings this spring, apparently sustained the injury while throwing weighted balls in a recent workout.

Cabrera suffered an apparent injury while warming up for Sunday's Grapefruit League outing against the Cardinals and was scratched from the start, Jordan McPherson of the Miami Herald reports.

The specifics of the situation remain unclear, but it's a concerning development as Cabrera attempts to lock down a spot at the back end of Miami's rotation. The 25-year-old's status should be updated soon as he's evaluated.

Cubs manager Craig Counsell said Sunday that Taillon's availability for Opening Day is in jeopardy with the right-hander having shown little improvement in his recovery from a lower back injury since being scratched ahead of Saturday's scheduled Cactus League start against the Rockies, Sahadev Sharma of The Athletic reports.

While Counsell noted that the Cubs aren't yet concerned about Taillon potentially facing a long-term absence, the 32-year-old will be sent in for further testing as the organization looks to get a clearer picture of the injury. Taillon has yet to pitch in a Cactus League game this spring, but he hadn't been shut down from activity prior to being scratched Saturday, as he had been building up in simulated games. However, if Taillon isn't able to quickly move past the back issue within the next week, a stint on the injured list to begin the season would become an increasingly likely outcome. If Taillon is on the shelf at the start of the season, the Cubs could open up a rotation spot for one of Javier Assad, Drew Smyly or Hayden Wesneski.

After logging two scoreless innings with a strikeout in Saturday's Grapefruit League game against the Pirates, Wentz now has a 1.29 ERA across four spring appearances.

Wentz has been scored upon only once in his four outings, and he's also struck out seven batters across seven innings of work. The lefty struggled mightily as a starter for the Tigers in 2023, but so far, he looks comfortable in a relief role. If his stuff plays up a bit out of the bullpen all year, Wentz may find some success as a reliever, though that's unlikely to translate to much fantasy value.

Manning allowed four earned runs on three hits and two walks across three innings in Saturday's Grapefruit League game against the Pirates. He struck out five.

Manning was tagged for three home runs, including a two-run blast by Jake Lamb in the first inning. The five strikeouts are encouraging, but Manning now has a subpar 5.63 ERA across three starts this spring. The righty is jockeying for a spot at the back of Detroit's rotation, with Reese Olson looking like his primary competition at this point. Manning could have some fantasy value in the right matchups if he's starting, though he's a risky proposition after dealing with injuries throughout his MLB career so far.

Abbott allowed three runs on seven hits and one walk while striking out five over three innings in Saturday's spring start against the Diamondbacks.

Abbott was supposed to pitch four innings, but manager David Bell pulled him after the pitcher allowed the first batter to reach base in the fourth, according to Charlie Goldsmith of the Cincinnati Enquirer. The left-hander had a second consecutive subpar Cactus League start and overall has given up seven runs and 14 hits over eight spring innings, although that comes with a more reassuring 8:1 K:BB. Despite the results, Bell did not sound worried. "He's still working toward being really sharp like we know he can be," the manager said. "He's going through that normal process in spring training. He came in looking really good and he'll get back there by the end of camp." Abbott added that he's been focusing on inside fastballs to righties during camp and used the word "bad" to describe the execution of those inside fastballs Saturday. He's still in the mix for a rotation spot, but that likely depends on the progress Nick Lodolo (lower leg) makes.