MLB Player News

Stephan will be shut down for three weeks with a deep bone bruise in his right elbow, Zack Meisel of The Athletic reports.

Stephan's elbow is structurally sound, but the Guardians will shelve the reliever for a while to let him recover from the bone bruise. Considering that Opening Day is just over four weeks away, Stephan undoubtedly will require a stay on the injured list. The 28-year-old has been a key setup man for Cleveland, posting a 3.73 ERA and 27.5 percent strikeout rate over the last three seasons.

Stephenson has been dealing with right shoulder soreness but will play catch Wednesday, Jeff Fletcher of The Orange County Register reports.

Stephenson has yet to make a Cactus League appearance, and Fletcher's report helps clarify why the veteran reliever hasn't debuted. It's certainly a good sign that he'll resume throwing Wednesday, but he'll need to check off additional boxes before being cleared for spring games. Assuming he's fully healthy for Opening Day, Stephenson is slated for a setup role with the Angels ahead of closer Carlos Estevez.

Angels manager Ron Washington recently confirmed that Estevez will be the team's closer, Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com reports.

General manager Perry Minasian said in January following the signing of Robert Stephenson that he still viewed Estevez as the favorite to serve as the club's closer, and Washington has now given his stamp of approval. Estevez had a dominant first half in 2023, which netted him an All-Star nod before he regressed to a 6.59 ERA in the second half. Stephenson -- who signed a three-year, $33 million contract -- will be a threat to overtake Estevez after his dominant run with the Rays last season. Worth noting, though, is that Stephenson is dealing with a bit of shoulder soreness.

Englert (hip) is scheduled to appear in relief in Wednesday's Grapefruit League game against the Pirates, Chris McCosky of The Detroit News reports.

After he was blasted for nine earned runs in 2.1 innings of long relief July 22 against the Padres, Englert never appeared again for the Tigers last season. He was placed on the injured list two days later with a left hip tightness, and though he was sent out on a rehab assignment at Triple-A Toledo in September, he was ultimately shut down again. Englert appears to be healthy again after having the offseason to recover from the hip issue, but he'll need a strong showing in spring training to secure a spot in the Tigers' Opening Day bullpen. He'll be making his second Grapefruit League appearance Wednesday after he surrendered three earned runs on three hits -- all home runs -- in two innings this past Saturday against the Yankees.

Brash (elbow) could be sidelined for a significant period of time, perhaps for the entire season, Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times reports.

Brash and the Mariners haven't revealed where exactly the reliever is hurting, but Divish notes that the righty was looking down at his elbow while discussing the injury. Divish also hears from sources that the injury could potentially be long term and, at the very least, is likely to result in an injured list stint to begin the season. Brash struck out 107 batters over 70.2 innings last season and his potential loss would be a devastating blow to Seattle's bullpen.

Walter struck out two over two hitless and scoreless innings in Tuesday's spring game against St. Louis.

Walter was impressive in his Grapefruit League debut, getting all six batters out, with one ball leaving the infield. He followed starter Kutter Crawford, pitching the third and fourth innings. The left-handed Walter had a rough introduction to the majors in 2023, charged with 16 earned runs on 32 hits and seven walks over 23 innings. That experience shaped his offseason preparations, per Peter Abraham of The Boston Globe. "I was able to reflect on it and see why I wasn't successful," Walter said. "I'm so used to being successful in the minor leagues. Making adjustments on the fly is something I need to improve on. I focused on attacking with all my pitches and throwing strikes. I was too consumed with velocity instead of doing what I do best." The 27-year-old Walter is expected to be part of the rotation at Triple-A Worcester to open the 2024 season.

Crochet threw 34 pitches and completed 1.2 innings in his Cactus League debut against the Dodgers on Tuesday, Daryl Van Schouwen of the Chicago Sun-Times reports.

Crochet returned from Tommy John surgery early last season, but he also faced shoulder trouble that limited him to only 25 total innings combined between the majors and minors. Despite the limited workload, he's attempting to land a role in the White Sox's rotation to begin the season. He made a good impression in his first spring outing, retiring Mookie Betts, Shohei Ohtani and Freddie Freeman to begin the game. Crochet also touched 99 mph and 100 mph with his fastball, a good sign that his arm is back to full strength.

Scholtens was placed on the 60-day injured list Tuesday with a torn UCL in his right elbow.

Scholtens finished last season on the injured list with a calf strain and will begin the 2024 campaign in the same fashion with a much more serious injury. The 29-year-old is scheduled to undergo surgery Friday, per LaMond Pope of the Chicago Tribune, and is poised to miss the entirety of the 2024 season.

Horn was acquired by the White Sox from the Cubs on Tuesday in exchange for Matthew Thompson, Ken Rosenthal and Sahadev Sharma of The Athletic report.

The trade clears up space on the Cubs' 40-man roster for the signing of Cody Bellinger, which will soon be made official. Horn made 39 relief appearances at Triple-A Iowa last season and had a 4.58 ERA, 1.53 WHIP and 59:29 K:BB across 53 innings.

Hernandez (shoulder) received a cortisone injection Tuesday and has been shut down from throwing, Anne Rogers of MLB.com reports.

The right-hander threw a bullpen session Saturday, but his sore right shoulder didn't respond well after resting for the previous two weeks. It's unclear when Hernandez will resume throwing, but his availability for Opening Day is now very much in question.