MLB Player News

Whalen was sent to Triple-A Tacoma on Monday, Shannon Drayer of 710 ESPN Seattle reports.

Whalen was competing for an Opening Day rotation spot but appears to have lost out to Marco Gonzales and Ariel Miranda. He'll return to Tacoma, where he posted a 6.58 ERA in 10 starts last season. He could be back with the Mariners later this season if injuries create a need in the rotation.

Fulmer is working on a slower slider with more break this spring, MLive.com reports.

Fulmer threw his slider 21.3 percent of the time last season, and it graded out fairly well. This year's version is in the mid-80s rather than hovering around 90, though it has more break. Both velocity and break are important for the pitch, so it's not clear yet whether the arsenal change will have the desired effect for Fulmer. His ERA was a solid 3.83 last year, though his xFIP was a mediocre 4.24 and his strikeout rate dropped to 16.9 percent. It's possible the re-worked slider could help him get back some strikeouts, which would make him more valuable to fantasy owners.

Alvarado's spring ERA is down to 1.13 ERA over eight outings after he fired a scoreless eighth inning in Sunday's 10-5 Grapefruit League win over the Tigers. He also recorded a strikeout.

He was solid in a bullpen role during his 2017 rookie campaign (3.64 ERA, 1.11 WHIP, 29:9 K:BB over 29.7 innings), but he's taken it up a notch this spring, allowing only three hits over eight scoreless frames while also racking up 10 whiffs. Alvarado projects as a valuable left-handed option for manager Kevin Cash in 2018, and his swing-and-miss upside could afford him plenty of high-leverage, late-inning opportunities.

Whalen (0-2) allowed nine runs (eight earned) on eight hits, three walks and a hit batsman over two innings in Sunday's 16-3 Cactus League loss to the Indians. He struck out two.

He even threw a pair of throwing errors in for good measure, leading to a disastrous outing that may have put a significant dent into his rotation hopes. Whalen has been competing with southpaw Ariel Miranda for the fifth spot, and prior to Sunday, he'd been making a formidable case. The 24-year-old right-hander had come into his outing against the Indians with a sparkling 1.38 ERA over four outings, but the pristine curveball he'd often demonstrated this spring was nowhere to be found, Greg Johns of MLB.com reports. "Whalen has been so good all camp," manager Scott Servais said. "It was disappointing today, he didn't have his command. His last time out he had an awesome curveball and he didn't go to it enough today. It does happen and is part of the process. Understanding where he came from to where he's at right now, he's still had a really good camp."

Norris could start the season in the Tigers' rotation as Mike Fiers battles back issues, Anthony Fenech of the Detroit Free Press reports.

Fiers' back issues appear to be minor, though he could open the season on the disabled list, giving Norris the opportunity to make at least a start or two. Norris isn't likely to claim the job full-time right away, but with a strong cameo and solid performances at the Triple-A level could end up in the rotation before long. He struggled to a 5.31 ERA last season in 101.2 innings, but the veteran Fiers posted a 5.22 ERA himself and is hardly an insurmountable obstacle.

Pomeranz (forearm) will throw three minor-league innings Friday, Alex Speier of The Boston Globe reports.

Pomeranz is working his way back from forearm tightness suffered in a March 2 Grapefruit League game. He threw two innings in a simulated game on Sunday without issue. The timeline is tight for him to be ready by Opening Day, and it remains unclear whether he'll miss a turn or two in the rotation.

Pagan's spring ERA is down to 1.50 following a Saturday appearance in a Cactus League loss to a Mariners split squad in which he fired a perfect eighth inning and recorded one strikeout.

Dealt to the Athletics from Seattle last November, Pagan made some of his former teammates the latest victims in what has been a dominant spring. The 26-year-old right-hander generated a solid 3.22 ERA, 0.93 WHIP and 56:8 K:BB across 50.3 innings with the Mariners in 2017. Considering the Athletics' bullpen experienced its fair share of instability last season and nevertheless sports multiple holdovers, Pagan could very well carve out a steady eighth-inning role as a setup option to closer Blake Treinen.

Lawrence, a non-roster invitee trying to secure the final bullpen spot, helped his cause by throwing four scoreless innings in which he only allowed two hits and struck out four during a Saturday Cactus League split-squad win over the Athletics.

In the absence of an open rotation spot, the 30-year-old is looked at as a long reliever, the next closest-fitting role considering he's proven capable of eating up innings while compiling 168 starts over an extensive minor-league career that dates back to 2010. Lawrence also averaged over two innings per his 27 appearances last season with the Blue Jays and Mariners, the first in which he'd seen any regular-season major-league action. Although he produced an unsightly 6.34 ERA and 1.84 WHIP over 55.3 frames in 2017, he's been dominant over five spring outings, generating an 0.75 ERA across 12 innings.

Manaea, who recorded three strikeouts and allowed an earned run on four hits and three walks over 4.2 innings in a Saturday 4-1 Cactus League loss to the Mariners, came away impressed with debuting backstop Jonathan Lucroy, Jane Lee of MLB.com reports. "He's very well prepared," Manaea said, "and he definitely takes charge and controls the entire diamond. Having a guy like that, especially with the time and knowledge that he has, is huge."

Manaea had the distinction of being the first Athletics hurler to kick the proverbial tires on Lucroy, who helped the left-hander whittle his spring ERA down to 2.53 with some savvy on-the-fly adjustments and solid overall game management. Given Jharel Cotton's season-ending elbow injury, Manaea's importance to the makeshift starting rotation increases even further. His solid spring offers reason for optimism, as do the results generated during his initial opportunity to work with his new backstop.

Pruitt's versatility, which the Rays will count on heavily this season, was underscored by his strong performance against the Red Sox in a Saturday Grapefruit League start, Bill Chastain of MLB.com reports.

He fired a trio of scoreless innings in which he only gave up two hits and recorded a pair of strikeouts, lowering his spring ERA to a solid 2.08 in the process. Pruitt demonstrated his ability to start, work in long relief, or get some timely outs in shorter stints last season, and with manager Kevin Cash's plans to utilize his relievers in some potentially unusual capacities in 2018, that versatility figures to only up Pruitt's value. Moreover, his penchant for getting ahead of hitters -- he threw first-pitch strikes to 66 percent of batters last season -- combined with a diversified repertoire that includes a fastball, curveball, slider and changeup give him an opportunity to effectively carry out any number of roles he may be tasked with.