MLB Player News

Saupold, who said he dealt with arm fatigue toward the end of last season, will do less between outings in an effort to stay fresh, Evan Woodbery of MLive.com reports.

Saupold gave the Tigers some good innings in 2017 and entered September with a 3.88 ERA, only to see that balloon to 4.88 by the end of the month. "I handled the workload. I think the stuff between outings killed me. I just think I threw way too much and it just caught up to me after the All-Star break," Saupold said. The 28-year-old Australian will focus on lighter work between outings this season in an effort to finish the year strong. Saupold figures to either make the MLB roster as a long reliever or head to Triple-A as a starter at the end of spring training.

Lopez allowed a run on one hit and two walks while striking out two over two innings in Thursday's game against the Reds.

Lopez overcame a shaky first inning and finished his first spring outing strong. The 24-year-old right-hander will look to build off a middling eight starts for the White Sox last year, when he posted a 4.72 ERA, permitted seven home runs over 47.2 innings and posted a career-low 5.7 K/9. Perhaps last year's experience will make him more comfortable competing against big-league hitters. Lopez will open the season in Chicago's rotation, but he has something to prove in 2018.

Manaea (back) is scheduled to make his Cactus League debut Tuesday against the Rangers, Jane Lee of MLB.com reports.

Manaea was able to throw a 30-to-35 pitch simulated game Wednesday without any problems. He was previously scratched from his scheduled start Tuesday with middle back tightness but there doesn't appear to be any real concern over his status as the calendar flips to March. Expect him to be at full health by Opening Day barring any setbacks.

Moore did not throw a cut fastball during his two scoreless innings Wednesday against the White Sox, Gerry Fraley of the Dallas Morning News reports.

The Rangers would like Moore to get away from throwing the cutter, a side-to-side pitch. The club feels he's been more effective when working up and down. The pitch tends to be really good or really bad, and the left-hander threw a lot of bad ones in San Francisco last season when opponents hit .322 with a .525 slugging percentage against Moore's cutter.

Kimbrel has left camp to be in Boston for his daughter's surgery, Jason Mastrodonato of the Boston Herald reports.

Kimbrel's daughter was born in November with a heart ailment, and this surgery will be her second. It's unknown how long Kimbrel will be away from the team.

Moore retired six of seven batters faced over two scoreless innings Wednesday against the White Sox. He allowed one hit and struck out one.

Moore is looking to bounce back from an aberrant 2017, when he lost a National League-high 15 games and posted a 5.52 ERA in 31 starts for the Giants. The Rangers traded for the left-hander, believing they'll be getting the guy that went 45-33 with a 3.91 ERA over six seasons, mostly for Tampa Bay.

Manager Kevin Cash said Yarbrough is in the mix for an Opening Day roster spot, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

Yarbrough has looked sharp in his pair of spring appearances, tossing 3.1 scoreless innings and allowing one hit and two walks while striking out three batters. While the Rays already have their four-man rotation set to open the year, Yarbrough could break camp in a relief role and potentially get a look in the starting rotation when the Rays ultimately need a fifth starter. The 26-year-old southpaw posted a respectable 3.43 ERA and 159:39 K:BB across 26 starts (157.1 innings) with Triple-A Durham last season.

Diaz spent the offseason gaining a better understanding of his delivery in an effort to reduce the mechanical issues that hampered him last season, Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times reports.

A breakout 2016 campaign had the young reliever primed to be Seattle's closer heading into the 2017. However, first-half struggles and control problems led to him being demoted from ninth-inning duties for a portion of the season. He still finished with 34 saves and a respectable 3.27 ERA, but Diaz wants to prove he's for real this season. After the tumultuous 2017 campaign, he came into camp with some throwing sessions already under his belt and a new mentality on the mound. During an early bullpen session, Diaz noted "when I missed a couple pitches, I refocused my mind and made the adjustment." Diaz is lined up to be the Mariners' closer once again, and if he can make quick adjustments like this during the regular season, he could be even more dominant in his second full big-league season.

Tate is developing a a two-seamer, Brendan Kuty of NJ.com reports.

Tate was reportedly encouraged to work on the pitch by the Yankees' analytics department, who found the two-seamer to be a good fit for the young righty based on his arm angle and spin rate. A two-seamer can help a pitcher keep the ball on the ground, though that hasn't been a problem for Tate, who put up high groundball rates of 60.5 percent and 54.1 percent in short stints with High-A Tampa and Double-A Trenton last year. Missing bats seems to be Tate's real problem, as his strikeout rates were just 19.3 percent and 16.4 percent at those two stops last year. The two-seamer isn't the most obvious fit for Tate, but a new pitch can sometimes dramatically alter a pitchers' profile, so it's worth keeping an eye on the early reports this season.

Manaea (back) thought his simulated game went well Wednesday, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

The 26-year-old lefty threw 30-to-35 pitches without issues. He was scratched from Tuesday's Cactus League start with back tightness but expects to take his turn in the rotation in a few days. It appears that he'll be fully recovered by the time the regular season begins.