MLB Player News

Pomeranz (forearm) feels he's ready to help the Red Sox out of the bullpen in the playoffs after throwing a 30-pitch session Thursday, Peter Abraham and Alex Speier of the Boston Globe reports.

Pomeranz feels he can step in right now based on his experience as a reliever as recently as last season, but Red Sox manager John Farrell has planned an inning for the left-hander before the end of the regular season to see how he looks and also evaluate him for a spot on the postseason roster.

Norris will start Friday against the Braves.

Norris will now take the mound Friday, as his scheduled Thursday start versus the Indians has been postponed. Norris has put together a solid showing for the month of September, having posted a 3.13 ERA and 1.13 WHIP over four games.

Merritt is now slated to start Friday after Thursday's game was postponed due to poor field conditions, Zack Meisel of the Cleveland Plain Dealer reports.

After a four-plus hour delay, the decision was made to postpone Thursday's game and make it up Monday, if necessary. The Indians will simply slide Merritt back to Friday rather than start Adam Plutko in the series opener against Kansas City.

Pomeranz (forearm) threw a bullpen session Thursday, Tim Britton of the Providence Journal reports.

Pomeranz said that he felt fine during Thursday's workout and that he doesn't think it'll be necessary for him to throw again over the weekend to test his forearm. Although there are no plans for Pomeranz to return to the rotation, the possibility exists that he could be a relief option for the Red Sox during the playoffs.

Kimbrel failed to convert a save opportunity Wednesday, allowing a hit and three walks while being charged with four runs and the loss in Boston's 5-3 loss to the Yankees. Despite the blown save, the Red Sox clinched the AL East when Toronto lost earlier in the evening.

The rain was falling in New York when Kimbrel entered the game, which may have contributed to his location problems -- just 13 of his 28 pitches were strikes. He was yanked in favor of Joe Kelly, who served up a grand slam to Mark Teixeira. The performance was shocking after Kimbrel had been lights-out since mid-August.

Robertson got two outs with just one pitch Wednesday against the Rays, drawing a game-ending double play for his 37th save.

That's about as easy as they come. The veteran closer has had a bit of a tough 2016, as his typically unimpeachable control has been off, but he's still put up his third consecutive season with a save total in the mid-30s. That's not to say his declining control isn't a concern looking ahead to next year, though.

Fulmer pitched 3.1 innings, allowing three runs on six hits and three walks while striking out three Indians in Wednesday's no-decision.

In his final start of the regular season, the rookie came up three innings short of qualifying for the ERA title. A rain delay interfered with Fulmer's quest as he struggled to find any sort of rhythm throughout the evening. With the team fighting for a playoff spot, manager Brad Ausmus wasn't willing to let Fulmer try to work his way through the clunky performance. There's been something about the Indians that have caused the right-hander fits this year. Against the Tribe, Fulmer owns a 6.98 ERA and 1.97 WHIP (19.1 innings), compared to a 2.38 ERA and 0.96 WHIP (136.1 innings) against the rest of the league. Either way, the 23-year-old enjoyed a fantastic first season in the big leagues.

Mengden (2-9) allowed eight runs on nine hits and a walk over three innings in a loss Tuesday to the Angels.

Mengden has now allowed six or more runs four times in 14 starts. He has been nasty at times, with 71 strikeouts in 72 innings, but he has walked 33 batters (4.1 BB/9) and simply hasn't been able to overcome the constant flow of baserunners he has allowed. His ERA climbed all the way to 6.50 as a result of the blowup.

Merritt will start Thursday's game in Detroit, MLB.com's Jordan Bastian reports.

The Indians have shaken up the rotation over the rest of the season after clinching the division Monday. It's unclear how deep Merritt will be able to go Thursday, as he hasn't started a game since Sept. 2 with Triple-A Columbus. He notched just 92 strikeouts in 143.1 innings at Triple-A this year, so he comes with minimal upside as a streaming option Thursday.

Pomeranz (forearm soreness) will not make another start during the regular season, WEEI's Rob Bradford reports.

Henry Owens will make the start Thursday, and if Pomeranz pitches again this season it will be out of the bullpen. He had not logged six innings in a start this month, although he was solid over five innings in his last start against the Rays. Pomeranz can be dropped in all single-season leagues, as it seems unlikely he will pitch again this season and he certainly won't make another start in 2016.