MLB Player News

Manaea was dominant Saturday against Triple-A Nashville, striking out 11 in 6.2 innings, MiLB.com reports. He outdueled fellow prospect Julio Urias in the outing.

A groin injury slowed Manaea down towards the end of spring training, but he's since turned in two good Triple-A starts. Health permitting, we'll see Manaea up in Oakland later this season.

Jerez allowed one run on four hits and two walks while striking out two in 2.2 innings for Double-A Portland on Saturday.

Three of Jerez's four appearances have lasted at least two innings, so the organization is giving the outfielder-turned-pitcher a lot of work to grow accustomed to his new role. He's been touched up a bit, but that can happen when pitching primarily in the northeast region of the country in April. The Red Sox are intrigued by Jerez, but understand he's raw at this point. We expect him to chill (literally) in Portland to hone his repertoire with a possible promotion to Triple-A Pawtucket later in the season, depending on how he develops.

Johnson allowed two runs on five hits and two walks while striking out five in 5.1 innings to pick up his first win of the season for Triple-A Pawtucket on Saturday.

Johnson was touched up for three hits and two runs in the first inning, but settled in and, along with three relievers, kept Buffalo off the scoreboard the rest of the way. The Red Sox are limiting him early -- 76 pitches in his first start, 85 on Saturday -- because he didn't a get full allotment of appearances during spring training due to a toe injury. The left-hander is not first in line should Boston need to dip down to Pawtucket for a starter, but his floor is higher than Henry Owens or Roenis Elias. Moreover, not doing any damage could be the lead requirement for Boston in a pinch.

Kimbrel notched his fourth save while striking out the side in a perfect ninth inning during Saturday's 4-2 victory over the Blue Jays.

The hard-throwing closer frustrated the Blue Jays for the second straight night, needing only 18 pitches to mow down the impressive trio of Jose Bautista, Edwin Encarnacion and Troy Tulowitzki. Save for a disastrous Apr. 11 outing versus the Orioles, Kimbrel has been everything the Red Sox could have hoped for after acquiring him in a November trade with the Padres. He's 4-for-4 in save opportunities, and has fanned seven batters over his last three innings of work.

McHugh (1-2) allowed four runs on 10 hits while striking out seven over 5.1 innings, but took the loss Saturday against the Tigers.

McHugh was spotted to a three-run lead in the first inning, and after allowing a two-run homer to Jarrod Saltalamacchia in the sixth inning, he lost his chance for the victory. He's now struggled in two of his three starts, and his ERA sits at 6.39 with a 1.89 WHIP. He'll make his next start Friday against the Red Sox.

Pressly (1-0) pitched a scoreless eighth inning for his first victory of the season in Saturday's 6-4 win over the Angels.

The 27-year-old righty pitched a clean inning for the first time since throwing two no-hit frames on Opening Day versus the Orioles. Pressly secured a bullpen job in spring training and has been largely effective, as he's yet to surrender an earned run despite his propensity for putting at least one runner on base in all but two games this season. He was highly efficient Saturday, needing only nine pitches to dispose of the Angels in the eighth. After issuing three free passes over his first four appearances, Pressly has now encouragingly gone three straight games without a walk.

Smith (forearm) threw a 35-pitch bullpen session Saturday, WEEI.com reports.

Red Sox manager John Farrell said Smith came through the session fine and is scheduled for three outings this coming week. Simulated games on Tuesday and Thursday potentially followed by a game next weekend in extended spring training.

Norris (back) will head to Triple-A Toledo for his next rehab start, Chris McCosky of the Detroit News reports.

He allowed two runs on seven hits and zero walks while striking out three over four innings in a rehab start Saturday with High-A Lakeland, his second rehab outing with that affiliate. Now that he will be at the highest level of the Tigers' farm system, he could be one or two rehab outings away from rejoining the big league club. With Shane Greene getting off to a good start to the season, Mike Pelfrey looks like the best bet to get bumped from the rotation when Norris is activated. In deeper leagues, Norris is worth grabbing now, as he could be up in late April or early May.

Martinez was recalled from Triple-A Round Rock prior to Saturday's game.

He was working as a starter at Round Rock, posting a 3.38 ERA in two starts, but should serve as an innings eater out of the bullpen for the Rangers. Martinez has his uses, but missing bats is not a big part of his game, so he offers very little fantasy value pitching in low-leverage spots.

Shirley picked up his first win of the season in Triple-A Fresno's 6-0 victory over Salt Lake on Wednesday. He threw five scoreless innings, giving up three hits and a walk while striking out four.

Last year with Triple-A Fresno, Shirley tallied a 3.07 ERA over 41 innings to go along with 37 strikeouts. He also holds a stellar 2.63 ERA over his 311 career innings in the minors. If the 27-year-old can prove once again at Triple-A Fresno that his great stat-line is no fluke, he'll be a great candidate for a promotion to the big leagues before season's end.