MLB Player News

Smith has been out since last Sunday due to back spasms, Tim Britton of the Providence Journal reports.

Britton also reports that Smith said he felt fine yesterday and has already thrown a bullpen session but will need another before he can appear in a spring training game. The 26-year-old hasn't appeared in a game in Florida yet. If he has to miss any time to start the season, Koji Uehara will likely take a bigger share of setup duties.

Beck was optioned to Triple-A Charlotte on Friday, the Chicago Sun-Times' Daryl Van Schouwen reports.

The 25-year-old righty was not in serious competition for a rotation spot out of camp, so it makes sense to re-assign him so that the other starters can get more work in. Beck should offer organizational rotation depth this season, but he will be behind at least Erik Johnson in the pecking order.

Layne has been working on pitches to become more effective against right-handed batters, the Providence Journal reports. "For me, either the ability to spin a bigger breaking ball or to have a changeup would benefit me. I'm doing both of them now in spring training. Whatever turns out being the better pitch is what I'm going to go with," said Layne.

Layne, a south-paw, has been death on left-handers, whom he held to a .148 average and .170 slugging percentage last season. His low-90s fastball and slider have been sufficient against same-siders, but right-handed hitters batted .322 and slugged .517 against him. Layne mowed down all three right-handers faced in Thursday's spring game, but he's still largely viewed as a lefty-specialist. The projected depth of Boston's bullpen should limit the number of times Layne is needed to face a right-handed batter in a high-leverage situation.

Manaea was removed from Thursday's game after taking a groundball off his hand, but is fine and was actually removed due to his pitch count, John Hickey of the Bay Area News Group reports.

Manaea was pulled after giving up a hit, two walks, and an earned run to go with a strikeout over 2.2 innings. It's good to hear that the event isn't affecting him at all, so now he can continue gaining valuable experience against major league hitters.

Hultzen (shoulder) is "going to be down for a while," per manager Scott Servais, Greg Johns of MLB.com reports.

Hultzen suffered a setback earlier in the week, and it now appears the situation could be a bit more severe than initially anticipated. Servais noted that the team is still considering its options with regard to Hultzen, but for now it seems unlikely that Hultzen will be taking the mound in a spring game any time soon.

Kelly admitted his mechanics were off while making his second spring start Wednesday, the Boston Herald reports. He allowed one run on three hits (all singles) and two walks while striking out three in 2.1 innings.

The starters should be able to get through three innings in their second start, so from that standpoint, it wasn't a good outing. Kelly said he was going too slow in the windup and then too quickly from the stretch, something that pitching coach Carl Willis pointed out to him. He's still in line to be Boston's fifth starter.

Armstrong (back) is scheduled to throw off of a mound Wednesday, Jordan Bastian of MLB.com reports.

Armstrong had been shut down for a few days due to tightness in his right lat, but if all goes well with Wednesday's mound session, he said he could return to game action as soon as Sunday or Monday.

Hultzen is dealing with soreness in his throwing shoulder and will be shut down for a few days, MLB.com's Greg Johns reports.

Hultzen suffered what was termed "a little setback," but this is concerning given that his 2015 season came to a close due to a left shoulder injury. It's not clear when he will be ready to pitch next, but expect the Mariners to release an update on his status at some point in the next few days.

Armstrong is dealing with tightness in his right lat and will sit out a few days, Jordan Bastian of MLB.com reports.

The issue doesn't appear to be too serious, so he should head back to action soon. Armstrong pitched well last season with the major league club last season, so he's got a good chance to make the Indians roster again in 2016. However, he'll have to stay healthy in order to prove himself to the Cleveland brass and ensure himself that spot.

Zych, who is competing for a bullpen job, blew a two-run lead in the seventh inning Saturday in a spring training loss to the Angels.

Zych entered in a tough spot, with one out and the bases loaded. Unfortunately, he gave up a pair of two-run doubles before ending the inning. Zych is an interesting potential late-game reliever. He has a 96 mph fastball and an effective slider he commands for strikes. He likely will land the last right-handed spot in the bullpen, but outings like Saturday's won't do him any favors.