MLB Player News

The Mets reassigned Burdi to minor-league camp Tuesday.

Burdi made four appearances at the big-league level with Boston in 2025, but he was outrighted off the 40-man roster in August and then joined the Mets on a minor-league deal this offseason. The 33-year-old righty was given the chance to compete for a spot in the Mets' Opening Day bullpen during spring training, but he was cut after yielding two runs in two innings in his two Grapefruit League appearances. Expect Burdi to report to Triple-A Syracuse to begin the season.

Junk made his first start of the spring Monday, giving up four runs on four hits and two walks over two-plus innings in a Grapefruit League game against the Blue Jays. He struck out two.

It was far from a clean outing, but the important thing was Junk's usage, as he got stretched out to 49 pitches (24 strikes) while completing three up-and-downs. Per Christina DeNicola of MLB.com, Junk is still in the mix for the Marlins' fifth starter job, as Braxton Garrett may need a bit more time to fully complete his recovery from December 2024 elbow surgery. If Junk doesn't begin the season in the rotation, he's still expected to fill a long-relief role, as he's out of minor-league options.

The Pirates reassigned Darrell-Hicks to minor-league camp on Tuesday.

Darrell-Hicks reached the majors for the first time in 2025, making seven relief appearances between the Angels and Pirates while logging a 7.45 ERA and 1.45 WHIP over 9.2 innings. After being outrighted off the Pirates' 40-man roster in November, Darrell-Hicks joined Pittsburgh for big-league spring training but was unable to secure a spot on the Opening Day bullpen. He's poised to begin the season at Triple-A Indianapolis.

Kimbrel is in the running the final spot in the Mets' Opening Day bullpen, Tim Britton and Will Sammon of The Athletic report.

Left-hander Bryan Hudson is also getting a long look, with Austin Warren and Richard Lovelady in the mix as well. Kimbrel is a shadow of the dominant closer he was a decade ago, but the 37-year-old righty has impressed Mets manager Carlos Mendoza with the late life on his fastball, which sits around 93 mph these days. "He's doing what he is supposed to be doing," Mendoza said Monday. Kimbrel does have a 2.25 ERA through four spring innings, but it comes with a 2:4 K:BB. If he does make the 26-man roster, he would have a base salary of $2.5 million.

Hudson may be the favorite to claim the final spot in the Mets' Opening Day bullpen, Tim Britton and Will Sammon of The Athletic report.

Craig Kimbrel appears to be his biggest competitor for the job, with Austin Warren and Richard Lovelady also in the mix. Hudson struggled in 2025 between the Brewers and White Sox, in both the majors and at Triple-A, but the 28-year-old southpaw blamed some tinkering with his mechanics and pitch mix that went awry. "I was working on some delivery stuff and changing some things I really shouldn't change," Hudson said Monday. "So we're getting back to the basics this year to get back after it." In 2024 with Milwaukee, when his cutter was a bigger part of his arsenal, he posted a 1.73 ERA, 0.72 WHIP and 62:17 K:BB over 62.1 innings.

Waguespack was reassigned to minor-league camp Monday, Adam McCalvy of MLB.com reports.

The Brewers signed Waguespack to a minor-league deal over the offseason and offered him an invitation to big-league camp, but he was unable to stand out enough to earn an Opening Day roster spot. He'll report to minor-league camp and projects to begin the 2026 season at Triple-A Nashville.

Irvin was reassigned to minor-league camp Monday, Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic reports.

Irvin signed a minor-league pact with the Dodgers in February and was invited to major-league spring training, but he struggled across four appearances. The 32-year-old posted a 9.00 ERA and 1.75 WHIP with four strikeouts across eight innings. Irvin will report to minor-league camp and appears set to begin the 2026 season at Triple-A Oklahoma City.

Kerkering (hamstring) is slated to make an appearance Tuesday in a minor-league game on the back fields of camp, Lochlahn March of The Philadelphia Inquirer reports.

Kerkering is no worse for the wear after tossing a live batting practice session over the weekend, so he'll be available to pitch for the first time in spring training, albeit in a controlled setting. The hard-throwing right-hander has been slowed by a Grade 1 right hamstring strain throughout the spring, but he should be able to avoid a stint on the injured list to begin the season if he's able to get a couple of appearances under his belt during the final week of camp.

Manager Carlos Mendoza said Monday that as long as Brazoban finishes spring training healthy, he'll be part of the Mets' Opening Day roster, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com reports.

Brazoban has minor-league options left, which led DiComo to wonder earlier Monday if Brazoban might not make the team's Opening Day roster. The 36-year-old Brazoban didn't make his MLB debut until 2022 at 32 years old. He pitched in 52 regular-season games for the Mets last season, recording a 3.57 ERA, 1.24 WHIP and 57:27 K:BB across 63 innings.

Graterol (shoulder) was spotted playing catch out to about 90 feet Monday, Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic reports.

Graterol hasn't been shut down from throwing during spring training, but he's not on track to pitch in any Cactus League games and is slated to open the season on the injured list while he's struggled to regain velocity since undergoing surgery on his right shoulder in November 2024. The right-hander had previously been throwing off a mound earlier in the camp before the Dodgers elected to ramp him up more slowly when his velocity wasn't where the team expected it to be. Graterol is without a definitive timeline to resume throwing bullpen sessions, and the Dodgers seemingly aren't counting on him to handle a significant relief role in 2026.