MLB Player News
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Spencer Bivens RP | SF
Giants' Spencer Bivens: Relegated to Sacramento
The Giants optioned Bivens to Triple-A Sacramento on Tuesday, Shayna Rubin of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.
Bivens logged a 4.00 ERA and 1.33 WHIP over 81 innings last year while spending the entire year with San Francisco, but he'll be sent back to Triple-A to kick off the 2026 campaign. The 31-year-old boasts a 3.68 ERA in his MLB career and allowed just four earned runs in 10.1 Cactus League innings, so he'll likely be one of the first relievers called up whenever the Giants need a fresh bullpen arm.
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Tristan Beck RP | SF
Giants' Tristan Beck: Optioned to Triple-A
The Giants optioned Beck to Triple-A Sacramento on Tuesday, Shayna Rubin of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.
Beck made 31 appearances with the Giants last season, during which he recorded a 4.61 ERA and 1.11 WHIP over 56.2 innings, but he'll head back to the minors to begin the regular season. The 29-year-old logged a 2.59 ERA in 31.1 Triple-A frames last year, and he could be welcomed back into San Francisco's bullpen if he returns to that level of production.
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Matt Gage RP | SF
Giants' Matt Gage: Earns hold in exhibition
Gage picked up a hold in Monday's 10-2 exhibition victory over Sultanes de Monterrey, throwing one scoreless inning.
Gage forced two groundouts and a flyout in San Francisco's penultimate spring game, throwing nine of his 13 pitches for strikes. The left-hander is in contention for a spot on the Opening Day roster ahead of Wednesday's game against the Yankees. Over seven Cactus League outings, he allowed two earned runs on three hits, including one home run, while striking out nine in 6.1 innings.
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Tristan Beck RP | SF
Giants' Tristan Beck: Picks up win in exhibition
Beck picked up the win in Monday's 10-2 exhibition victory over Sultanes de Monterrey, striking out two across one scoreless inning.
Beck entered in the third inning and threw nine of his 13 pitches for strikes in San Francisco's penultimate spring game. The right-hander is a candidate to begin the season in the bullpen, and the Giants have one more exhibition game against the Sultanes before Wednesday's Opening Day matchup against the Yankees. Beck appeared in 31 outings (one start) last season, recording a 4.61 ERA, 1.11 WHIP and 41:16 K:BB while allowing seven long balls across 56.2 innings.
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Reynaldo Lopez RP | ATL
Braves' Reynaldo Lopez: Velocity up after mechanical tweak
Lopez's velocity returned in a bullpen session Tuesday following a mechanical adjustment, Ken Sugiura of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.
Lopez pointed to mechanical problems as the reason he averaged just 89.2 mph with his four-seamer in his final Grapefruit League start against the Twins. It appears he's fixed the issue and regained some pep on the fastball, though it's unclear just how much harder Lopez was throwing in Tuesday's bullpen session. The righty averaged 95.5 mph with his four-seamer during his last full season in 2024, and it would be a big ask for him to get back to that level after shoulder surgery. Lopez is scheduled to make his season debut Saturday against the Royals, and fantasy managers should keep a close eye on his radar-gun readings in that outing.
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Joel Payamps RP | ATL
Braves' Joel Payamps: Appears ticketed for middle relief
Payamps gave up a hit over two scoreless innings of relief in Monday's Grapefruit League game against the Pirates. He struck out two without walking a batter.
The right-hander has had a strong spring, posting a 0.00 ERA and 7:1 K:BB over 6.2 innings. Payamps fell apart in 2025 for the Brewers before getting waived late in the season and winding up in Atlanta, but over the two prior seasons he'd recorded a 2.78 ERA, 1.01 WHIP and 9.4 K/9 in 129.2 innings. He'll try to regain that form while beginning the 2026 campaign in a middle-relief role for Atlanta.
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Victor Vodnik RP | COL
Rockies' Victor Vodnik: Favorite to close for Rockies
Vodnik struck out the only batter he faced to notch a save in Monday's exhibition game against the Tigers.
Vodnik struggled in Cactus League action, coughing up eight runs on 11 hits with a 5:5 K:BB over 4.2 innings. However, Rockies manager Warren Schaeffer indicated Monday that Vodnik could be first in line to serve as closer, noting of the 26-year-old's save that "we're gonna see a lot of that this year late in the game," per Steve Stockmar of MLB.com. Juan Mejia also looms as a late-inning option for Colorado, but 2025 saves leader Seth Halvorsen is not expected to make the Opening Day roster. Vodnik notched 10 saves for the Rockies last season, posting a 3.02 ERA and 49:26 K:BB over 50.2 frames along the way. While Vodnik looks like the favorite to close games in Colorado, it's a bullpen situation fantasy managers should probably avoid.
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Kevin Ginkel RP | ARI
Diamondbacks' Kevin Ginkel: Role clarified
Ginkel will be one of two right-handed relievers that will be counted on to get lefty hitters out, Michael Reynolds of MLB.com reports. Juan Morillo is the other.
As it stands a few days before Opening Day, the Diamondbacks bullpen is made up of all right-handers. As such, Ginkel and Morillo are charged with getting tough lefties out. Ginkel's career splits are neutral (.312 OBP vs. RHH, .311 vs. LHH), but he fared better against lefties than righties in 2025, when he had a 90 OPS+ against them compared to 137 OPS+ when facing righties. Being designated to such a role, in which he could be needed for a high-leverage situation in the seventh or eighth innings, could impact his save opportunities. Arizona doesn't have a set closer, and Ginkel is expected to be part of a committee that also includes Paul Sewald and Ryan Thompson.
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Brandyn Garcia RP | ARI
Diamondbacks' Brandyn Garcia: Opening 2026 at Triple-A
Arizona optioned Garcia to Triple-A Reno on Monday.
With the move now official, the Diamondbacks will begin the 2026 campaign without a lefty in their bullpen. Garcia struggled to find the strike zone during his spring training appearances, as shown by seven walks in 6.1 innings. He'll need to shift his focus to pounding the zone at Triple-A if he wants to earn a place on the big-league roster.