MLB Player News

Padres manager Jayce Tingler said Monday that Adams will open the season on the 10-day injured list due to a minor elbow issue, Kevin Acee of The San Diego Union-Tribune reports.

After finishing the 2020 season on the IL while recovering from ACL surgery, Adams received full clearance ahead of spring training. The elbow issue surfaced soon thereafter, however, as Adams hasn't made a Cactus League appearance since March 7 due to the injury. TIngler stressed that Adams isn't dealing with any sort of long-term setback, so the right-hander could be ready to join the San Diego bullpen at some point shortly after the minimum 10 days.

Voth appears set to open the season in a long-relief role.

The right-hander lost out on his bid for the No. 5 starter role, but he should still begin the season in the majors. Voth has had an unimpressive spring, posting a 5.40 ERA and 9:5 K:BB over 11.2 innings, but with Jon Lester (neck) still not fully stretched out, Joe Ross potentially having his workload monitored after opting out of 2020, and Stephen Strasburg and Max Scherzer holding more injury risk than other pitchers, there could be plenty of long-relief work available in the early part of the season.

Finnegan is on track to break camp in the Nationals' bullpen.

The right-hander has a superficially shaky 6.75 ERA this spring and has served up three homers, but his 8:1 K:BB in eight innings is strong. Finnegan is coming off a solid big-league debut in 2020 and should fill a middle-relief role for the Nats.

Orioles manager Brandon Hyde said Lopez would start the Orioles' fourth game of the season April 5 against the Yankees in New York, Steve Melewski of MASNSports.com reports.

Lopez and Dean Kremer were awarded the final two spots in Baltimore's rotation, beating out Felix Hernandez (elbow), Wade LeBlanc and Tom Eshelman for those jobs. The 28-year-old right-hander covered 19.2 innings in the Grapefruit League this spring, posting a 2.75 ERA, 1.22 WHIP and a 17:7 K:BB. Lopez's track record at the big-league level is far less impressive than his spring numbers, so he'll need to deliver some quality results in the games that count before fantasy managers can invest in him with any confidence.

The Reds informed Perez on Monday that he would be included in the club's Opening Day bullpen, Bobby Nightengale of The Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

Acquired from the Astros earlier in the winter, Perez was able to push his way on to the Opening Day roster after striking out nine while giving up only two earned runs over 10.2 innings this spring. Though Perez had previously been developed as a starter while in the Houston organization, his smallish frame likely makes him a better fit in the bullpen. He's flashed some intriguing skills this spring, most notably touching 98 miles per hour with his fastball in his latest Cactus League outing Sunday. Expect him to work in the middle innings to begin the season.

Ottavino allowed an unearned run on one hit in one inning of Sunday's spring game against the Twins.

Ottavino was victimized by a Rafael Devers throwing error. He finished up the Florida portion of spring training with two unearned runs allowed over 6.1 innings and a chance to close games pending the status of Matt Barnes, who tested positive for COVID-19.

The Pirates optioned Hartlieb to their minor-league camp Monday.

Hartlieb missed out on a spot in the Pirates' Opening Day bullpen after showing spotty control (five walks in 6.1 innings) across his seven Grapefruit League appearances. The 27-year-old had a similarly bloated walk rate over his 21 outings with Pittsburgh in 2020 (7.7 BB/9 in 22.1 innings), so he'll likely need to sharpen his control at Triple-A Indianapolis before getting another look with the big club.

Devenski allowed two hits and struck out two over a scoreless inning in Sunday's spring game against the White Sox.

Devesnki stretched his Cactus League scoreless streak to seven games and has 1.00 WHIP along with seven strikeouts over seven innings. Arizona manager Torey Lovullo told Steve Gilbert of MLB.com that he doesn't have a "slam-dunk closer" and opened the door to using matchups at the end of games. Devenski has the hottest hand of all Arizona relievers with the regular season kicking off Friday in San Diego.

Puk fired four scoreless, one-hit innings in a Cactus League win over the Rangers on Saturday, recording three strikeouts.

After struggling enough with his command Monday against the Diamondbacks that manager Bob Melvin expressed concern afterwards, Puk came up big in his final chance to audition for the Athletics' open rotation spot. Martin Gallegos of MLB.com reports Puk worked up to 41 efficient pitches over his four frames, while all three of his strikeouts were of the swinging variety despite his fastball still averaging no more than 94 mph. The reduced velocity may be an ongoing concern, but Puk expressed confidence Saturday in his ability to handle whatever role he opens the season in with his existing repertoire.

Gsellman has been informed that he'll make the Opening Day roster, Mike Puma of the New York Post reports.

Gsellman made five relief appearances for the Mets this spring and posted a 5.63 ERA and 2.00 WHIP. While his performance during Grapefruit League play was enough to break camp with the team, the right-hander is unlikely to pitch in many high-leverage situations in 2021 after he allowed 15 runs in 14 innings last season.