MLB Player News

The Angels announced Tuesday that Soriano will start Los Angeles' March 26 season opener against the Astros in Houston.

It will be Soriano's first career nod on Opening Day. The 27-year-old made 31 starts for the Halos last season, turning in a 10-11 record, 4.26 ERA, 1.40 WHIP and 152:78 K:BB across 169 innings. Soriano has been knocked around a bit this spring, allowing seven earned runs on nine hits and three walks across 8.2 frames, while striking out 10 of the 38 batters he's faced.

The Mets reassigned Alzolay to minor-league camp Tuesday.

Alzolay is healthy again after missing the entire 2025 season while recovering from August 2024 Tommy John operation, but the 31-year-old righty will need to shake off some rust at Triple-A Syracuse and show that he's regained his pre-surgery velocity and command before garnering another look in the big leagues. He had previously been one of the game's more effective closers as recently as the 2023 season, when he went 22-for-25 in save chances and delivered a 2.67 ERA, 1.02 WHIP and 67:13 K:BB across 64 innings with the Cubs.

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.

Effross (oblique) started a throwing program this week, Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press reports.

Effross was shut down from throwing earlier this month after being diagnosed with a strained left oblique. Once healthy, he's expected to open the season with Triple-A Toledo. The 32-year-old right-hander pitched in 11 regular-season games out of the Yankees' bullpen last season, logging an 8.44 ERA.

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.

Kelly allowed a hit and a walk across a scoreless inning in Monday's Cactus League win over the Angels. He struck out one.

Kelly entered in the eighth inning and allowed the first two batters to reach but worked out of the jam without surrendering a run. The right-hander has made six Cactus League appearances, allowing three runs on 12 hits and two walks while striking out seven across 5.2 innings. Coming off a 2025 season in which he posted a 3.18 ERA and 1.29 WHIP across 39.2 innings, Kelly projects to make the 2026 Opening Day roster and could factor into high-leverage opportunities in an Athletics bullpen expected to operate with a closer-by-committee approach.

Brieske has a left groin strain and will open the season on the injured list, Cody Stavenhagen of The Athletic reports.

He slipped while working on his delivery in a routine workout recently, which is why he was scratched from his scheduled appearance Monday. Brieske will miss at least the first couple weeks of the regular season.

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.