Guardians' Triston McKenzie: Pulled with arm tightness
Rotowire
McKenzie was removed from Sunday's Cactus League start against the Reds as a precautionary measure due to right arm tightness, Zack Meisel of The Athletic reports.
The 25-year-old delivered a scoreless first inning during his final start of spring training Sunday but never returned to the mound. Any arm injury is a concerning development -- especially this late in spring training -- which leaves McKenzie's availability for the start of the regular season up in the air.
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Guardians' Steven Hajjar: Dealt to Cleveland
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The Guardians acquired Hajjar on Saturday as the player to be named later in the Feb. 8 deal that sent Will Benson to Cincinnati.
Hajjar has now been traded twice in his short professional career. He was dealt from Minnesota to Cincinnati in the trade that sent Tyler Mahle to Minnesota last August, and he'll now head to Cleveland prior to the start of the 2023 campaign. A second-round pick in 2021, the 22-year-old Hajjar registered a 3.61 ERA and 83:32 K:BB over 52.1 innings between Low-A Fort Myers and High-A Dayton in 2022. He'll likely report to one of the Guardians' lower-level affiliates to begin 2023.
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Guardians' Richie Palacios: Optioned to Triple-A
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Palacios was optioned to Triple-A Columbus on Saturday, Zack Meisel of The Athletic reports.
Palacios didn't make a strong case for a bench spot this spring, posting a .618 OPS over nine games. His .232/.293/.286 line in his 54-game debut last year didn't make a compelling argument either, but he slashed .279/.371/.458 at the Triple-A level and doesn't have much left to prove there.
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Guardians' Roman Quinn: Reassigned to minor-league camp
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Quinn was assigned to minor-league camp on Saturday, Zack Meisel of The Athletic reports.
Quinn recorded an .875 OPS in 16 games this spring, though that came with a 38.9 percent strikeout rate. As a non-roster invitee, he always had an uphill battle in front of him, but he could still get a chance whenever the Guardians need another outfielder.
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Guardians' Zack Collins: Sent to minor-league camp
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Collins was reassigned to minor-league camp Saturday, Zack Meisel of The Athletic reports.
A career .185/.295/.327 with poor defense behind the plate, Collins was always a long shot to break camp in the big leagues. With catcher of the future Bo Naylor waiting for his chance at the Triple-A level, it's hard to see a path for consistent at-bats in Cleveland for Collins.
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Guardians' Meibrys Viloria: Likely to make club out of camp
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Viloria has been informed that he's likely to be on the Opening Day roster, Mandy Bell of MLB.com reports.
According to Bell, Viloria has been told that "as long as something doesn't happen in the meantime" he'll be on the Opening Day roster. That means the Guardians will carry three catchers to begin the season as Mike Zunino and Cam Gallagher are also set to open the year with the Guardians. Both Gallagher and Viloria were signed to minor-league contracts, so they'll have to be added to the 40-man roster before Thursday.
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Guardians' Cam Gallagher: Makes Opening Day roster
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Gallagher has been informed that he's made the Opening Day roster for the Guardians, Mandy Bell of MLB.com reports.
Gallagher will be one of three catchers on the roster, with Mike Zunino as the starter and Meibrys Viloria also on the club. Gallagher signed a minor-league contract in January with Cleveland, so the Guardians will have to make room on the 40-man roster in order to purchase his contract.
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Guardians' Gabriel Arias: Exits with bruise on right hand
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Guardians manager Terry Francona announced that Arias left Friday's game against the Cubs with a contusion on his right hand, Mandy Bell of MLB.comreports.
Arias was hit in the same hand that he broke in 2022, but he underwent a scan and everything has come back OK according to Francona. The utility player is not scheduled to undergo X-rays just yet, but the team might be waiting for any swelling to go down. For now, Arias should be considered day-to-day.
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Guardians' Gabriel Arias: Leaves Friday after HBP
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Arias left Friday's Cactus League game after being hit near his hand by a pitch, Paul Hoynes of The Cleveland Plain Dealer reports.
Arias had a broken right hand that sidelined him in 2022, and he is expected to serve as a utility player for the Guardians in 2023. He immediately dropped to the ground after being hit, and looked to be in significant pain. If he ends up landing on the IL to begin the season, Tyler Freeman might be recalled to take Arias' spot on Cleveland's bench.
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Guardians' Hunter Gaddis: Will start season in bullpen
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Gaddis has been informed he's made the Opening Day roster for the Guardians, Mandy Bell of MLB.com reports.
Gaddis was roughed up for 15 runs in just 7.1 innings last year in two appearances -- good for an 18.41 ERA -- but he has pitched well in the Cactus League with a 2.77 ERA over 13 innings with a 17:3 K:BB and even 1.00 WHIP. He'll likely be a multi-inning option in low-leverage situations to begin 2023.
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Guardians' Tim Herrin: Makes Opening Day roster
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Herrin has been informed he's made the Opening Day roster for the Guardians, Mandy Bell of MLB.com reports.
Herrin was added to the 40-man roster ahead of the Rule 5 draft in November, and the southpaw registered an 11:2 K:BB with a 4.66 ERA over nine appearances in the Cactus League before receiving the good news. Herrin will likely will pitch in the middle innings while with the Guardians.
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Guardians' Michael Kelly: Reassigned to minors camp
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Kelly was reassigned Friday to the minor-league side of Guardians camp, Mandy Bell of MLB.com reports.
Hunter Gaddis and Tim Herrin will claim the final two spots in the Opening Day bullpen for Cleveland. Kelly made his MLB debut with the Phillies last year at age 29 but logged only four inning of relief before being outrighted off their 40-man roster in July.
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Guardians' Cal Quantrill: Dominant in Thursday's win
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Quantrill threw 5.2 hitless innings in Thursday's Cactus League win over the Giants, allowing one walk and striking out five.
Quantrill set down 17 straight Giants to start the game, then walked the last batter he faced. This was a new level of dominance for the right-hander in what's been a challenging spring -- he has a 5.25 ERA and 10:3 K:BB across 12 innings over four starts. Despite the struggles, he's a lock for the Guardians' rotation to open the season, and Quantrill's ability to maintain a good ERA and absorb innings gives him some appeal in fantasy.
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Guardians' Daniel Norris: Inks MiLB deal with Cleveland
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Norris signed a minor-league deal with the Guardians on Friday, Mandy Bell of MLB.com reports.
After being released by the Reds on Monday, the 29-year-old reliever will get a shot with Cleveland and report directly to minor-league camp. Norris put up a 5.22 ERA and 1.26 WHIP over 58.2 major-league innings last season with the Cubs and Tigers, and he will likely begin the season at Triple-A.
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Guardians' Shane Bieber: Set for Opening Day start
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Bieber will start Opening Day against the Mariners on Thursday, Evan Woodbery of MLive.com reports.
Bieber will officially be making his fourth straight Opening Day start for the Guardians. The right-hander has elevated himself to the upper echelon of starting pitchers in the league over the past few seasons, most recently producing a 2.88 ERA and 1.04 WHIP with 198 strikeouts over 200 innings in 31 starts with Cleveland last year.
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Guardians' Nick Mikolajchak: Reassigned to minors camp
Rotowire
Mikolajchak (elbow) was reassigned Thursday to the minor-league side of Guardians camp, Mandy Bell of MLB.com reports.
This comes a few days after he was diagnosed with a sprained right ulnar collateral ligament. Mikolajchak, 25, might be in for a lost 2023 season.
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Guardians' Xzavion Curry: Optioned out to Triple-A
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Curry was optioned to Triple-A Columbus by the Guardians on Thursday, Mandy Bell of MLB.com reports.
Curry held a 5.14 ERA through 14 innings this spring in the Cactus League after posting a 5.79 ERA over his first 9.1 major-league frames in 2022. The 24-year-old right-hander will serve as organizational relief depth for Cleveland leading into the 2023 campaign.
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Guardians' James Karinchak: Clean outing Tuesday
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Karinchak struck out one over 1.1 scoreless innings in Tuesday's Cactus League loss to the Dodgers.
Karinchak has covered 7.1 innings this spring, though he's allowed five home runs, five hits and five walks with nine strikeouts. There shouldn't be too much concern for his performance this spring, as long as he can leave his uneven pitching in Arizona when the Guardians begin the campaign. Karinchak should serve in a high-leverage role as a setup man to Emmanuel Clase.
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Guardians' Mike Zunino: Not hitting much
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Zunino has gone 2-for-23 (.087) over 10 Cactus League games.
Zunino entered camp recovering from thoracic outlet syndrome surgery, but he was able to go through a normal progression with no setbacks in spring play. The 31-year-old rarely hits for much of an average -- his career high is .251 in 2017, but that's his only season above .220. He should begin the year in the a starting role for the Guardians, but top prospect Bo Naylor could push his way onto the roster at some point in the summer.
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Guardians' Daniel Espino: Ahead of schedule
Rotowire
Espino (shoulder) could be ready for game action as early as May, according to Guardians Prospective.
The flame-throwing righty has been throwing weighted plyo balls in Arizona. There was a report Feb. 20 that Espino wouldn't throw for eight weeks, but that may have been in reference to him getting back on a mound, which he has yet to do. Regardless, it's encouraging that this may not be a second lost season in a row for the talented 22-year-old.
