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AL East Notes: Scott, Rays, Worley, Blue Jays

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Red Sox skipper John Farrell announced to reporters today that left-hander Robby Scott will be on the team’s Opening Day roster in place of the injured Tyler Thornburg (Twitter link via the Boston Globe’s Peter Abraham). Scott, 27, made his Major League debut with Boston last season and tossed six shutout innings after a standout season in the minors. In 78 innings with Triple-A Pawtucket logged a 2.54 ERA with a pristine 73-to-14 K/BB ratio.

A few more notes out of the AL East…

  • Rays right-hander Shawn Tolleson is likely to open the season on the 10-day disabled list due to a back issue, reports Roger Mooney of the Tampa Bay Times. More concerning, Topkin notes that it “could potentially be a lengthy stay.” Mooney’s colleague, Marc Topkin, notes in a separate piece that right-handers Jumbo Diaz, Chase Whitley, Jaime Schultz and Austin Pruitt are candidates to step into the bullpen in the wake of the injuries that will sideline Tolleson and former closer Brad Boxberger to begin the season. The Rays inked Tolleson, the former Rangers closer, to a one-year deal with a modest $1MM base salary this offseason. This is hardly Tolleson’s first brush with back troubles; the righty missed much of the 2013 season with a back sprain and hit the DL late last August with a back injury that proved to end his season and his Rangers tenure.
  • Recently acquired Peter Bourjos made a strong impression in his debut with the Rays and fits “the profile that we’re looking for,” manager Kevin Cash tells Mooney. Tampa Bay has been on the hunt for a right-handed-hitting outfielder that can man center field, and Bourjos’ three-hit debut (which included a homer and a jumping catch at the wall) can only have helped his cause. The Rays picked up Bourjos in a trade that’ll send cash or a player to be named later to the White Sox recently, despite an excellent spring showing for Bourjos with the South Siders (.313/.340/.521 prior to Wednesday’s strong performance).
  • Right-hander Vance Worley and the Orioles have mutual interest in a reunion, reports Eduardo A. Encina of the Baltimore Sun. Worley certainly makes sense as a depth piece for the O’s following his recent release from the nearby Nationals. The 29-year-old Worley logged 86 2/3 innings with Baltimore last season and posted a solid 3.53 ERA, though his secondary stats were less impressive in nature; Worley averaged 5.8 K/9 against 3.6 BB/9 with a fastball that averaged just over 89 mph and the worst hard-contact rate of his career (31.6 percent). Manager Buck Showalter sounded intrigued about the possibility of bringing Worley back to Baltimore, telling Encina: “It’s different with a guy like Worley because you have a prior [history] with him. It’s like he’s been through camp with us. In fact, he’s been through the fire of the season.”
  • The Blue Jays announced today that they’ve optioned right-hander Dominic Leone and catcher Juan Graterol to Triple-A Buffalo. Graterol has long appeared to be on the outside looking in when it comes to the Jays’ backup catcher role, which will go to veteran Jarrod Saltlamacchia, but today’s move effectively makes that outcome official. As for Leone, his demotion reduces the competition for the final couple of ’pen spots in Toronto to a three-horse race, as Shi Davidi of Sportsnet points out (Twitter link). Left-hander Aaron Loup and righties Mike Bolsinger and Ryan Tepera are all still in the picture. Bolsinger is out of minor league options and has experience as a starte and multi-inning reliever, all of which could work in his favor (though that’s merely my own speculation).

Blue Jays Right-Hander Bo Schultz Undergoes Tommy John Surgery

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The Blue Jays announced today that right-handed reliever Bo Schultz underwent Tommy John surgery. The operation, performed by Dr. Timothy Altchek, will cost Schultz the entirety of the 2017 season and likely part of the 2018 campaign as well, depending on his recovery.

The 31-year-old Schultz was a quality member of the Toronto relief corps in 2015, pitching to a 3.56 ERA with 6.5 K/9, 2.9 BB/9 and a 48.8 percent ground-ball rate in 43 1/3 innings of relief. The hard-throwing righty — he’s averaged 96 mph on his heater across the past two seasons — took a step back in 2016, struggling to a 5.51 ERA in 16 1/3 innings as he battled back from offseason left hip surgery.

Schultz entered the offseason hoping to compete for a bullpen spot this spring, though the Jays’ offseason additions of Joe Smith and J.P. Howell eliminated a pair of spots that he could’ve potentially filled. As an out-of-options player, he was a candidate to lose his 40-man spot at the end of Spring Training even prior to this injury. Now, he’ll presumably spend the 2017 campaign on the 60-day disabled list, allowing the Blue Jays to free up a 40-man roster spot but also thinning out the team’s bullpen depth.

Quick Hits: Pagan, Tigers, Giants, M. Upton, Rangers, Brewers, BoSox

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The expectation is that free agent outfielder Angel Pagan will choose his next team in the coming days, reports Jim Bowden of ESPN.com. The Tigers are among the clubs that have shown interest in Pagan, according to both Bowden and Anthony Fenech of the Detroit Free Press. However, a Pagan-Tigers union “doesn’t sound like a real possibility,” per Fenech (Twitter link). While Bowden also relays that the Giants are in on Pagan, Andrew Baggarly of the Bay Area News Group tweets otherwise.  Pagan, of course, spent the previous half-decade in San Francisco.

More from around the majors as Opening Day draws closer:

  • It’s likely that outfielder Melvin Upton Jr. will make the Blue Jays, but it’s not a lock, according to Gregor Chisholm of MLB.com. The last spot on the team figures to go to either Upton, whom Toronto acquired last summer from San Diego, or out-of-options middle infielder Ryan Goins. While Upton will make $16.45MM in 2017, the final season of the five-year, $75.25MM contract he signed with the Braves in 2012, the Padres are on the hook for most of that money. The Blue Jays only took on $5MM of the remaining $22MM-plus Upton had coming his way when they traded for him. The 32-year-old was amid a decent season at that point, but he closed the campaign by slashing just .196/.261/.318 in 165 plate appearances as a Jay.
  • The Rangers are in talks with right-hander Dillon Gee about restructuring his contract, writes Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News. Gee, who has an opt-out for Wednesday, is in line to make a guaranteed $2MM if he takes the last spot in the Rangers’ bullpen. That’s unpalatable to the Rangers, who might want to send Gee to the minors during the season; however, Gee would be able to refuse such an assignment because of service time and still collect the $2MM. Grant suggests the two sides should work out a minor league split, meaning Gee would earn a prorated $2MM in the majors and a lesser salary in the minors.
  • First baseman Jesus Aguilar has made the Brewers’ roster, reports Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (Twitter link). Aguilar cracking Milwaukee’s roster seemed like a long shot at the outset of camp, but the February waiver wire pickup from the Indians has since recorded a video game-like, major league-best 1.395 OPS in 54 spring at-bats. The right-handed, out-of-options Aguilar could pair with fellow first baseman Eric Thames, a lefty-swinger, to give the Brewers a powerful tandem at the position.
  • Red Sox infielder Marco Hernandez came up as a trade candidate last week, when it appeared he had no place on the club’s roster, though an injury to Rule 5 pick Josh Rutledge may have created room. Rutledge suffered a strained left hamstring Tuesday, and Hernandez could be the beneficiary, notes Scott Lauber of ESPN.com. The problem is that the Red Sox want a right-handed hitter to complement corner infielders Mitch Moreland and Pablo Sandoval, but Hernandez is a lefty.

Blue Jays Tell Mat Latos He Won’t Make Team

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Blue Jays righty Mat Latos has been told he won’t make the team, and Latos must now decide whether to accept a Triple-A assignment from the club or become a free agent, according to Jays radio broadcaster Mike Wilner (Twitter links). In addition, another Jays righty, Bo Schultz, is seeing a physician in New York and is likely to require elbow surgery.

The Jays signed Latos to a minor-league deal near the beginning of camp, and he struggled in 14 2/3 innings with the club, allowing eight walks and five home runs. The former Padres and Reds standout is still only 29 but has fallen on hard times in recent seasons, posting a 4.89 ERA and a mediocre 5.4 K/9 and 3.9 BB/9 over 70 innings with the White Sox and Nationals last year, also struggling with his velocity. He seemed highly unlikely to crack the Jays’ rotation (which currently consists of Marco Estrada, J.A. Happ, Aaron Sanchez, Marcus Stroman and Francisco Liriano) without an injury or two.

The 31-year-old Schultz bounced back and forth between Toronto and Triple-A Buffalo last season, posting a 5.51 ERA, 5.5 K/9 and 1.7 BB/9 in 16 1/3 innings at the big-league level. He was competing for a spot in the Blue Jays’ bullpen. He is out of options, although, of course, if he’s facing elbow surgery, both he and the Blue Jays will have greater concerns for his future than his immediate roster status.

AL East Notes: Dombrowski, Rasmus, Rays, Alvarez, Shapiro

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While the Red Sox pitching depth has been a cause of concern this spring, president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski doesn’t think the team is going to add any more starting pitchers, Alex Speier of the Boston Globe writes.  “Not that you don’t constantly keep a pulse of everything as far as you can, but to be overly aggressive in terms of trying to do something in that regard, I don’t think it’s going to happen,” Dombrowski said.  Even if the Sox did want to acquire starters, Dombrowski noted, the fact that the rotation is set (David Price’s arm issues notwithstanding) doesn’t give the team much incentive to lure a veteran pitcher.  As Dombrowski rhetorically asks, “if Price comes back quickly, what do you do with that guy?  I’d gladly have two or three more guys at Triple A that were big league starters, that were good, that we can bring up at any time.  But they want to sign with a big league contract.”

Here’s more from around the AL East…

  • Colby Rasmus will likely begin the season on the disabled list, the Rays outfielder tells Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times.  After last season concluded, Rasmus underwent surgeries on his hip and core area, and he still isn’t quite fully recovered enough to handle regular left field duty.  Mallex Smith will likely be Tampa’s Opening Day left fielder, though Rasmus may not miss more than a week’s worth of games.
  • With Derek Norris now in the fold and Wilson Ramos expected back in May or June, the Rays’ current catchers are facing uncertainty, MLB.com’s Bill Chastain writes.  Curt Casali, Luke Maile and Jesus Sucre had been in competition for the two catching jobs, though now only one will stick around on the 25-man roster to serve as Norris’ backup.  Sucre may face the biggest hurdle, as the Rays would have to make room to find him a spot on the 40-man roster if he makes the team.
  • Pedro Alvarez’s minor league deal with the Orioles includes an opt-out clause in May, Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com reports.  Alvarez is trying to make the O’s as an outfielder, which could be a tough call given Alvarez’s inexperience at the position and the number of other outfield candidates also in camp, Kubatko notes.
  • Scott Boras recently had some harsh words about the Blue Jays’ method of assigning pre-arbitration salaries, particularly in regards to Boras client Aaron Sanchez being renewed for a league-minimum salary in 2017.  As Jays president Mark Shapiro noted in a radio interview with Jeff Blair and Stephen Brunt on The FAN 590 (hat tip to Sportsnet’s David Singh), however, both the team and the agent are on the same page in wanting to see Sanchez eventually maximize his earnings.  “[GM Ross Atkins] and I have told Aaron, ’Listen, we want to pay you a lot of money.  We want to pay you more money.  The more we pay you the better, because that means you’ve performed better,’ ” Shapiro said. “We want our guys to all do extremely well for us to have to pay them a ton of money.  Because if we have to pay them a ton of money, that means they’re performing on the field, which means we have a better chance to be a championship team.”

Phillies, Blue Jays Interested In Angel Pagan

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The Phillies are the newest team to be linked to Angel Pagan, FanRag Sports’ Jon Heyman reports (via Twitter).  The Blue Jays are also still connected to the Pagan hunt, though previous reports had indicated that Toronto was content with its current mix of left field options.

Pagan would be something of a curious fit, at first glance, for a Phillies team that seems pretty set with Odubel Herrera in center and new arrivals Howie Kendrick and Michael Saunders manning the corner outfield slots.  Beyond the starters, Philadelphia also has several internal options (Aaron Altherr and Tyler Goeddel) and veterans on non-roster invites (Daniel Nava and Chris Coghlan) in camp battling for reserve roles.  The Phils have stressed Kendrick’s value as a multi-position player, however, so the club could now be considering giving Kendrick less time in left than originally anticipated.  The right-handed hitting Kendrick isn’t exactly an ideal time-share candidate for second baseman Cesar Hernandez (a switch-hitter), third baseman Maikel Franco or first baseman Tommy Joseph (both right-handed bats), though if Kendrick could spell any of these young players on a regular basis and still maintain an everyday presence in the lineup.

As I noted in my recent look at the Blue Jays’ offseason, there is quite a bit of uncertainty surrounding the team’s left field situation.  Steve Pearce is the Jays’ top option in left, though he has yet to play the position in spring action as he recovers from elbow surgery, and Pearce might eventually be required at first base if Justin Smoak can’t handle an everyday job.  A platoon of Melvin Upton Jr. and Ezequiel Carrera is also not ideal, as Carrera is a reverse-splits batter who hits lefties better than righties and Upton just struggled badly after joining the Jays last summer.  Dalton Pompey, meanwhile, is out of action due to a concussion.

Several teams (including the Braves, Royals, Pirates, Nationals, and Orioles) have been linked to Pagan this offseason, though the veteran is holding out until he receives a Major League contract, reportedly in the neighborhood of $5MM.  Pagan has a case for such a commitment, given that he hit .277/.331/.418 with a career-best 12 homers over 543 PA for the Giants in a 2.1 fWAR season last year.  Pagan is 35, however, and is also just a season removed from a below-replacement level (-0.7 fWAR) year in 2015, though he generated a combined 3.1 fWAR over 167 games in 2013-14.  Pagan is no longer a viable center field defender, though he could fill play there in a pinch; presumably he could also handle right (though he hasn’t played the position since 2010) and he graded out as a decent left fielder last year with the Giants.

The switch-hitting Pagan has been notably better against right-handed pitching over the last few years than he has against southpaws, making him a good fit on a very right-handed Jays roster.  Philadelphia has Hernandez (a switch-hitter) and Herrera and Saunders as left-handed bats in the everyday lineup, while Coghlan and the switch-hitting Nava are the left-handed options amidst the backup outfield contingent.

Heyman’s Latest: Odor, Baker, Robertson, Bucs, M’s, Alvarez, Marlins, Pagan, Twins, Santana, Gentry

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It usually isn’t a good tactic for free agents to accept the first offer that comes their way, yet this past offseason, FanRag Sports’ Jon Heyman notes that several players would have been better served by accepting deals before the new collective bargaining agreement was finalized.  Many free agents, particularly sluggers like Mark Trumbo, saw their offers drop after the new CBA was settled in early December, as teams were suddenly more wary about spending in the wake of more punitive luxury tax rules.  Trumbo tells Heyman that he doesn’t regret returning to the Orioles on a three-year, $37.5MM deal, though the implication was that a larger offer was on the table for an undetermined amount.  Reports from earlier this winter indicated that the Orioles themselves initially offered Trumbo a larger deal in the four-year, $52MM range.

Here’s more from Heyman, in his weekly roundup of news and notes from all 30 teams…

  • The Rangers have increased their offer in extension talks with Rougned Odor, though “it isn’t believed to be where the player wants it to be.”  Heyman suggests that Odor’s representation could see Jason Kipnis’ six-year, $52.5MM extension with the Indians “as a baseline,” whereas the last time we heard of talks between the two sides, Texas had offered a deal only “in the range of” the Kipnis deal.  Odor’s team isn’t expected to make a counter offer, so Heyman feels the talks could be tabled altogether.  There isn’t necessarily any rush to get an extension done, as Odor is still under team control for four more years, though he’ll start to get more expensive next winter when he becomes eligible for arbitration.
  • There aren’t any extension talks taking place between Dusty Baker and the Nationals, though the skipper says he “ain’t worried” about the situation.  Baker is only under contract for one more season in Washington, and his first year in D.C. resulted in an NL East title for the Nats.
  • The White Sox are open to any trades, “but at their price,” according to one rival GM.  While this statement is probably generally true for every team, Chicago is known to have a very high price tag on its main trade chips as it looks to rebuild, and the Sox have already landed two big prospect hauls from the Red Sox and Nationals, respectively, in deals for Chris Sale and Adam Eaton.  The Nats and White Sox have also been heavily linked in talks about David Robertson, though a source tells Heyman that it has been “over two months” since the two sides last discussed the closer.
  • The Blue Jays talked to Pedro Alvarez before the slugger re-signed with the Orioles on a minor league deal.  Toronto has switch-hitters Kendrys Morales and Justin Smoak slated for DH and first base, respectively, though Steve Pearce and possibly Jose Bautista will get some time at both positions as well.  Alvarez would have brought some needed left-handed pop to a Jays lineup that is heavy on right-handed bats, and he could’ve also maybe helped out in left field given how Alvarez has been working out as an outfielder this winter.
  • The Pirates and Mariners are considering some bullpen help.
  • The Marlins are open to adding a starting pitcher.  Adam Conley has been struggling this spring, though his issues aside, there certainly seems to be room for improvement within Miami’s projected starting five of Wei-Yin Chen, Edinson Volquez, Conley, Dan Straily and Tom Koehler.
  • Heyman wonders if Angel Pagan could be an option for the Giants given their outfield issues this spring.  Hunter Pence and Denard Span have struggled, while Mike Morse and Mac Williamson are both sidelined with injuries, so an outfielder like Pagan capable of playing all three spots could seem to fit as a depth piece.  Of course, San Francisco is already trying out many of its surplus infield pieces as potential outfielders, and Pagan is still insisting on a a Major League contract.
  • Byron Buxton and Max Kepler appear to be the only true untouchables on the Twins roster as the team continues its rebuilding process.  It’s worth noting that Minnesota only made a couple of minor deals this offseason under the new Derek Falvey/Thad Levine-led front office, despite a lot of rumors surrounding such veterans as Brian Dozier or Ervin Santana.
  • Johan Santana is still hopeful of a comeback, continuing to work out with an eye towards potentially signing with a team for the second half of the season.
  • Craig Gentry, who signed a minor league deal with the Orioles last month, “has impressed Buck Showalter” and is looking in good position to break camp with the team.  The O’s could use platoons in both left and right field, with Hyun Soo Kim and Seth Smith as the left-handed bats and Gentry and Joey Rickard providing the right-handed hitting support.  This could mean that Rule 5 picks Anthony Santander and Aneury Tavarez may end up back with their old clubs, though Santander could be saved on the DL as he recovers from offseason shoulder surgery, as well as elbow and neck issues this spring.

AL East Notes: Red Sox, Betts, Leon, Donaldson, Boxberger, Beckham

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In an interesting look inside the Red Sox front office, Tim Britton of the Providence Journal reports on the team’s analytical upgrade efforts. While the organization has long been associated with number-crunching and information hoarding, it has only recently ramped up its full-time staff to launch a new database effort and keep pace with other clubs. It’s an interesting look at the process behind and purposes of the team’s next steps in analytics.

Here’s more from Boston and the rest of the AL East:

  • In a look at Red Sox star Mookie Betts, Alex Speier of the Boston Globe delves into the role of off-field earning opportunities in determining the contractual path of Betts and other young stars. “[Getting endorsements] kind of eliminates things I’ve wondered as far as contracts go and the business part of the game,” says Betts. “[But] everything I can ever desire is going to start from me taking care of business on the field.” Whether that precludes a long-term deal — or, at least, drives up the potential price — remains to be seen.
  • Sandy Leon seems on track to open the season with the lion’s share of the time behind the dish for the Red Sox, skipper John Farrell told reporters including Jason Mastrodonato of the Boston Herald (via Twitter). But the manager made clear that he doesn’t intend to rely too heavily on any one man at the catching position, suggesting it’ll be a fairly evenly shared platoon situation between Leon and Christian Vasquez — at least to start the season.
  • Star Blue Jays third baseman Josh Donaldson took the field in Grapefruit League action for the first time yesterday, as MLB.com’s Paul Hagen writes. All indications were that his calf issue didn’t hold him back, so it seems that Toronto can still look forward to Donaldson’s presence on the Opening Day roster.
  • Rays righty Brad Boxberger isn’t going to be ready for Opening Day, but does hope to be contributing in the majors during the month of April, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times tweets. His lat issue will still require at least a week-long layoff before he beings a new throwing program.
  • The career of former top Rays prospect Tim Beckham has continued its roller-coaster path, Topkin writes. After a rough end to 2016, Beckham now seems ascendant yet again, with a strong showing in spring and unexpected opportunity at shortstop with Matt Duffy still on ice. Beckham is drawing rave reviews from manager Kevin Cash and veteran players for his commitment and performance, perhaps suggesting there’s still some hope the 27-year-old can turn the corner at the game’s highest level.

Minor MLB Transactions: 3/22/17

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Here are the latest minor moves from around baseball, with the newest transactions at the top of the post…

  • The Braves released southpaw Matt Marksberry, according to the pitcher himself earlier this week on his Facebook page.  Marksberry posted a 5.06 ERA, 7.8 K/9 and 1.35 K/BB rate over 26 2/3 innings with Atlanta from 2015-16.  He suffered a severe health scare last fall when he was placed in a medically-induced coma following a seizure that caused a collapsed lung, though Marksberry appears to be recovering well from that terrifying situation.
  • The Cardinals signed righty Josh Zeid to a minor league deal, as per Zeid himself via Twitter.  Zeid pitched 48 1/3 innings out of the Astros bullpen in 2013-14, after joining the organization as part of the trade package sent by Philadelphia to Houston for Hunter Pence in July 2011.  Zeid spent 2015 and 2016 in the minors with the Tigers and Mets, respectively, and he most recently pitched for Israel in the World Baseball Classic.
  • Outfielder David Denson announced his retirement from baseball via a message on his Facebook page.  Denson made history in 2015 when he became the first active player in affiliated baseball to publicly announce that he was gay, and he tells Tom Haudricourt and Todd Rosiak of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel that “leaving the game has nothing to do with my coming out.  That wasn’t a factor at all.  This was a decision I made purely from a baseball standpoint.”  Instead, Denson said that he simply lost his passion for playing the game.  Denson was a 15th-round pick of the Brewers in the 2013 draft, and he hit .229/.338/.368 over 1269 career plate appearances, making it to the High-A level in Milwaukee’s farm system.
  • The Blue Jays released outfielder Jacob Anderson, Baseball America’s Matt Eddy reports.  Toronto picked Anderson out of high school with the 35th overall selection of the 2011 draft, though he only made it as high as A-ball in five pro seasons, managing a .204/.271/.302 slash line.

AL East Notes: Britton, Price, Red Sox, Duffy, Pearce

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As a dominant AL East closer that relies on one signature pitch, the Orioles’ Zach Britton has much in common with Mariano Rivera, ESPN.com’s Jayson Stark writes.  Obviously Britton has a ways to go before matching Rivera’s incredible track record, though Britton’s sinker (which he threw 92.2% of the time last season) is already being compared to Rivera’s legendary cut fastball.  Without fully explaining his secrets behind the pitch, Britton tells Stark about what makes his sinker unique, and also how he came upon the pitch by accident while trying to learn, ironically, a cutter.

Here’s more from around the AL East…

  • David Price was re-examined by Red Sox team doctors today and the team reported that the ace lefty “has lost enough strength in his arm to where he is weaker than he was when he reported to Spring Training,” Michael Silverman of the Boston Herald writes.  Price still isn’t on a timetable to begin his throwing program, and thus Silverman speculates that Price’s DL stint could now stretch into May, as opposed to the previous theorized return date of late April.  “You don’t really attach yourself to a calendar. You’ve got to listen to the pitcher’s situation, how his body is responding and what the objective tests are telling us. He’s getting closer to getting a ball back in his hand,” manager John Farrell said.
  • Despite the recent spate of injuries to newly-acquired Red Sox, Dave Dombrowski doesn’t feel the team’s medical evaluation process is at fault, CSNNE.com’s Evan Drellich writes.  “I don’t find anything that’s been abnormal this spring compared to any other spring I’ve ever been,” Dombrowski said.  “We’ve focused a great deal on medical. But we’ve been doing that for years and we continually look at that all the time.”  Price, Drew Pomeranz, Tyler Thornburg, Carson Smith and Hector Velazquez have all dealt with some degree of arm issues with joining the Sox since Dombrowski took over as president of baseball operations, though he argues that acquiring pitching of any type carries inherent risk.  “With the sophistication of the medical industry nowadays, I don’t know the last time I’ve traded for somebody or signed somebody: nobody has a pristine arm,” Dombrowski said.  “Nobody.  I can’t even tell you the last time — it doesn’t exist.  So you’re going to know that that’s just part of the equation.  And then you have to weigh what type of risk you’re willing to take.”
  • It looks like Rays shortstop Matt Duffy will miss Opening Day, as Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times writes that the club is still trying to determine a timeline for Duffy’s injury rehab.  Duffy underwent Achilles tendon surgery on his left heel last September, and has been limited to just strengthening exercises and drills this spring, without any running and no baseball activities.  Rays manager Kevin Cash implied that Duffy’s current problems may not be related to his Achilles surgery, which could be a positive in getting him closer to readiness.
  • Steve Pearce declined to tell Jon Meoli of the Baltimore Sun if the Orioles were in touch about re-signing the veteran utilityman, though he praised the O’s for supporting his decision to undergo elbow surgery late last season when the club was in a pennant race.  Pearce also noted that he decided to sign with the Blue Jays since “they were hard and aggressive” in their pursuit this winter.  “As a player, when you have somebody who wants you that bad and they come after you, they don’t mess around, they’re not trying to low ball — as soon as we got to a number we got comfortable with and they got comfortable with, it was an easy sign,” Pearce said.
  • In other AL East news from earlier today on MLBTR, the Blue Jays are close to a contract extension with manager John Gibbons, the Yankees will be without Didi Gregorius for roughly six weeks due to a shoulder injury and the Rays could still possibly trade a pitcher before Opening Day.
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