Free-agent left-hander Matthew Boyd (elbow) agreed to an undisclosed major-league deal with the Cleveland Guardians on Thursday, according to a source. The deal is pending a physical. Boyd had Tommy John surgery on his left elbow last June and won't immediately join the Guardians' big-league roster, and it's unclear how long it will before he could be pitching in games for Cleveland. At the very least, he'll give the Guardians some veteran pitching depth. Boyd has nine seasons of major-league experience after originally being drafted by the Toronto Blue Jays in the sixth round of the 2013 draft out of Oregon State. In 15 starts for the Detroit Tigers last year before getting injured, he went 5-5 with a 5.45 ERA and 1.32 WHIP with a 73:25 K:BB in 71 innings. Fantasy managers, even in the deepest of leagues, shouldn't expect much from Boyd the rest of the 2024 season.

Detroit Tigers infield prospect Jace Jung (wrist) saw a hand specialist on Tuesday and was cleared for baseball activities. Jung is now beginning a return-to-play program in Lakeland, Fla., according to the Tigers. The 12th overall pick in the 2022 MLB draft out of Texas Tech landed on the seven-day minor-league injured list with Triple-A Toledo back last week with right-wrist soreness. The 23-year-old has been bothered by his wrist since May but will now start ramping up his activities before eventually rejoining Toledo. The club's No. 3 prospect, per MLB Pipeline, could still have a shot to make his big-league debut with the rebuilding Tigers later this year as long as he doesn't have any setbacks with his wrist. Before the injury, the left-handed hitter was batting .270 (62-for-230) with 11 homers, 41 RBI and 33 runs scored in 64 contests.

Updating a previous report, Minnesota Twins shortstop Carlos Correa (thumb) said his hand went numb initially when he got hit by a pitch in Thursday's win over the Arizona Diamondbacks but he was relieved after his X-rays came back negative. Correa said he'd be ready to play in Friday's series opener on the road in Seattle against the Mariners. It remains to be seen if Twins manager Rocco Baldelli will actually pencil him into the lineup, but the bottom line is that the 29-year-old avoided a long-term injury after what initially looked like it could be a serious injury. Correa got a hit in his only official at-bat of Thursday's game before leaving and was on a heater in June coming into the game, batting .382 (34-for-89) with four homers, four doubles and 18 RBI in 22 games. If he's in the lineup on Friday, keep him in your starting fantasy lineups.

The Atlanta Braves optioned right-hander Bryce Elder to Triple-A Gwinnett on Thursday after he made a spot start for the team during their doubleheader against the St. Louis Cardinals on Wednesday. In his sixth start of the year for Atlanta on Wednesday in Game 2, Elder was hit with a tough-luck loss (his third of the year) after posting a quality start with two earned runs allowed on four hits, no walks and four striking in six innings pitched. It was definitely a nice bounce-back performance after he allowed seven runs (six earned) on a season-high nine hits in just three innings in his previous start on May 19 against the San Diego Padres. We'll probably see the 25-year-old again in 2024 in Atlanta's rotation. In his six starts in 2024, Elder has gone 1-3 with a bloated 5.76 ERA and 1.68 WHIP with 23 strikeouts and 11 walks in 29 2/3 frames.

Minnesota Twins starting pitching prospect Andrew Morris struck out nine batters across 5 2/3 shutout frames on Wednesday. He allowed just four hits and no free passes. This was another stellar performance by the young right-hander since joining Double-A. He was moved up to this level on May 21 and has posted a stellar 1.41 ERA, 0.88 WHIP, and a 5:30 BB:K. The Texas Tech product opened the season with High-A and held a strong 2.15 ERA and 1.12 WHIP through 37 2/3 innings. The former fourth-round pick is ranked as the 17th-best prospect in the Minnesota system on MLB.com and remains on track to meet his 2025 major-league ETA.