With Tampa Bay Rays left-hander Shane McClanahan (triceps) set to miss time to open the 2025 regular season, right-hander Ryan Pepiot will step in and start on Opening Day on Friday, March 28, against the Colorado Rockies, according to manager Kevin Cash. The 27-year-old went 8-8 with a career-high 3.60 ERA (3.95 FIP), a 1.15 WHIP and a 142:48 K:BB in 130 innings pitched over 26 starts in his first year with the Rays in 2024. Pepiot's season was interrupted by an infection caused by a bug bite, but otherwise he was pretty solid with nine quality starts in his 26 total starts. His fastball-changeup combination can get it done, but Pepiot might not be able to take the next step in his big-league career unless he develops a quality third pitch to keep hitters off balance. Still, there's a lot to like in fantasy, and he'll be a popular DFS play in his first start at home against the Rockies.

The Boston Red Sox granted right-handed reliever Adam Ottavino his release on Sunday after he triggered his opt-out clause, a source tells MassLive's Chris Cotillo. Ottavino triggered the opt-out clause in his minor-league contract after he was informed that he wasn't going to make the Opening Day bullpen out of camp. The 39-year-old veteran struggled to a 10.80 ERA with five walks and eight strikeouts in five Grapefruit League innings in spring training, but he's likely to get picked up before long due to his 46 career saves over 14 years of big-league experience. In 60 appearances out of the bullpen for the New York Mets in 2024, Ottavino held a 4.34 ERA (3.67 FIP), a 1.29 WHIP, one save, 70 strikeouts, 23 walks and 15 holds as a late-inning setup man. Ottavino has a 3.49 career ERA and 1.28 WHIP over his 14 seasons with five different teams.

Boston Red Sox starting pitcher Walker Buehler was scratched from his scheduled Grapefruit League start on Sunday due to an illness. Fantasy managerscan breathe a collective sigh of relief. The righty will work in camp on the back fields on Monday and Cooper Criswell will start in his place on Sunday. The former first-round draft pick has looked good this spring, allowing two earned runs on seven hits and one walk while striking out 11 batters in 10 inningspitched. After a rough couple of seasons in Los Angeles and dealing with injuries, the 2x All-Star will look to get his career back on track in Boston. The 30-year-old has an NFBC ADP of 250, but has the talent to outproduce that, especially given his environment with the Red Sox.

The Atlanta Braves signed relief pitcher Jesse Chavez to a minor-league deal on Sunday. The veteran is going to pitch in Sunday's game versus the Orioles with a chance to make the Opening Day roster according to manager Brian Snitker. Despite his advancing age, the 41-year-old has been a solid reliever the last handful of seasons, posting a 2.91 ERA, 1.20 WHIP, and a 17.0 percent K-BB% from 2021-24 (201 IP). Last season, though, the righty recorded a K/9 of 7.82, his lowestsince 2017 (excluding 2020). If the 2021 World Series champion can make the team, for fantasy he'd likely only be worth a look in deep NL-only leagues.

Baltimore Orioles manager Brandon Hyde said on Sunday that right-handed reliever Felix Bautista (elbow) will be on the Opening Day roster. Bautista missed all of the 2024 campaign after having Tommy John surgery in October of 2023 and there was recent concern that he might not be ready for the start of the regular season, but those concerns are now out the window apparently. However, it doesn't mean that the 29-year-old won't be eased into closing duties in the ninth inning after his long layoff. The Mountain appeared in five spring training games and should lead Baltimore in saves in 2025 as long as he's healthy, but fantasy managers may want to temper expectations for his workload early on. Before his injury in 2023, Bautista was lights-out for the Orioles, posting a 1.48 ERA and 33 saves.