Pittsburgh Pirates starting pitcher Jared Jones (elbow) received an official confirmation on his injury on Wednesday. It has been announced that Jones has been diagnosed with a UCL sprain in his right elbow. That means, Jones avoided any ligament damage and won't require surgery. The plan remains for Jones to be shut down from throwing for the next six weeks. After that, Jones is going to require a few weeks to build up his arm strength and stamina. Fantasy managers should prepare to be without Jones until sometime in June. Carmen Mlodzinski will open the season in the starting rotation, but prospects Bubba Chandler and Thomas Harrington are waiting in the wings if called upon as reinforcements.

MLB.com's Scott Merkin reports that Chicago White Sox right-hander Shane Smith has earned a spot in the team's starting rotation to begin the 2025 regular season. Smith will be making his major-league debut when he toes the rubber for the first time. The 24-year-old Wake Forest product earned the rotation spot this spring by posting a 3.38 ERA and 0.84 WHIP with 11 strikeouts and four walks in four Grapefruit League starts covering 10 2/3 innings. He ends up beating out right-hander Bryse Wilson for the fifth rotation spot. Smith, a Rule 5 draft pick, must stick on Chicago's MLB roster all year or be offered back to the Milwaukee Brewers. In 32 appearances (16 starts) for Double-A Biloxi and Triple-A Nashville last year, he had a 3.05 ERA, 1.05 WHIP, 113 K's and 29 walks in 94 1/3 innings. Smith is in play as rotation depth in AL-only leagues.

Washington Nationals first baseman Juan Yepez did not make the Opening Day roster out of spring training and will begin the 2025 season at Triple-A Rochester, a source told ElExtraBase's Daniel Alvarez-Montes. Yepez wasn't able to stand out in the Grapefruit League by hitting .244 (11-for-45) with one double, no homers, five RBI and two runs scored in 19 contests. The 27-year-old Venezuelan was much more impressive in his first season with the Nats in 2024, slashing .283/.335/.429 with a .764 OPS, six home runs and 26 RBI in 62 games played. If Yepez isn't hitting, he's not much use to Washington, as he doesn't stand out on defense and is mainly an option at either first base or designated hitter. There's just not much upside here for fantasy purposes, as Yepez is most likely to be a bench bat with below-average power whenever he returns to the majors.

The Washington Nationals announced on Wednesday that they have moved left-hander DJ Herz (elbow) to the 60-day injured list to make room for right-handed pitching prospect Brad Lord on the major-league roster. Herz is dealing with a sprained UCL in his left elbow and now won't be able to make his 2025 season debut until at least June. Depending on how the 24-year-old southpaw recovers, there's a chance we won't see him at all this year. It's a big blow to the former eighth-round pick of the Chicago Cubs in 2019 after he made his major-league debut in D.C. last year. In his first 19 starts in the majors, Herz went 4-9 with a 4.16 ERA (3.71 FIP) and 1.26 WHIP with 106 strikeouts and 36 walks in 88 2/3 innings. With the possibility of missing most or all of 2025, Herz should only be stashed in deep dynasty/keeper formats.

Miami Marlins infielder/outfielder Javier Sanoja has made the team's Opening Day roster, sources tell ElExtraBase's Daniel Alvarez-Montes. Sanoja breaks camp with the big-league squad after hitting .314 (11-for-35) with three doubles, seven RBI and eight runs scored in 14 Grapefruit League games this spring. The 22-year-old's versatility is key, and he'll give the Fish an extra option in the outfield with Jesus Sanchez (side) opening the year on the injured list. Sanoja made his big-league debut in Miami last year and went 8-for-35 (.229) with two doubles, two RBI and three runs scored in only 15 games played. He's a much more attractive real-life player than a fantasy one, as Sanoja's defensive versatility and ability to make contact at the plate are his strong suits. In 111 games for Triple-A Jacksonville last year, he had six homers and 14 stolen bases.