MLB Player News

Sims (elbow) will pitch in an intrasquad game Saturday, Bobby Nightengale of The Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

Sims remains confident that he'll be ready to pitch by Opening Day, and he'll take another step in his recovery process Saturday. If he feels good after pitching in the intrasquad matchup, he could make his Cactus League debut at some point next week. If Sims is healthy for Opening Day, he should serve as a high-leverage reliever for the Reds.

Lambert (elbow) was placed on the 60-day injured list Saturday.

Lambert's placement on the 60-day injured list is simply procedural, as the right-hander is expected to miss most of the 2021 season after undergoing Tommy John surgery in July 2020. However, Lambert remains on track in his rehab process and could return to game action late in the 2021 campaign.

Kinley has been diagnosed with left oblique soreness, Thomas Harding of MLB.com reports.

Manager Bud Black revealed Saturday that Kinley has been dealing with a side issue, and he's now been officially diagnosed with an oblique injury. The right-hander threw a side session Friday and is slated to throw in a simulated game Sunday. Whether Kinley's injury affects his status for Opening Day remains to be seen.

Rockies manager Bud Black revealed Saturday that Kinley has been dealing with a side issue recently, Patrick Saunders of The Denver Post reports.

Kinley hasn't pitched in a Cactus League since March 7, but he threw a side session Friday and is scheduled to throw a simulated game Sunday, Thomas Harding of MLB.com reports. It's not yet clear whether he'll be healthy in time for the start of the regular season. Once Kinley is fully healthy, he should serve as a late reliever for the Rockies although he should be considered unlikely to be in the mix for save chances.

Estevez allowed one run on one hit and no walks while striking out one over one inning in Friday's spring win over Cleveland.

Estevez came on during the ninth inning of Friday's Cactus League matchup and gave up a home run to lead off the inning, but he retired the next two batters before striking out Beau Taylor to end the game. The right-hander has made six relief appearances this spring and has allowed 10 runs on eight hits and three walks while striking out five over six innings.

Ponce de Leon allowed four earned runs on four hits and three walks across five innings in a Grapefruit League win over the Marlins on Thursday. He struck out four.

The right-hander, who stretched out to 71 pitches, was more hittable than in any of his three previous trips to the mound this spring, but Ben Fredrickson of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports Ponce de Leon was experimenting with a faster tempo and a move to the third-base side of the rubber. While the latter seemed to help him with location, Frederickson reports the former seemed to affect him during his one truly troublesome frame, the third. "I think I should have slowed down maybe a bit in that three-run inning," Ponce de Leon said. "It was kind of playing catch up, breath-wise. My delivery just felt off."

Diaz was optioned to Triple-A Syracuse on Friday.

Diaz has just a single big-league appearance on his resume, so he was never particularly likely to break camp on the active roster. That outing, in which he walked four of the seven batters he faced and allowed two runs as a Blue Jay back in 2019, was his only one above Double-A, so he'll need to prove himself at the Triple-A level before pushing to return to the highest level.

Howard (back) could throw a bullpen session Sunday, Matt Gelb of The Athletic reports.

Howard was scratched from his scheduled outing Monday against the Yankees due to back spasms and remains shut down, but the Phillies are hoping he'll be able to throw again soon. In addition to Howard, Zach Eflin (back) and Vince Velasquez (oblique) are also dealing with injuries, so it's possible the healthiest of the trio opens the year in the rotation. If none of the three are ready to go, non-roster invitee Ivan Nova could win a temporary job.

Perdomo was optioned to Triple-A Nashville on Friday, Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports.

The 26-year-old delivered four scoreless frames during spring training, but it wasn't enough to earn a spot on the Opening Day roster. Perdomo should have a big-league opportunity at some point this season as the Brewers shuffle their bullpen pieces.

White (shoulder) threw his first bullpen of camp earlier this week and expects to get into game action before spring training ends, Jorge Castillo of the Los Angeles Times reports.

White was delayed early in camp by a shoulder impingement. It looks as though he's past the worst of the problem, but it doesn't sound like he'll be fully up to speed by Opening Day.