MLB Player News

Megill was outrighted to the minors and assigned to the Cubs' secondary camp in South Bend, Indiana on Friday, Jordan Bastian of MLB.com reports.

Megill was selected by the Cubs in the Rule 5 draft back in December, but they'll keep him in the organization despite jettisoning him from the 40-man roster by sending cash considerations to the Padres in exchange for his rights. The 26-year-old could still be added back to the roster at some point this season for his big-league debut, as his 4.47 ERA in 50.1 innings with Triple-A El Paso last season came with a promising 32.3 percent strikeout rate.

Pivetta remains in the rotation conversation after throwing four scoreless innings in an intrasquad game Thursday without allowing a single hit, Todd Zolecki of MLB.com reports.

Pivetta and Vince Velasquez are the primary competitors for the Phillies' final rotation spot this season, with both earning praise in recent days after impressing in intrasquad action. It's possible both pitchers open in the rotation, as there are questions surrounding both Zach Eflin's back spasms and Zack Wheeler's anticipated paternity leave. It's also possible neither pitcher is in the rotation for long, as the team's top pitching prospect Spencer Howard has looked good in camp as well and is expected to push for opportunities early in the season.

Howard flashed electric stuff while throwing three innings in Thursday's intrasquad game, Corey Seidman of NBCSports.com reports.

All of his pitches were working, buckling hitters with his big plus curveball and also blowing his upper-90s fastball by guys at the top of the zone. Pitching coach Bryan Price said he thinks Howard is ready to compete at the highest level and should be a part of the team's rotation early in the season. It's possible he will not open on the 30-man roster, but the Phillies will need a fifth starter no later than July 28 against the Yankees. Price said the team is focused on building up Howard's workload this season.

Hill was traded to the Padres for Franchy Cordero and Ronald Bolanos (ribs) on Thursday, Jeffrey Flanagan of MLB.com reports.

Hill will bolster the bullpen for a Padres team that finished with a combined 4.59 ERA from its relief pitchers in 2019. The 30-year-old southpaw was excellent against left-handed hitters last season, allowing a .186 batting average without surrendering a single home run. Hill's dominance against left-handed hitters sets up nicely against a Dodgers lineup that feasts on right-handed pitching.

Crowe has been absent from team workouts since they began July 3, Jesse Dougherty of The Washington Post reports.

Crowe is supposed to be training in Washington, as he was not listed on the roster sent to High-A Fredericksburg earlier this month. The 25-year-old struggled in Triple-A last season, posting a 6.17 ERA, 1.70 WHIP and 41:26 K:BB in 54 innings for Fresno.

Hartlieb was sent back to the Pirates' satellite camp in Altoona on Thursday, Rob Biertempfel of The Athletic reports.

Hartlieb was working at the team's major-league training site over the past few days, but he'll head to the alternate training site ahead of the regular season. The right-hander made 29 appearances for the Pirates last season, logging a 9.00 ERA and 38:18 K:BB over 35 innings.

Gott is expected to be a factor in high-leverage, late-inning situations in 2020, but Giants manager Gabe Kapler isn't likely to define roles for any of his relievers prior to Opening Day, Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area reports. "We don't really have the personnel with the track record where we could just slot guys into roles," Kapler said. "Outside of [Tony Watson], and Watty is still working himself into shape, we don't have a long track record of success, a long track record of guys being in one role in our bullpen. I think roles will define themselves as performance happens in-season at the major-league level."

During his time as Philadelphia's manager, Kapler was similarly reluctant to set roles for his top late-inning options, so it's no surprise he's planning to take a similar approach with a Giants bullpen that's lacking in proven options. That reality makes it difficult to bank on any one Giants pitcher being the top option for saves, but when handicapping the closer situation, Pavlovic suggests that Gott is an "easy third answer" behind Tony Watson and Tyler Rogers. A former college closer, Gott already boasts ninth-inning experience, and he was generally one of the Giants' more dominant bullpen arms in 2019, posting an 18.7 K-BB% while doing a good job of keeping the ball in the yard (0.7 HR/9). The Giants have had Gott stretch out during both spring training and summer camp, suggesting that he could be groomed for a potential multi-inning role that might give him some value as a ratio stabilizer even if he's not getting save opportunities.

Abbott was added to Chicago's 60-man player pool Thursday, Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune reports.

Abbott will report to the team's alternate camp site in South Bend, Indiana, where he'll continue his development after spending the entire 2019 season with Double-A Tennessee. Across 26 starts with the Smokies last season, Abbott posted a 3.01 ERA, 1.12 WHIP and 166:52 K:BB in 146.2 innings.

Miller was added to Chicago's 60-man player pool Thursday, Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune reports.

Miller will report to the team's alternate camp site in South Bend, Indiana. The right-hander notched a 2.56 ERA across 15 starts with Double-A Tennessee in 2019 but struggled following a promotion to Triple-A Iowa, posting a 7.58 ERA in 11 starts.

The Cardinals assigned Thompson to their alternate training site in Springfield on Thursday.

Though he's one of the top pitching prospects in the organization, Thompson hasn't pitched above the High-A level and was considered a long shot to crack the Opening Day roster. The Cardinals remain committed to developing Thompson as a starter, but he's most likely to work as a reliever if he makes his big-league debut in 2020.