MLB Player News

Miller (elbow) threw three innings and struck out five in a simulated game at extended spring training Friday, Steve Gilbert of MLB.com reports.

Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo witnessed Miller's outing and commended the right-hander for throwing "aggressively." Miller, who covered 33 pitches in the simulated game before throwing 10 more times in the bullpen, will likely make at least one more start at the Diamondbacks' spring training facility before the organization maps out a rehab assignment for the 27-year-old. Coming off May 2017 Tommy John surgery, Miller will likely need at least one more month to build up to a starter's workload, so it's not expected that he'll be ready to come off the 60-day disabled list until late June.

Suarez (1-2) took the loss against the Pirates on Friday, giving up five runs on seven hits and two walks while striking out five over four innings.

Starling Marte and Jose Osuna both took the left-hander deep in this one, and despite an impressive 23:4 K:BB through his first 21.2 big-league innings, Suarez's 4.57 ERA can't be considered unlucky given his 2.1 HR/9. He'll look for a better outcome Wednesday at home against the Reds.

Neris (1-3) blew his third save of the season in Friday's 3-1 loss to the Mets, serving up two home runs among three hits in an inning of work.

The Phillies' closer wasn't fooling anyone Friday -- Michael Conforto crushed a fastball for the go-ahead homer two pitches after he ripped a splitter just to the right of the foul pole, and Devin Mesoraco went back-to-back with Conforto on a first-pitch slider to tack on an insurance run. The only other homer Neris has allowed this season came on Opening Day, but his 5.17 ERA and 1.53 WHIP are signs he's been having issues even when the ball stays in the park. There's no closer controversy in Philadelphia yet, but if the 28-year-old continues to struggle, the team has plenty of promising young relief arms who could get a crack at the job, including the recently promoted Seranthony Dominguez.

Iglesias got the save against the Dodgers on Friday, striking out one batter in two-thirds of an inning to close out the Reds' 6-2 victory.

Iglesias hadn't been getting enough work to be an impact fantasy closer in the early going but this was his second straight game with a save to bring his total on the season up to six. His excellent 1.45 ERA and 0.86 suggest he could be a solid source of saves should he start to get more chances to do so.

Koch (2-1) took the loss against the Nationals on Friday despite a strong outing that saw him scatter seven hits over eight innings, yielding three earned runs, striking out three and walking one in a 3-1 loss for the Diamondbacks.

Koch put up yet another solid stat line since getting the nod in Arizona's rotation to replace the injured Taijuan Walker, as he has yet to throw fewer than five innings or give up more than three earned runs in any of his five starts so far this season. He's certainly held down the fort admirably in Walker's absence and he now has a 2.43 ERA and a 0.99 WHIP through 33.1 innings. However, he's not striking out batters at a prolific rate with just 20 punchouts to his name and the .214 BABIP he had coming into this contest suggests he's been fortunate to keep his ratios that clean, so be wary of the potential for regression before putting a great deal of stock in him as an impact fantasy option going forward.

Scribner will take the hill versus the Nationals on Saturday.

Scribner is on the "taxi squad" for Friday's game after being recalled from Triple-A Reno in advance of his 2018 debut. Over five starts with the Aces, he's posted a 5.68 ERA and 1.31 WHIP with a 24:11 K:BB in 25.1 innings. It remains to be seen whether Scribner will head back down to Reno following Saturday's start or if there's potential for a second outing, but in all likelihood, he will probably be optioned back to Reno with the Diamondbacks receiving a well-placed off day next Thursday.

Bracho was optioned to Triple-A Reno following Thursday's game.

Bracho was recently recalled earlier this week and appeared in three straight contests, tossing 2.1 scoreless innings with two strikeouts in his brief stay with the team. He will likely return in the near future, but the Diamondbacks needed to replenish their bullpen, doing so with Jake Barrett, who was recalled from Reno in a corresponding move.

Hicks grabbed his third hold by retiring the only batter he faced in a win over the Padres on Thursday.

The young fireballer disposed of Freddy Galvis on five pitches, inducing a flyout to left to end the seventh inning. Hicks has now generated five consecutive scoreless outings but has failed to record a strikeout in any of them, a rather surprising statistical nugget considering his triple-digit fastball.

Robles was diagnosed with a sprained right knee following his MRI on Wednesday.

Robles was placed on the disabled list retroactive to Wednesday after suffering the injury in Tuesday's contest. He will be eligible to return from the DL on May 19. In a corresponding move, the club recalled Buddy Baumann from Triple-A Las Vegas to provide additional depth in the bullpen.

Romero is having a rough start to the year for Double-A Reading, The Athletic Philadelphia reports.

The 21-year-old has a 6.68 ERA through six starts, walking 10.1 percent of batters while striking out just 16.2 percent. A fourth-round pick in the 2016 draft, Romero has never struggled before in professional ball, posting ERAs of 2.56 or lower for short-season Williamsport, Low-A Lakewood and High-A Clearwater over the past two years. Heading into the season, the lefty was projected as a possible future mid-rotation starter, but he'll have to turn things around for Reading to remain on that path.