MLB Player News

Hoover has earned a spot on the Diamondbacks' Opening Day roster, Nick Piecoro of AZCentral.com reports.

The veteran right-hander signed on as a non-roster invitee this spring and made the most of his opportunity. He fired 10.2 scoreless frames while fanning 12 batters and walking just one this spring. He'll slot in as a middle reliever out of the Diamondbacks' bullpen.

Smith (elbow) underwent Tommy John surgery Thursday, Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area reports.

Although it's very early, the current assessment is that Smith will be back in the majors in May of 2018. More information regarding his return should become available as he gets further in the rehab process.

Nelson is scheduled to start the Brewers' fifth game of the season.

Nelson has struggled following a pair of scoreless outings to start the spring, allowing eight runs in his next two appearances; that's left his ERA at 5.68 in Cactus League play. Despite his struggles, the 27-year-old is scheduled to round out the Brewers' rotation with Matt Garza headed for the DL to begin the year. Nelson showed some potential at the start of last season, but second-half struggles eventually saw his ERA balloon to 4.62. He'll look to bounce back in 2017 and earn his keep in the rotation.

Gomez will open the season as the Phillies' closer, CSN Philadelphia's Jim Salisbury reports.

This comes as no surprise, since manager Pete Mackanin had maintained at various times throughout spring training that Gomez was his closer at the moment. The announcement was more of a formality, but now it's been officially confirmed the closing role is his to start the season. Gomez fought off Joaquin Benoit and Hector Neris for the job, as the 29-year-old allowed one run in 9.2 innings this spring. The right-hander converted 37 of his 43 save chances last season for Philadelphia.

Reyes (elbow) was placed on the 10-day DL on Thursday, Jenifer Langosch of MLB.com reports.

This was merely procedural as Reyes is slated to miss the entire 2017 season after undergoing Tommy John surgery in mid-February. A move to the 60-day DL is inevitable -- it should happen whenever the Cardinals are pressed to free up a spot on the 40-man roster.

With Carter Capps (elbow) beginning the year on the disabled list, Maurer will officially begin the season as the club's closer, The San Diego Union-Tribune's Dennis Lin reports.

The 26-year-old was considered the favorite to win the job to open the season, so no surprises here. While this news makes him a cheap source of saves early on, Capps isn't expected to be sidelined for long, and he could take over the job at some point after his return, but that would have to coincide with some sort of ineffectiveness from Maurer. The veteran posted a 3.09 ERA with 13 saves after taking over as closer last season, so if righty can handle the role early on, then there is a possibility that he runs with the job all season.

Rusin (oblique) will pitch in a minor-league game Friday, Nick Groke and Patrick Saunders of The Denver Post report.

The left-hander is expected to log two innings (or roughly 30 pitches) in order to restart his progression toward being the Rockies' primary long-relief option. It seems like Rusin is nearing his return to the major-league bullpen, but in the meantime, whichever hurler of Kyle Freeland, Antonio Senzatela and German Marquez who doesn't make the rotation is expected to pair with Jordan Lyles to fill the void left by Rusin's absence.

Treinen was named Nationals closer by manager Dusty Baker on Thursday, Chelsea Janes of The Washington Post reports.

The right-hander with plenty of sink on his mid-90s fastball struck out eight and walked none in 4.2 innings of spring work. One of baseball's most notable groundball arms, Treinen earned Baker's accolades because of his durability. Koda Glover and Shawn Kelley remain candidates to take over or at least steal the occasional opportunity should Treinen not get the job done, but in the recent vein of Zach Britton and Sam Dyson, Treinen's often suffocating stuff may allow him to keep the job for longer than many expect.

Montero is still competing for a bullpen spot with the major-league club, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com reports.

New York can only keep one arm between Montero and Seth Lugo because the team is carrying Josh Edgin, who's out of options. The loser between Lugo and Montero will remain stretched out as a starting pitcher at Triple-A Las Vegas as the likely first replacement when a need in the rotation arises. New York should make a decision in the coming days.

Gsellman was officially named the Mets' fifth starter Thursday, but won't start until the sixth game of the season on April 9, the New York Post's Mike Puma reports.

He will face the Marlins at home in the sixth game because the schedule allows Noah Syndergaard to start the first and fifth games of the season. Zack Wheeler was named the No. 4 starter in a somewhat surprising move that has more to do with seniority and pedigree than on-field results. Steven Matz (elbow) has been shut down for three weeks, and is unlikely to return until at least late April, at which time the Mets will need to decide which back-end starter to boot from the rotation. Given the injury histories in the rotation, Gsellman is still a solid bet to return value in most mixed leagues, even if he heads to Triple-A for a brief stint at some point.