MLB Player News

Wittgren could win a spot as a long reliever to begin the season if Jeff Locke (biceps) winds up on the DL, The Miami Herald reports.

The Marlins plan to carry an extra bullpen arm this season, but even so Wittgren seemed ticketed for Triple-A New Orleans until Locke's arm became an issue. Wittgren is likely battling Brian Ellington for the open spot, as both have experience in a variety of bullpen roles, but neither has pulled away from the other so far this spring.

Gsellman gave up one hit and struck out one in three shutout innings during Monday's Grapefruit League game against the Marlins.

He continues to put together a solid spring, posting a 2.57 ERA, 1.14 WHIP and 4:1 K:BB through seven innings. At the moment Gsellman is considered the favorite for the Mets fifth starter spot coming out of camp, but Seth Lugo may have something to say about that when he returns from the WBC.

Grace struck out one in a shutout inning of work during Monday's Grapefruit League game against the Tigers.

The left-hander's had a solid spring to date, posting a 2.45 ERA and 0.92 WHIP over four appearances and 3.2 innings, but Grace remains a long shot to break camp in the Nats bullpen with Sammy Solis and Oliver Perez locked in as the top two southpaw relief arms.

Cordero was returned to the Nationals minor league camp Monday, The Washington Post reports.

The former Phillies farmhand dealt with shoulder issues last season, but Cordero's strikeout potential could allow him to factor into the Nationals bullpen mix down the road if he gets off to a good start at Triple-A Syracuse this year.

Coleman (biceps tendinitis) will make his spring training debut Tuesday.

Coleman is a long shot to make the Opening Day roster, given that he's both behind schedule and not on the 40-man roster.

Underwood was optioned to Double-A Tennessee on Monday, Patrick Mooney of CSN Chicago reports.

Underwood will head back to a level where he struggled at last year, posting a 4.91 ERA and missing significant time with an undisclosed injury before ending his year in High-A Myrtle Beach. The 22-year-old will look to work his way up through the Cubs' minor league ranks in 2017, although he remains a long way away from the majors.

Castro was sent to Triple-A Albuquerque on Monday.

Castro had been competing for one of the final spots in Colorado's Opening Day bullpen, but it appears he will now begin 2017 in the minors. The 22-year-old right-hander split time between Triple-A and the majors last season, posting a 6.14 ERA in 19 appearances with the Rockies.

Per manager Bud Black, Rusin's (oblique) ability to land a rotation spot by Opening Day is "in doubt," Nick Groke of the Denver Post reports.

The left-hander strained his oblique earlier in March, and it seems like the ailment is taking longer to heal than initially expected. Rusin is still unable to throw, so a trip to the disabled list could be in the cards, but he my simply have to work out of the bullpen early in the year. Nonetheless, a firmer timetable for his return to action should come forth once he gets back to throwing. In the meantime, Jeff Hoffman and German Marquez seem to be the frontrunners to land the final two rotation spots, with Antonio Senzatela, Kyle Freeland and Harrison Musgrave also giving chase.

Voth was optioned to Triple-A Syracuse on Monday, Chelsea Janes of The Washington Post reports.

Voth was excellent over his three appearances in Grapefruit League play, tossing 4.2 scoreless innings and striking out five while walking none, but with Max Scherzer (finger) trending towards being ready for Opening Day, the 24-year-old didn't have much chance of breaking camp with a rotation spot. Even so, Voth will likely reside near the top of the list if the Nationals have a need for another starter at some point this season, as he has little left to prove at the Triple-A level. He compiled a 3.15 ERA and 7.6 K/9 over 157 innings with Syracuse in 2016.

Lopez was optioned to minor-league camp Monday.

Lopez was ineffective this spring with the Brewers, allowing seven earned runs in 2.1 innings (27.00 ERA) over two appearances, but he did give up just one earned run and struck out five batters in his most recent appearance, which came with Puerto Rico in the WBC. Lopez had a trying 2016 season, finishing with a 5.78 ERA over 25 outings, which hurt his prospect status a bit. However, he is still just 24 and was far better the previous year (2.26 ERA over 24 minor-league starts), so he remains a potential starter for the Brewers at some point this season or next.