MLB Player News

Garcia (elbow) was placed on the 60-day DL on Wednesday, Ken Gurnick of MLB.com reports.

Garcia underwent Tommy John surgery in late October and is set to miss all of the 2017 season, so his placement on the DL was merely a formality. In moving Garcia to the 60-day DL, the Dodgers will open up a 40-man roster spot for newly signed reliever Sergio Romo.

Smith is a lock to serve as the Giants' left-handed setup man, CSN Bay Area reports.

No surprises here, as this was the role the Giants envisioned for Smith when they dealt their top pitching prospect for him at the deadline last year. He will enter games in the seventh and eighth innings when opposing lineups are more lefty-heavy than usual. This should give Smith a fair share of hold opportunities for a team that is expected to be competitive this season.

Rodney is in the process of having his citizenship status reviewed, making it unclear when he will report to spring training, Jack Magruder of FanRag Sports reports.

Although this may seem a bit concerning, the Diamondbacks have come out and said they aren't concerned about this development. As long as everything goes as planned, Rodney should assume the closer role as soon as he sets foot at the Diamondbacks facility at Talking Stick.

Gsellman will not be able to swing a bat for two weeks as he recovers from labrum surgery, Marc Carig of Newsday reports.

Gsellman was unable to swing a bat last season as well, one of the first signs he would need surgery on his non-throwing shoulder this offseason. He is currently competing with Robert Lugo for the fifth spot in the Mets' starting rotation after posting a 2.42 ERA and a 42:15 K:BB ratio over seven starts last season. Despite the hindrance, Gsellman is expected to fully participate in all pitching activities during spring training.

Treinen will be in the mix for the Nationals' closing job in spring training, The Washington Post reports.

Nats manager Dusty Baker may prefer to give the spot to someone with more experience, but Treinen improved his numbers against left-handed hitters in 2016 while also looking sharp in high-leverage situations, holding opponents to a tiny .128/.261/.154 line. The 28-year-old should have a prominent late-inning role whether he closes or not, though, making him a safer pick in fantasy formats that use saves plus holds as a category rather than just pure saves.

The Cardinals have confirmed that Reyes (elbow) will have Tommy John surgery, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.

Fears of a possible UCL repair surfaced Tuesday after Reyes was not cleared to throw at the outset of spring training workouts. As a result of the surgery, Reyes will miss the entire 2017 campaign, with the possibility of being ready at some point early in spring training in 2018 if everything progresses well with his recovery. The Cards will likely turn to Michael Wacha to fill the spot Reyes was expected to hold in the rotation, but Luke Weaver is also an option if the team opts to utilize Wacha in a multi-inning relief role instead.

Castro completed a training plan in the Dominican Republic over the winter to strengthen the shoulder that ailed him throughout last season, Thomas Harding of MLB.com reports.

The young fireballer came out of the gates scorching hot, but he ultimately succumbed to a bout of shoulder inflammation and was shut down for the season in early August. Castro appears to have built him shoulder strength back up, and if he can get back to the form that led the Rockies to tab him as the closer of the future, he could work his way into more high-leverage situations. However, in the meantime, the Rockies will likely be cautious with the 22-year-old given the fact that Adam Ottavino, Greg Holland, Jake McGee and Carlos Estevez all have closing experience and are more than capable of handling late-inning duties.

An MRI revealed that Reyes (elbow) has a partially torn ulnar collateral ligament in his elbow and will likely undergo Tommy John surgery, Jim Bowden of ESPN reports.

Red flags were raised after he experienced elbow soreness late last week, and following the top prospect's physical Tuesday, it seems like the worst case scenario became a reality. Reyes is going to get a second opinion on his ailing elbow, but it appears that his season will be over before it even began. Reyes was expected to compete for St. Louis' fifth rotation spot with Michael Wacha prior to the injury, although those plans will now have to wait until sometime during the 2018 campaign. Reyes, who was the top pitching prospect in the game prior to the injury, is still good enough to warrant holding in dynasty formats, but that's about where his value ends for the time being.

Gomez was deemed "our closer at this point" by manager Pete Mackanin, Matt Gelb of Philly.com reports.

This is subject to change throughout the course of spring training, however, Mackanin said after the first workout that he believes "Gomez deserves to be called our closer at this point." He converted 37 of his 46 save opportunities with the Phillies in 2016, although he struggled toward the end of the year.

Reyes had an MRI on his pitching arm Tuesday, MLB.com's Jenifer Langosch reports.

The Cardinals do not yet know the results of the test. His scheduled throwing session was skipped Tuesday morning following a physical, so there is plenty of cause for concern, but we won't know the specific nature of the ailment until the MRI results are released.