MLB Player News

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.

Reyes has not yet been cleared to throw following a physical Tuesday morning, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch's Derrick Goold reports.

He skipped his scheduled throwing session Tuesday, and the Cardinals are awaiting more information before commenting. This is certainly noteworthy, and if medical tests did not come back clean, Reyes would be unlikely to pitch in the World Baseball Classic as planned.

Blach is one of several arms competing for the fifth starter job out of spring training, CSN Bay Area reports.

Blach had a brief but successful run as the Giants' long man last September, notably tossing a complete-game shutout in a must-win spot start against the Dodgers. While the 1.06 ERA may open some eyes, that was clearly a mirage when you observe his unreal 94.8% strand rate and pedestrian 5.3 K/9. That's not to say that he isn't a good pitcher, just that his ERA would likely land somewhere between his 3.62 FIP and 4.32 xFIP over the course of a whole season. While he is technically "in the mix," Matt Cain is fully expected to win the fifth starter role barring any health issues. If that holds true, Blach will have to find his way on the roster in a long relief role.

Rodney will not be in spring training until later this week due to visa issues, Nick Piecoro of AZCentral Sports reports.

This is a minor hiccup in the veteran's offseason procedure, and he'll likely get back on track once he arrives in Arizona later in the week. Rodney is in line to be the closer for the Diamondbacks this season, and this delay should do nothing to change that.

Bowman is expected to reprise the middle relief role that he thrived in during his 2016 rookie campaign, Jenifer Langosch of MLB.com reports.

The 26-year-old, who was added to the roster as a Rule 5 pick, surpassed Seth Maness as the ground-ball specialist of the bullpen last season, finishing sixth among NL relievers with a 62.1 groundball percentage. His 17 multi-inning appearances were a team high, while he ranked sixth among rookie relievers with 67.2 innings. Along the way, Bowman compiled 13 holds, a 1.17 WHIP and outstanding 4.00 GB/FB ratio across 59 appearances, rendering him one of the more valuable components of the Cardinals relief corps, particularly for the purposes of keeping the ball in the park.