MLB Player News

Cardinals pitcher Shelby Miller continued to make a strong case for a rotation spot Tuesday against the Marlins. Miller, who made his second start of the spring, threw a one-hitter over four innings. He retired the last 11 batters he faced before Joe Kelly replaced him in the fifth. Miller also struck out three and walked one to lower his ERA to 4.63 this spring.

Kelly was hit hard, allowing four runs on eight hits in three innings. Kelly, who started 16 games last season, has a 4.91 ERA through four outings.

Pitchers Shelby Miller and Joe Kelly are still fighting it out for the fifth spot in the Cardinals' rotation. Both pitchers are slated to pitch on Tuesday, with Miller getting the start. Kelly will likely pitch in relief, though it’s not clear how the innings will be split among the two.

Based on how Miller and Kelly perform on Tuesday, the team could make a decision about the fifth starter shortly after the game. The 21-year-old Miller has made the Baseball America top-100 prospect list in each of the past four seasons. Kelly, 25, doesn’t have the pedigree, but does have the experience. He started 16 games for the Cardinals last season, with a 3.53 ERA and a 4.00 FIP in 107 innings. 

I think we all see where this Aroldis Chapman stuff is going.

Between Dusty Baker's recent implication that it's his decision to make (as opposed to the front office's) and Chapman's own stated preference for closing, all that talk of the flamethrowing lefty moving to the Reds' starting rotation is on the verge of being nothing more than hot air. That's my guess, anyway.

As my colleague Al Melchior already pointed out, that wouldn't be such a bad thing for Chapman's Fantasy value, but it would be a disaster for Jonathan Broxton's. Few setup men are worth owning in Fantasy, and Broxton's ratios suggest he wouldn't be one of those few.

Of course, those ratios had me labeling Broxton a bust candidate even before this Chapman talk started. He's clearly just a $1 player now.

This weekend, Aroldis Chapman disclosed that he would prefer to close rather than start for the Reds. Manager Dusty Baker told ESPN.com, "We are going to do what's best for the team and for him. But it makes it a lot easier when you get the person's blessing." It certainly sounds like the door is more than just cracked open for Chapman to return to the bullpen.

If Chapman comes anywhere near last season's numbers, he should have far more value as a closer than as a starter, especially if he is limited to 160 innings or so. It's not a bad thing to own Chapman in any Fantasy scenario, but if the Reds pull the trigger on returning him to the closer's role, it's time to move him up in your rankings, at least to the earlier portion of the middle rounds.

The Phillies announced Sunday they reassigned pitcher Cesar Jimenez and infielder Josh Fields to minor-league camp.

The Phillies announced Sunday they optioned relievers Justin DeFratus and Jake Diekman to Triple-A Lehigh Valley. The Phillies now have four relievers --  Phillippe Aumont, Michael Stutes, Raul Valdes, Jeremy Horst -- competing for the final three spots in the bullpen.

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports Cardinals pitchers Shelby Miller and Joe Kelly, who are competing for the final spot in the team's rotation, will pitch during Tuesday's spring game against the Marlins. Miller will start and Kelly will follow.

Miller, who is considered a top 100 prospect by Baseball America (No. 6) and MLB.com (No. 25), is 1-0 with a 7.04 ERA and 1.57 WHIP in three spring outings (one start), while Kelly is 0-0 with a 2.25 ERA and 1.25 WHIP through three spring starts (eight innings).

Reds pitcher Aroldis Chapman made his fourth appearance of the Cactus League on Saturday against the Giants. He allowed a run on two hits over four innings. The left-hander also walked three and struck out two.

Chapman, who has a 2.25 ERA this spring, is competing for the fifth spot in the rotation but said after the game that he'd prefer returning to the role he had last season.

"I would like to be a closer, but that's not in my hands," Chapman said.

Rockies pitcher Drew Pomeranz endured a rough outing in Saturday's Cactus League game against the Mariners. Pomeranz, who made his fourth appearance of the spring, fared well early, but ran into trouble in the fifth inning when he allowed five runs, including a solo home run by Kendrys Morales. He gave up four runs on nine hits in five innings. He also struck out five and issued a walk. His ERA increased to 5.54 this spring.

"I really threw my fastball well today, but I don’t think my off-speed location was there today," Pomeranz told the Denver Post. "I made a bad pitch to Morales (an inside fastball). Actually, it was a good pitch, just the wrong time to throw that pitch."

Just a day after blowing a save in the ninth inning, Braves closer Craig Kimbrel bounced back with a solid inning of work for Team USA in Friday's game against Puerto Rico in the World Baseball Classic. Kimbrel entered in the ninth inning and allowed an infield single to Luis Figueroa for his only damage of the night. He forced the next two batters to pop out and left the frame unscathed. Kimbrel finished the tournament with a 4.91 ERA.