MLB Player News

White is one of the top candidates to step into the rotation if either or both of Kevin Gausman (shoulder) and Alek Manoah (shoulder) aren't ready for Opening Day, Kaitlyn McGrath of The Athletic reports.

White has shown increased velocity in camp, touching 97 mph with his fastball -- a boost he attributes to better health and mechanical tweaks. On the other hand, throwing harder hasn't meant throwing better so far this spring, as he's posted a rough 1:4 K:BB through three innings. The 29-year-old right-hander has posted miserable regular-season numbers for the Blue Jays since being acquired from the Dodgers, but he's out of minor-league options and Toronto isn't willing to give up on him just yet. Bowden Francis is the other main candidate for any open rotation spot.

McCaughan was optioned to Triple-A Jacksonville by the Marlins on Tuesday.

McCaughan had a couple scoreless appearances this spring, but that wasn't enough to prevent him from being an early roster cut. Acquired via trade from the Mariners last month, McCaughan will likely be part of Jacksonville's rotation.

Brebbia (calf) is scheduled to throw a bullpen session Thursday, Daryl Van Schouwen of the Chicago Sun-Times reports.

Brebbia is about two weeks removed from suffering a right calf strain and is now ready to re-incorporate some mound work. The reliever noted previously that his calf doesn't bother him when he's throwing, so pitcher's fielding practice might be the bigger test and it's unclear when he'll be ready for that. Brebbia is a question mark for Opening Day.

Antone allowed two runs on four hits and struck out one over two-thirds of an inning in Monday's spring game against the Athletics.

Antone has been through an ordeal the last three years, recovering from a second Tommy John elbow surgery, then overcoming a forearm issue that limited him to five September appearances at the big-league level in 2023. He told Mark Sheldon of MLB.com that he's "becoming more of a pitcher instead of a thrower." Indeed, the right-hander that once toiled in the upper 90s is down in the 91-95 mph range this spring. In three spring outings, the 30-year-old Antone has allowed three runs on five hits and one walk while striking out five over 2.2 innings.

Diaz allowed two runs on two hits and struck out one over one inning in Monday's spring game against Oakland.

Diaz made his second Cactus League appearance, entering to start the fourth inning. He's one of a handful of closers deemed to have a high degree of security, so it will take more than one deleterious spring outing for the Reds to be concerned. Diaz recorded 37 saves (40 chances) in 2023.

Through two Cactus League appearances this spring, Joyce has given up five earned runs on three hits and five walks while striking out two batters over 1.1 innings.

It's been a struggle for the fireballing reliever early in spring action, as he's had trouble finding the strike zone. In his first game, which came against the Giants on Feb. 26, Joyce served up three walks and a homer to yield four runs while getting just one out. He was able to complete a full inning his next time out but still gave up two walks, two hits and a run. Joyce issued nine walks in 10 innings in his first taste of the majors last year, and he was only slightly better at corralling his command in the minors. The right-hander's ability to throw triple-digit heat has him tabbed as a future closer and gives him a good chance of landing an Opening Day bullpen spot this season, but he'll need to get much better at limiting walks eventually if he's to find substantial big-league success.

Through King's first two Cactus League appearances this spring, he's allowed no runs on two hits over five innings while posting a 4:0 K:BB.

King's first spring appearance came in relief, and he pitched two scoreless frames against Cleveland after entering in the third inning. He then started against San Francisco in his second outing and breezed through three frames, allowing just one hit while striking out three batters. King came over from the Yankees in December in the trade that sent Juan Soto to New York, and the right-handed hurler is set to start for the Padres from the outset of the campaign. His final three seasons with the Yankees were impressive, as he tallied a 2.88 ERA (3.13 FIP), 1.15 WHIP and 255:72 K:BB over 219 frames, but only 15 of his 105 appearances during that span came as a starter.

Munoz flashed a triple-digit fastball during his one Cactus League appearance thus far, Brent Stecker of 710 ESPN Seattle reports.

Munoz allowed a hit and recorded two strikeouts over one inning against the White Sox on Thursday, offsetting the impressive heater with a sharp slider, per Stecker. The flame-throwing right-hander, who was 13-for-16 in save opportunities last season and is likely to have ninth-inning work all to himself early in the season with Matt Brash (elbow) potentially sidelined, needed only eight pitches to get through his one frame against Chicago.

Adcock (undisclosed) has been throwing live batting practices on the backfields and could make his Cactus League debut this week, Shannon Drayer of 710 ESPN Seattle reports.

The young right-hander was impressive across his first 12 big-league appearances in 2023, with Adcock posting a 3.45 ERA and 0.70 WHIP across 15.2 innings. While he did have trouble keeping the ball in the park (2.3 HR/9), Adcock also showed impressive location for a player who'd never pitched about the Double-A level before his mid-June promotion. "Ty Adcock throws strikes," Servais said when asked Sunday morning what stood out about him. "For a guy who pitched about 28 professional innings before he got to the big leagues, that's kind of unheard of."

Brash (elbow) is expected to play catch Tuesday with a trainer, Shannon Drayer of 710 ESPN Seattle reports.

The right-hander is still expected to be weeks away from a return, but Tuesday represents an important step in his recovery. If Brash is able to come out of the session without any setbacks, he'll likely begin a deliberate process of building up his workload while managing the medial right elbow inflammation he's been experiencing.