MLB Player News

Smyly will pitch in an intrasquad game Sunday, Bill Chastain of MLB.com reports.

The southpaw has enjoyed a solid spring and will throw on three days rest after going 4.2 innings against the Phillies on Wednesday. The session is part of manager Kevin Cash's plan to keep his pitcher, and the team as a whole, on a regular routine, with their trip to Havana on tap. "We just want to make sure we load up everybody with ABs and innings on the field because we're going to have basically three days now where we're not going to be able to control that as well," Cash said.

Manager Bob Melvin told Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle that Gray is dealing with the "typical sore of dead-arm period."

Gray was shelled for six runs (five earned) on eight hits and one walk across five innings during Saturday's Cactus League outing, pushing his spring ERA to 5.68. In addition to Melvin's statement, Gray informed Slusser in a text that he was "a little tired out there," but he has time to build up his arm in advance of Opening Day on April 4 against the White Sox.

Cloyd was reassigned to minor league camp Saturday.

A non-roster invitee to major league camp, he gave up two runs on four hits (including a homer) in 3.1 Grapefruit League innings. Cloyd has not pitched in the majors since 2013, when he posted a 6.56 ERA in 60.1 innings with Philadelphia, and spent last year in the KBO.

Paxton struggled in his last start but hasn't necessarily taken a step back in the competition with Nate Karns - who had a better outing Friday - for the fifth spot in the rotation, the Seattle Times reports.

Paxton was awful in his start Thursday, failing to make it out of the third inning, allowing seven runs, six hits and three walks. He struck out none and also hit a batter. Karns wasn't great Friday, but he did a much better job of getting out of jams and limiting damage. "When I lost the handle of my breaking stuff, I kind of lost it on my fastball," Paxton said. "I should have known that early, figured that out and gone mostly fastball/changeup, because that's what was feeling good." Manager Scott Servais said execution and in-game adjustments could be the "deciding factor" in choosing a fifth starter. "I still think it's relatively close," Servais said. "It's still a competition. I know they feel it, which for me is a good thing. Competition usually brings out the best in people, and if I'm not mistaken, it gets really competitive on April 4 as well, so you need to be able to handle that stuff."

Minnesota is undecided whether Meyer will move to the rotation at Triple-A Rochester or remain in the bullpen, the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports.

Meyer has said he'd rather remain in the bullpen, but was open to starting. Meyer would have more fantasy value as a starter, but could have a faster path to the majors as a reliever. The team will likely make a decision in a few weeks.

O'Sullivan was reassigned to minor league camp Saturday.

O'Sullivan made 13 starts for the Phillies last season, going 1-6 with a 6.08 ERA across 71 innings. He'll likely start out at Triple-A Pawtucket in 2016 in hopes of working his way into a call-up later in the year.

Nolasco gave up two runs (one earned) in five innings with six strikeouts Friday against Triple-A Pawtucket, the St. Paul Pioneer Press reports. He had given up six runs in 7.1 innings in major league spring games.

Nolasco remains in competition with Tommy Milone for the final spot in the rotation. Milone has pitched better this spring (2.00 ERA and eight strikeouts in nine innings), but Nolasco could get the nod thanks to the $25 million left on his contract.

Bridwell was optioned to Double-A Bowie on Friday, Eduardo Encina of the Baltimore Sun reports.

Bridwell's move down to Double-A was only a matter of time, but he did manage to log five appearances with in big league camp this spring. He was touched up for two home runs over his 6.2 innings of work and will now head down to minor league camp to continue to stretch out as a starter. He'll start the year in Bowie's rotation in all likelihood.

Berrios was reassigned to Minnesota's minor league camp.

Berrios will likely begin the season at Triple-A. Although he didn't give up a run in 4.1 innings this spring, he struggled with control (3 walks) and had a bad outing in a minor league spring game. Even if he was perfect, the Twins likely would have kept him in the minors. And he could stay in the minors until June if the Twins want to ensure an extra year under team control. Berrios would appear to have little else to prove at Triple-A, however, as he had a 2.62 ERA, 9.9 K/9, and 1.7 BB/9 at Rochester last season.

Meyer was optioned to Triple-A Rochester. He had a 5.79 ERA with seven hits allowed and four walks in 4.2 innings.

Meyer entered 2015 as Minnesota's top pitching prospect and was seen as a possible ace in the rotation, but he had an up-and-down year that saw him moved to the bullpen. He had a 3.68 ERA and 10.2 K/9 over the final two months at Triple-A as a reliever, so he could be called up to the majors early in the season if he continues to have success in the bullpen.