MLB Player News

Manager Dave Roberts said Sunday that Gonsolin is leading the competition to serve as the Dodgers' fifth starter, Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic reports.

Gonsolin served mainly as a starter last year and recorded a 3.23 ERA and 1.35 WHIP in 55.2 innings across 15 appearances (13 starts). He's been competing with Andrew Heaney and Tyler Anderson for a starting role in camp, but Gonsolin is the leading candidate for the fifth spot in the rotation. Roberts said Heaney will likely make at least one turn through the rotation early in the year since Trevor Bauer (not injury related) is on administrative leave, but Gonsolin appears to be in line for a more permanent starting role.

Irvin (elbow) is fully healthy and has pitched well during spring training, Lacy Lusk of Baseball America reports.

Irvin underwent Tommy John surgery in October 2020 but is now fully recovered entering this season. He last saw game action at the Low-A level in 2019 and had a 4.00 ERA, 1.25 WHIP and 113:38 K:BB over 128.1 innings.

Wright is a frontrunner for one of the final two rotation spots in Atlanta, Justin Toscano of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.

Wright has yet to have consistent success at the big-league level, as he has a career 6.56 ERA across 70 innings. Still, he's only 26 years old and also turned in three scoreless innings in his first Grapefruit League outing of 2022. Despite his current standing, Wright has one minor-league option remaining, so the team could ultimately opt to rely on Tucker Davidson or Kyle Muller in the rotation to begin the campaign.

Ynoa is a favorite to land a rotation spot to begin the season, Justin Toscano of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.

The status of Ynoa's health was unclear when he reported to camp after he suffered from shoulder inflammation during the postseason. However, he threw three scoreless innings in a Grapefruit League appearance against the Twins on Tuesday, seemingly answering any short-term concerns. Across 91 innings in 2021, Ynoa showed promise by maintaining a 4.05 ERA and 1.11 WHIP with a 100:25 K:BB.

Boyd (elbow) was placed on the 60-day injured list Sunday, Maria I. Guardado of MLB.com reports.

Boyd underwent flexor tendon surgery on his left elbow in September and isn't expected to be ready for game action until June, so it's not a surprise he'll open the season on the 60-day IL. The 31-year-old had a 3.89 ERA, 1.27 WHIP and 67:23 K:BB over 78.2 innings for Detroit last season, and he'll be in the mix for a rotation spot with San Francisco after inking a one-year, $5.2 million deal in mid-March.

Smyly pitched two scoreless innings in Saturday's Cactus League game against the Padres. He allowed one hit and struck out two.

This was Smyly's first game action of the spring after agreeing to a one-year deal with the Cubs a week ago. The lefty started 23 games for Atlanta last season, registering a 4.48 ERA and 1.37 WHIP across 126.2 innings of work. He'll likely slot in at the back of Chicago's rotation to begin the year, particularly with Adbert Alzolay (lat) currently on the 60-day injured list.

Rogers allowed one run on two hits and a walk over three innings in Saturday's Grapefruit League game against the Cardinals. He struck out one.

Making his spring debut, the southpaw got tagged for a solo home run by Paul Goldschmidt in the third inning but otherwise had little trouble with a St. Louis lineup that featured a number of regulars. Rogers broke out in 2021 with a 2.64 ERA, 1.15 WHIP and 28.5 percent strikeout rate over 133 innings and 25 starts, and if he can maintain or even build on the control gains he showed last year, he may not have reached his ceiling yet in the majors.

Anderson gave up two hits and a walk over three scoreless innings while striking out four in Friday's Grapefruit League game against the Red Sox.

Making his first outing of the spring, Anderson had little trouble against a Boston lineup mostly made up of utility players and fringe major-leaguers. The 23-year-old right-hander is coming off a solid first full season in the Atlanta rotation, but his 23.2 percent strikeout rate was a step backwards from the 29.7 percent rate he posted over six starts in 2020, not to mention his minor-league numbers. If Anderson can regain some dominance while taking on a bigger workload, he could emerge as a bona fide ace.

Walker allowed one hit over two scoreless innings without walking or striking out a batter in Saturday's Grapefruit League game against the Nationals.

The one hit Walker gave up came on a sun-aided popup that didn't leave the infield. The veteran right-hander came into camp behind the rest of the Mets starting pitchers after undergoing knee surgery in January, but he appeared healthy Saturday and Bill Ladson of MLB.com reports that Walker believes there's still enough time left in the spring for him to build up to five innings for his first regular-season outing. While he'd likely be on an early pitch count, Walker may be able to slot into the fifth starter spot in the Opening Day rotation rather than having to skip a turn or two.

The Dodgers sent down Pepiot to minor-league camp Saturday, according to Juan Toribio of MLB.com.

At Triple-A in 2021, Pepiot posted a 7.13 ERA and 1.80 WHIP in 41.2 innings. In spring training, Pepiot allowed four hits, six earned runs and four walks with four strikeouts in four innings.