MLB Player News

Musgrove was named the Pirates' Opening Day starter by manager Derek Shelton on Friday, Adam Berry of MLB.com reports.

The announcement is hardly a surprise, but the right-hander is now officially set to face the Cardinals in the season opener next Friday. Musgrove had a 4.44 ERA, 1.22 WHIP and 157:39 K:BB over 170.1 innings last year, though he had a strong finish with a 3.74 ERA across his final eight starts.

Gray threw four innings in Thursday's intrasquad game, giving up one run on two hits and one walk while striking out four, Kyle Glaser of Baseball America reports.

He sat 94-96 mph with his fastball and landed some nice sliders for strikes against a lineup mostly populated by big leaguers. Gray is the Dodgers' second-best pitching prospect (behind Dustin May) and has a bright future in the majors. However, given the team's impressive pitching depth, Gray doesn't project to enter the rotation until sometime in 2021.

DeGrom (back) threw a bullpen session Friday, Justin Toscano of The Bergen Record reports.

DeGrom's preseason buildup hit a speed bump when he left Tuesday's intrasquad game with back tightness after throwing just one inning. An MRI didn't reveal any serious issues, however, and he's considered day-to-day. He remains in contention for the Mets' Opening Day start against the Braves next Friday, provided his bullpen session goes smoothly, though there's a chance his disrupted summer camp prevents him from handling a full workload in his first outing or two of the year.

Ray allowed one run on one hit and didn't walk a batter while striking out nine over six innings in Wednesday night's intrasquad game, Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic reports.

Other than allowing a solo home run by Trayce Thompson, Ray was dominant once again. He's been dialed in during summer camp, allowing just one run with three walks and 17 strikeouts over 11 innings. After the game, the left-hander discussed the changes he's made, including a slimmed down physique, a revamped delivery and shorter arm action. "It's definitely something that I worked on to try to be more - to have something that's more repeatable," Ray said of his shorter arm stroke. "That was something that allowed me to get in the same spot in my delivery time after time and be consistent." Ray is expected to serve as the Diamondbacks' No. 2 starter in 2020, with his season debut expected July 25 against San Diego.

Gallen got up to 72 pitches over 3.2 innings in Thursday's intrasquad game, Steve Gilbert of MLB.com reports.

That's a lot of pitches for 3.2 innings, but Gallen remained positive. He threw all of his pitches, worked at holding runners on and navigated trouble. He'll get one more start in camp before the regular season when he is expected to serve as Arizona's No. 3 starter.

Kim fired five scoreless, one-hit innings in Thursday's intrasquad game while recording five strikeouts, Anne Rogers of MLB.com reports.

As the aforementioned line implies, the left-hander was thoroughly dominant over the course of 69 pitches. Kim threw 10 first-pitch strikes along the way and also recorded 10 swings and misses, flashing all four of his pitches. The performance elicited high praise from multiple teammates, with outfielder Austin Dean noting Kim's deceptive delivery and the movement on his fastball and breaking stuff, and fellow pitcher Adam Wainwright lauding Kim's ability to change speeds effortlessly. The 31-year-old continues to battle Carlos Martinez for the No. 5 starter's job, although Kim's quest for a rotation role could be helped by Martinez potentially being shifted to the position of primary closer.

Wood unofficially threw 89 pitches across six innings in an intrasquad game Wednesday, allowing two runs on five hits and one walk while striking out eight, per Alanna Rizzo of Spectrum SportsNet LA.

Wood is lined up to be the the Dodgers' fourth starter this season, and judging by Wednesday's outing, he's stretched out enough to take on a normal workload from the outset of the campaign. The southpaw is looking to bounce back after an injury-filled 2019 campaign during which he was limited to only seven appearances.

Manager Mike Shildt said Thursday that Martinez has earned every opportunity to be in the starting rotation, Jeff Jones of the Belleville News-Democrat reports.

Since Jordan Hicks (elbow) opted out of playing this season and Giovanny Gallegos remains grounded in Mexico without an arrival date, it's logical to speculate Martinez could return to the closer role. However, manager Mike Shildt may decide to go a different direction in the ninth inning because Martinez has continued to impress coaches throughout camp and has been preparing as a starter since the conclusion of last season. The 28-year-old will count on his high velocity and movement heading into his eighth season with the Cardinals regardless of when he enters games. Martinez recorded an impressive 26.5 K% in 2019, notching his fifth straight season with an ERA below 3.65.

Manager Mike Shildt said Thursday that Wainwright will start the second game of the season, Jeff Jones of the Belleville News-Democrat reports.

Wainwright will get the ball Saturday, July 25 when the Cardinals host the Pirates at Busch Stadium. The 38-year-old will pitch in four days to make sure he is lined up and ready to go. Wainwright is coming off his 14th season in St. Louis, in which he posted a 4.19 ERA, 1.43 WHIP and 153:64 K:BB across 171.2 innings.

Buehler is expected to throw two innings in Friday's intrasquad game, Bill Plunkett of The Orange County Register reports.

Buehler will see his first intrasquad game action Friday as he's been building up slowly during summer camp. The slow start to camp isn't due to any injury, but he's slightly behind the other pitchers with one week remaining before Opening Day. Manager Dave Roberts said Tuesday that "once the season starts whatever he gives us will be sufficient," so while it sounds as though Buehler will be available to start the season, he could be limited.