MLB Player News

Gray will start Saturday's spring training opener against the Indians, Mark Sheldon of MLB.com reports.

Gray is expected to work one inning and will then be followed by Tanner Roark. Despite Gray getting the ball first in spring training, it's not set who will be the Reds' Opening Day starter.

Flaherty will serve as the Cardinals' second pitcher in Saturday's exhibition opener versus the Marlins, Jenifer Langosch of MLB.com reports.

Miles Mikolas will get the starting nod, but both he and Flaherty are expected to cover around 40 pitches apiece as the Cardinals ease both hurlers into their first competitive action in 2019. The two pitchers likely represent the leading candidates to earn the Opening Day start, especially with one established rotation option (Carlos Martinez) already sidelined by a shoulder injury early in camp. Flaherty was excellent in his first year as a full-time starter for St. Louis in 2018, accruing a 3.34 ERA, 1.11 WHIP and 10.8 K/9 over 28 outings.

Manager Mike Shildt named Mikolas the starter for the Cardinals' Grapefruit League opener Saturday versus the Marlins, Jenifer Langosch of MLB.com reports.

Mikolas will be followed by Jack Flaherty, with both hurlers slated to throw about 40 pitches apiece. The two are likely the leading contenders to garner the Opening Day nod for the Cardinals, especially with Carlos Martinez (shoulder) on a no-throw program for at least the next two weeks. Though he exceeded even the loftiest of expectations with a 2.83 ERA and 1.07 WHIP across 32 starts in 2018, Mikolas believes he can achieve even greater heights this season by making more use of his changeup to complement his excellent fastball-slider combination. He used the offspeed offering just 4.4 percent of the time last season, per Statcast.

Irvin will receive the start in the Phillies' Grapefruit League opener Friday versus the Rays, Matt Gelb of The Athletic reports.

The Phillies plan to lean on a slew of young arms in the early stages of spring training, with Irvin kicking off the exhibition slate following a spectacular 2018 campaign at Triple-A Lehigh Valley. He turned in a 2.57 ERA, 1.06 WHIP and 131:35 K:BB in 161.1 innings, taking home International League Pitcher of the Year honors in the process. Irvin isn't considered a serious candidate for either of the final two spots in the Philadelphia rotation and should begin the 2019 campaign at Triple-A.

Toussaint will start the Braves' first spring training game against the Mets on Saturday, David O'Brien of The Athletic reports.

Toussaint moved from Double-A all the way to the majors last season, finishing his first cup of coffee with a 4.03 ERA and 32:21 K:BB in 29 innings for Atlanta. The 22-year-old needs to display better control against big-league hitters than he did last season if he wants to stay up in Atlanta. If he can demonstrate some improvement on that front this spring, he has a good chance to break camp in the major-league starting rotation. Mike Soroka seems to be Toussaint's biggest competitor for the final rotation spot.

Buehler will throw his first bullpen of the spring Wednesday, Ken Gurnick of MLB.com reports.

Buehler isn't carrying any known injury; the Dodgers have been adamant that they elected to delay his start to spring by a few days in order to manage his workload.

Gray said Monday that he reported to camp at 235 pounds after dedicating himself to heavy lifting in the offseason in addition to "eating anything and everything," Patrick Saunders of The Denver Post reports.

Gray tipped the scales at as few as 209 pounds at one point last season, so his weight increase is fairly significant. While adding that kind of mass could been seen as a negative development for most players, it may be beneficial for the 6-foot-4 Gray, who boasts the frame to carry the extra pounds. Rather than any change in his physique, Gray's ability to bounce back from a rough 2018 campaign may hinge on his ability to gain more mental focus in tight spots. Opposing batters slashed .306/.379/.506 against Gray when at least one runner was on base last season, saddling him with a subpar 67.9 percent strand rate. The Rockies are tentatively penciling Gray in as their No. 4 starter behind Kyle Freeland, German Marquez and Tyler Anderson.

Alcantara will start the Marlins' Grapefruit League opener Saturday versus the Cardinals, Andre Fernandez of The Athletic reports.

Given that pitchers and catchers reported to camp just 10 days before the exhibition opener, Alcantara probably won't be asked to cover more than an inning or two. The right-hander will probably need at least a few impressive showings during the Grapefruit League slate to beat out one of Caleb Smith, Wei-Yin Chen, Dan Straily and Trevor Richards for a rotation spot. Jose Urena is the only Marlins pitcher to have officially clinched one of the five spots after manager Don Mattingly recently named the right-hander the team's Opening Day starter.

Darvish (elbow) sat between 92-94 mph in a live bullpen session Tuesday and felt good afterwards, Jesse Rogers of ESPN.com reports.

Darvish underwent arthroscopic elbow surgery in September after an injury-wrecked first season in Chicago. He should be ready to go by Opening Day provided his spring continues to go well.

Cueto threw from 45 feet Monday, his first time throwing since undergoing Tommy John surgery in August, Maria I. Guardado of MLB.com reports.

Tommy John surgery carries a recovery time of at least one year, leaving Cueto with an outside chance at best to return in some capacity late in the season. He seems to be making the expected progress so far, but the right-hander is still a long ways off.