MLB Player News

Greinke's home park, Chase Field, will install a humidor prior to the 2018 season, which should result in a drop in home runs, Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic reports.

The installation of a humidor had long been rumored and has finally been confirmed. The device is used to store baseballs, causing them to absorb water and become less bouncy. Physics professor Alan Nathan estimates that the use of a humidor at Chase Field could decrease home runs by at least 25 percent. That would be good news for Greinke, who gave up 15 home runs at home last season. Greinke's price should rise a bit due to this news in anticipation of a slight boost to his ERA.

Ray's home park in Arizona will install a humidor for this season, which could result in a significant drop in home runs, Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic reports.

After much speculation, it was announced late Tuesday that the humidor will indeed come to Chase Field in 2018. As Piecoro notes, a ball stored in a humidor absorbs water, decreasing its "coefficient of restitution," or bounciness. Physics professor Alan Nathan suggested the humidor should result in 50-to-80 fewer homers hit at Chase Field each year, at the very least. This is welcome news for Ray, who has struggled with the long ball during his time with the Diamondbacks. Expect his price to tick up, but for good reason.

Musgrove will be worked out as a starter in spring training, Liz Bloom of The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.

Although it was expected that Musgrove would be in line to enter the Pirates' rotation in 2018, manager Clint Hurdle's confirmation is yet another sign that the 25-year-old will be a starter instead of setting up in the bullpen. Obviously, if Musgrove doesn't seem to find a niche in the rotation, he will be a vital relief arm for the club, but he has the makings of a mid-rotation arm at this point in time. Over 109.1 innings of work with Houston last year, he posted a 4.77 ERA and 1.33 WHIP in 15 starts and 23 relief appearances.

Cueto is set to participate in long-toss sessions over the next few days before getting back to the mound, Andrew Baggarly of The Athletic reports.

Not uncommon for a veteran, Cueto will take it easy at the beginning of spring training after dealing with blister issues and a flexor strain during the 2017 season. In all, he posted a 4.52 ERA and 1.45 WHIP over 147.1 innings, while sporting a 136:53 K:BB. Because of his injury-plagued year, Cueto's status should be monitored throughout the spring camp.

Mahle is expected to contend for the fifth spot in Cincinnati's rotation during spring training, Mark Sheldon of MLB.com reports.

Mahle had a solid major-league debut last season, as he started four games and pitched 20 innings, over which he logged a 2.70 ERA. However, his lack of control (11 walks) contributed to a 1.50 WHIP. Fortunately, due to his performance in the minors, there's reason to believe that figure could fall. Between Double-A Pensacola and Triple-A Louisville, Mahle pitched 24 games (144.1 innings) in 2017 and pieced together a 0.96 WHIP.

Rea (elbow) will not face any restrictions during spring training, AJ Cassavell of MLB.com reports.

Rea underwent Tommy John surgery in November 2016, and as expected, he'll be fully operational heading into spring training after missing the entire 2017 season to rehab. The 27-year-old will get a chance to compete for one of the Padres' final rotation spots, though even if he earns a starting role, he doesn't figure to offer much from a fantasy perspective.

Kershaw was named the Dodgers' Opening Day starter Tuesday, Andy McCullough of the Los Angeles Times reports.

This comes as no surprise to anyone given the southpaw's status as one of the top pitchers in baseball. Kershaw is coming off yet another dominant season in which he posted a 2.31 ERA, 0.95 WHIP and 10.4 K/9. He'll now spend spring training gearing up for his Opening Day assignment at home against the Giants.

Freeland began his offseason throwing program two weeks later in an attempt to stay fresh later into the 2018 season, Thomas Harding of MLB.com reports.

The southpaw was one of the biggest surprises for Colorado last season (4.10 ERA, 11 wins), but he faded a bit at the end of the season and even spent some time in the minors as a result. As a result, he altered his offseason throwing program just a bit to combat that issue. Heading into 2018, Freeland is focused on grabbing a rotation spot, and ideally this new approach will help him maintain such a role for the whole season. Only time will tell if he can be as effective this season, however.

Wheeler, who was limited to just 17 starts last season due to a stress fracture in his right arm, has spent the past six months injecting himself with prescription Forteo, a pharmaceutical typically used to battle osteoporosis, Newsday reports.

Forteo is used to help bone strength and density, and Wheeler hopes that the injections will help prevent a recurrence of the stress fracture that ended his season July 22. Former Met Erik Goeddel followed a similar practice when he had a similar issue and the injections worked. Wheeler's goal this season is to make 30 starts, which would be the first time he has hit that mark since the 2014 season. However, concerns regarding his health could drive the Mets to pursue one of the remaining starting pitching options available in free agency.

Perez was arrested Saturday after an accidental shooting, Marcos Grunfeld reports.

Perez was reportedly handing a gun that he owned to pitching coach Cesar Quintero, when the gun went off -- Quintero was shot and didn't survive the incident. The accident occurred in Venezuela, and the 26-year-old pitcher is cooperating with police. Pitchers and catchers reports Feb. 13 for Chicago, so it's unclear if Perez will be in attendance Tuesday.