MLB Player News

Montgomery (finger) will throw a bullpen session Saturday, Alex Weiner of ArizonaSports.com reports.

Montgomery has been limited this spring by a left index finger strain but has been cleared for mound work. The veteran left-hander should have plenty of time to ramp up before Opening Day, but his role is up in the air following last year's struggles and the Diamondbacks' rotation depth.

Sasaki is slated to make his Cactus League debut sometime next week, Jack Harris of the Los Angeles Times reports.

Sasaki is expected to start March 19, the Dodgers' second of two games in Tokyo against the Cubs to begin the regular season. With his first spring training outing coming soon, it would seem to line Sasaki up for three exhibition appearances before his outing in Tokyo.

Miller (head) reported having a headache Friday, but Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said the club hopes the right-hander will be able to start throwing again soon, Jack Harris of the Los Angeles Times reports.

Miller was involved in a scary situation in Thursday's Cactus League opener against the Cubs when a live drive struck him in the head. However, he avoided any fractures and does not have any concussion symptoms yet, although he will remain in concussion protocol to be safe. It's not yet clear when Miller might be ready to pitch in a game again.

Giants manager Bob Melvin announced Friday that Webb will start Opening Day against the Reds on March 27, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

The right-hander has firmly established himself as San Francisco's ace, so it's no surprise he'll be taking the ball in the season opener. It won't be the most favorable matchup at hitter-friendly Great American Ball Park, however. Webb made 33 starts in each of the past two seasons and posted a 3.47 ERA, 1.23 WHIP and 172:50 K:BB across 204.2 innings during 2024.

Ashcraft will start one of the Reds' split-squad games Saturday, Mark Sheldon of MLB.com reports.

Ashcraft was a rotation lock the last two spring trainings, but that's not the case in 2025. The right-hander was limited to 15 starts with a 5.24 ERA in 2024 and was shut down for the second half of the season with a Grade 1-2 ulnar collateral sprain in his right elbow. He was able to resume throwing in the fall and pitched in an instructional league game, after which Ashcraft had a normal offseason. Saturday's opportunity does give him a bit of a head start on two other rotation candidates, as both Andrew Abbott (shoulder) and Rhett Lowder (elbow) are being brought along slowly to begin spring training. The Reds have also considered Ashcraft as a potential arm for the bullpen.

Gore is no longer scheduled to start Saturday's Grapefruit League opener against the Astros, Mark Zuckerman of MASNSports.com reports.

Jake Irvin is now listed as the starter for the first game of the exhibition slate, but there is no reported injury to Gore. Instead, this is a matter of Gore preferring to build up to the point of potentially reaching two innings in his spring debut, and the Nationals accommodating the left-hander's request and keeping him on the side for an additional live batting practice session. Gore still seems like the frontrunner for the Opening Day nod in 2025.

Matz is scheduled to start the Cardinals' third spring training game Monday versus the Mets, John Denton of MLB.com reports.

Matz is coming off an unproductive 2024 season in which he turned in a 5.08 ERA and 1.44 WHIP over 44.1 frames, with recurring back problems playing a part in his deflated innings count. The veteran lefty was deployed out of the bullpen for much of September, but with Kyle Gibson and Lance Lynn reaching free agency this winter and the Cardinals not making any major offseason additions to the pitching staff, Matz should be in good position to open the season as the club's No. 5 starter. Matz is entering the final season of a four-year, $44 million contract and likely won't have much job security if he emerges from camp with a rotation spot. St. Louis has a pair of intriguing young pitching prospects in Quinn Mathews and Michael McGreevy waiting in the wings to step in if Matz falters or gets injured.

Fedde is scheduled to start the Cardinals' Grapefruit League opener Saturday versus the Marlins, John Denton of MLB.com reports.

Fedde is unlikely to cover more than one or two innings Saturday, but he'll get gradually stretched out during spring training and should be ready to handle a typical starter's workload to begin the regular season After returning stateside with a revamped repertoire in 2024 following a one-year stint in Korea, Fedde emerged as a viable mid-rotation arm between stops with the White Sox and Cardinals. Over his 31 starts, the 31-year-old submitted a 3.30 ERA and 1.16 WHIP while punching out 154 batters over 177.1 innings.

Jones has worked on a two-seam fastball this offseason and will test the pitch in spring training games, Alex Stumpf of MLB.com reports.

Jones flashed his potential as a rookie last year with a 4.14 ERA in 22 starts, but his 1.3 HR/9 was a blemish in his skills profile. Like teammate Paul Skenes, Jones is working on a pitch with sinking action in an attempt to keep the ball in the yard more effectively. That could also hurt his potential strikeout upside, though he didn't commit to using that pitch in the regular season.

Gonsolin is scheduled to start Friday's Cactus League game against the Cubs, Bill Plunkett of The Orange County Register reports.

Gonsolin didn't pitch for the Dodgers in 2024 while spending most of the season recovering from the Tommy John surgery he underwent in September 2023, but he was cleared to make three rehab starts for Triple-A Oklahoma City this past September. Though he looked sharp at Triple-A, Gonsolin was never reinstated from the injured list during the Dodgers' run to the World Series, but that wasn't the result of him suffering any sort of setback. Despite having had a normal offseason in addition to owning a sterling 3.19 ERA and 1.05 WHIP over 375.2 career innings in the big leagues, Gonsolin will have to fight for a spot in a talent-laden Dodgers rotation that added Blake Snell and Roki Sasaki this offseason and also has Shohei Ohtani and Dustin May returning from Tommy John surgery. The Dodgers plan to open the season with a traditional five-man rotation before going to a six-man setup once Ohtani is fully stretched out for starting duty -- perhaps at some point in May -- so Gonsolin will be competing with Sasaki, May, Bobby Miller (concussion), Landon Knack and Justin Wrobleski for one of two spots. Gonsolin has a minor-league option remaining, but since he's 30 years old and has a strong track record in the majors, he would likely work out of the big-league bullpen if he misses out on a rotation spot.