MLB Player News

Abbott (shoulder) will begin the season on the injured list, Gordon Wittenmyer of The Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

Abbott was able to make his spring debut Monday after spending most of camp working through the same shoulder issue that put an early end to his 2024 campaign. He was able to go three innings during his first spring start, but the Reds will send him to the 15-day IL at the start of the season to ensure he has enough time to build up his workload -- ideally to around five frames. While Abbott is out, Carson Spiers will serve as the fifth member of Cincinnati's rotation.

Spiers will open the season as the Reds' fifth starter, Gordon Wittenmyer of The Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

It could be temporary until Andrew Abbott (shoulder) is ready, but Spiers will have at least a couple starts to convince the Reds he should remain in the rotation. The right-hander has had a strong showing this spring, collecting a 2.70 ERA and 10:4 K:BB across 10 frames.

Grichuk (ankle) will start in left field and bat third in Thursday's Cactus League game versus the Athletics.

Grichuk was unavailable for a couple days while battling some left ankle soreness, but he's ready to roll now. The veteran outfielder is slated to start against lefties for the Diamondbacks this season.

Irvin averaged 91.4 mph with his fastball during Wednesday's Grapefruit League start against the Cardinals, down significantly from the 93.8 mph he averaged in 2024, but he said after the game he felt fine, Mark Zuckerman of MASN Sports reports.

The Nationals allowed the right-hander to build up to 91 pitches (64 strikes), so even though the results weren't pretty -- six runs allowed on 10 hits, including two home runs, over 5.2 innings -- the team would seem to share Irvin's confidence in his fitness. "No, we would've definitely taken him out [if we thought he was dealing with a health issue]," manager Dave Martinez said after the game. "But he said he felt great. He said nothing to worry about. He's tinkering. One, he's throwing the slider, he's throwing the cutter, so his fastball was just a little off." Irvin had been pitching fairly well this spring prior to the blowup, and he still has a 3.86 ERA through 16.1 innings after Wednesday, albeit with a lackluster 9:8 K:BB. He's expected to get one more turn during the exhibition schedule before starting the second game of the season for the Nats on March 29 against the Phillies.

Peterson gave up two hits and three walks over five scoreless innings in Wednesday's Grapefruit League game against Houston. He struck out four.

Peterson continued a stingy spring that has seen him post a 0.57 ERA and 12:7 K:BB through 15.2 innings. The 29-year-old lefty has a rotation spot locked up due to Sean Manaea (oblique) and Frankie Montas (lat) being set to begin the season on the IL, and Peterson is expected to make his first start of 2025 on March 31 in Miami.

Rojas (shoulder) is starting in center field and batting leadoff in Thursday's Grapefruit League contest against Atlanta, Lochlahn March of The Philadelphia Inquirer reports.

Rojas had been limited to designated hitter duty after suffering a right shoulder injury during the Dominican Winter League, but he's been throwing without issue lately and is finally ready to play the field. The defensive ace is expected to operate as the Phillies' fourth outfielder this season.

Baty went 2-for-3 with a double, a triple, a run scored and an RBI in Wednesday's Grapefruit League game against the Astros.

Both extra-base hits came off Ronel Blanco, and Baty is now batting .333 (14-for-42) this spring with four doubles, a triple and two homers, plus a sharp 4:5 BB:K. The 25-year-old has emerged as the favorite to start at second base for the Mets while Jeff McNeil (oblique) is on the shelf, or at least handle the strong side of a platoon with Luisangel Acuna, and while Baty has yet to provide consistent offense in the majors, his career .273/.368/.531 slash line at Triple-A with 26 home runs in 416 plate appearances will earn him at least one more chance to turn his potential into production.

Alonso went 1-for-4 with a walk and a three-run home run in Wednesday's Grapefruit League game against the Astros.

He crushed a pitch from Miguel Castro over the left-field fence in the sixth inning. It was Alonso's first long ball this spring, but he also has four doubles among his nine hits while batting .220 (9-for-41) with a 7:8 BB:K. The slugging first baseman appears to be getting his timing down just in time for Opening Day.

Diaz sat 93-95 mph with his fastball during Wednesday's Grapefruit League game against the Astros, according to the stadium radar gun, and Statcast has him averaging 95.7 mph with his four-seamer this spring, his lowest mark since 2020, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com reports.

Stadium guns aren't always reliable, and Mets manager Carlos Mendoza says he isn't concerned -- he indicated after Wednesday's outing that the closer had hit 97 mph in a back-field game recently. Still, Diaz's velocity has been on the decline since his 2023 ACL surgery, and he averaged 99 mph the spring prior to that injury. If the 30-year-old right-hander has lost some of his heat, he'll need to compensate with better control -- his 9.3 percent walk rate last season was his highest mark since 2020. Even if he can't regain his elite form or consistent triple-digit fastball, Diaz is still locked in as the Mets' closer.

Riley went 1-for-3 with a two-run home run in Wednesday's Grapefruit League game against the Yankees.

The third baseman took Fernando Cruz deep in the sixth inning for the first runs of the game after Spencer Schwellenbach and Carlos Carrasco engaged in a pitcher's duel through the first part of the contest. It was Riley's second homer of the spring, and a good sign that the pitch he took off his right hand over the weekend won't be a lingering issue. Through 14 Grapefruit League appearances, Riley is batting .294 (10-for-34) with a 3:9 BB:K and three doubles in addition to his long balls.