MLB Player News

The Cubs optioned Kilian to Triple-A Iowa on Saturday, Jared Wyllys of AllCHGO.com reports.

Kilian gave up eight hits and a walk over 3.2 innings during spring training. The 27-year-old righty owns a career 9.22 ERA and 2.01 WHIP across 27.1 MLB frames, and his 40-man spot could be in jeopardy soon.

The Cubs optioned Poteet to Triple-A Iowa on Saturday, Jared Wyllys of AllCHGO.com reports.

Poteet struggled to find his footing this spring, giving up four earned runs over 3.1 innings. He'll head to Iowa to begin the 2025 campaign but is certainly capable of working his way back to the majors after turning in a 2.22 ERA over 24.1 regular-season frames with the Yankees last year.

The Cubs optioned Neely to Triple-A Iowa on Saturday, Jared Wyllys of AllCHGO.com reports.

Neely allowed one earned run on two hits and a walk while striking out three batters over his two innings of Cactus League action, but the Cubs will need to see more from him in the minors before adding him to their bullpen. The 24-year-old posted a 3.26 ERA and 1.29 WHIP across 19.1 innings in Triple-A last year.

The Cubs optioned Hollowell to Triple-A Iowa on Saturday, Jared Wyllys of AllCHGO.com reports.

Hollowell made just one appearance for the Cubs during Cactus League play, allowing one run on two hits while striking out two batters over one inning. He'll work as bullpen depth in the minors to open the new season.

Miller (finger) didn't throw his scheduled live bullpen session Saturday due to an illness, Justice delos Santos of The San Jose Mercury News reports.

Miller has been battling numbness in a finger on his left (throwing) hand recently, though that isn't what held him back Saturday. The 27-year-old southpaw will take a day or two to recover before continuing to work toward making his spring debut.

Greene allowed five runs on three hits and two walks while striking out two over two innings in Friday's spring start against the Athletics.

Greene's second Cactus League outing started fine but ended poorly. He retired the first four batters and five of the first six before it all went sideways. Despite the result, Greene told Gordon Wittenmyer of the Cincinnati Enquirer that his body felt good enough to throw five or six innings.

Nelson allowed one hit and two walks while striking out one over two scoreless innings in Friday's spring game against Kansas City.

Nelson, making his Cactus League debut, followed starter Merrill Kelly, pitching the third and fourth innings. Nelson was a mainstay in the rotation the last two seasons -- and showed improvement in 2024 -- but he enters the spring in a battle for a rotation spot for a third consecutive season. His scoreless outing follows a similar one Thursday from Brandon Pfaadt, who is also competing for the same rotation spot along with Jordan Montgomery.

Kelly allowed one hit and one walk while striking out two over two innings in Friday's spring start against the Royals.

This was Kelly's first appearance in Cactus League action, and the 36-year-old right-hander showed extra juice on his fastball. He averaged 92 mph on his two- and four-seamers in 2024 but threw a number of fastballs at 94-plus Friday. The uptick in velo is an encouraging sign for Kelly, who missed a large part of 2024 due to a shoulder injury.

Alvarez said Saturday that his left wrist is feeling better and believes he can return to game action within the next couple of days, Mark Bowman of MLB.com reports.

Alvarez tweaked his wrist after striking out swinging during the first inning of Thursday's contest, but he doesn't seem to be dealing with anything serious. The 21-year-old infielder is battling for a spot on Atlatna's bench after slashing .297/.398/.463 with 42 RBI and 10 steals across 64 Triple-A games last season.

Machado has been scratched from Friday's spring training game against the Mariners due to back tightness, Kevin Acee of The San Diego Union-Tribune reports.

The injury isn't considered serious, and Acee relays that Machado's removal from Friday's lineup is purely precautionary. It's possible that the 32-year-old Machado will be held out of the Padres' next couple of games to truly manage the injury. Eguy Rosario will take Machado's place at third base and bat eighth.