MLB Player News

Sewald struck out two over a hitless and scoreless inning in Monday's spring game against Oakland.

Sewald made his fourth Cactus League appearance and left a scoreless spring intact after pitching a perfect seventh inning. His velocity was down compared to last season, per Alex Weiner of Arizona Sports, but manager Torey Lovullo downplayed that as the normal ramping up through the course of spring training. Additionally, none of the 14 pitches (nine strikes) he threw were a changeup -- a pitch he's incorporating to his arsenal this spring to prevent batters from keying in on his fastball. "I need something to drop to make my fastball look even more like it rises," Sewald told Jesse Borek of MLB.com about the new pitch. "So that's kind of the point -- that people can't cheat to my fastball." Sewald's allowed two hits and one walk while striking out three over four scoreless spring innings as he prepares to be Arizona's closer.

Nelson allowed one run on four hits and one walk while striking out two over 3.2 innings in Monday's spring start against the Athletics.

Nelson kept pounding the strike zone, as the right-hander has done all spring, and he now sports a 3.09 ERA after four Cactus League starts. That includes just two walks and 14 strikeouts over 11.2 innings. The changeup was working Monday, per Jesse Borek of MLB.com, as Nelson elicited five whiffs on nine changeups. Nelson, who upped his pitch count to 66, has inched ahead of Tommy Henry to become Arizona's No. 5 starter.

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said Saturday that Wilson is one player who has caught his attention in camp, Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic reports.

Wilson is with the Dodgers on a minor-league contract, so he's not on the 40-man roster and is far from guaranteed to break camp with the big club. However, given Roberts' comments, there's at least a chance that the left-hander hurler could make the Opening Day roster, and he's made his presence known with a 10:1 K:BB over four innings across four spring outings (though he's also given up two runs on five hits). Wilson has had plenty of success in the majors with 18 career saves and 132 career holds, but he hasn't pitched in the big leagues since undergoing Tommy John surgery in June of 2022.

Grove and Gavin Stone will travel with the Dodgers on their season-opening trip to Korea, and both remain in contention to be the team's No. 5 starter, Fabian Ardaya of The Athleticreports.

Emmet Sheehan was originally in the running for the fifth-starter spot as well, but he'll open the season on the injured list due to a shoulder injury. Both Grove and Stone were excellent in their most recent Cactus League outings, with Grove tossing 3.1 scoreless innings with six strikeouts Saturday and Stone following one day later with a scoreless four-inning, five-strikeout effort. However, Stone has had the better overall spring, yielding just one run over 9.2 frames with a 9:1 K:BB while Grove has given up six earned runs over eight innings with an 11:4 K:BB. With that in mind, Stone probably has the upper hand in the battle to be Los Angeles' fifth starter, though manager Dave Roberts said Monday that a decision on that role has not yet been made, per Ardaya.

Gilbreath (elbow) is expected to face hitters by late March, MLB.com reports.

Gilbreath underwent Tommy John surgery in March of 2023 and is progressing in his recovery. He'll begin the season on the injured list, though it's unclear how long he'll remain sidelined in the new campaign.

Bae hasn't appeared in a spring training game since March 5 due to a hip injury, Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.

Bae is expected to serve as a versatile bench bat due to his ability to play along both the infield and in the outfield. Manager Derek Shelton didn't provide any further detail regarding the injury or a timeline for Bae's return. If he's forced to miss any regular season action, Joshua Palacios (illness) and Nick Gonzales could earn a roster spot.

Wicks allowed one run on two hits across 4.1 innings of work in Sunday's Cactus League game against the Rangers. He struck out seven.

Drew Smyly drew the start but Wicks logged the most work, and the young lefty looked sharp. He now has a 1.46 ERA this spring to go along with a 1.05 WHIP and 10 strikeouts across 12.1 innings. Wicks seems to be closing in on a rotation spot to begin the year, and his grip on a role is likely a bit stronger in the short term with Jameson Taillon (back) possibly set to miss some time to start the regular season.

Smyly tossed 3.1 scoreless innings in Sunday's Cactus League game against the Rangers. He allowed four hits and a walk, while striking out four.

Smyly still has a rough 6.14 ERA in Cactus League play due to some rough outings earlier this spring, but this was a step in the right direction. The veteran lefty is likely headed for a bullpen role at some point, though a short-term opportunity to start may open up with Jameson Taillon (back) in jeopardy of missing time to start the regular season. Righties Javier Assad and Hayden Wesneski are also options for spot starting duties.

Harrison is projected for a roster spot, per the latest roster projection from C. Trent Rosecrans of The Athletic.

The 80-game suspension handed out to Noelvi Marte opens up a roster spot that figures to come down to Harrison, Mike Ford or Tony Kemp. Rosecrans makes the point that of those three, Harrison provides the most versatility. He started games at four different defensive positions for the Phillies in 2023. Harrison is 3-for-16 with a double and an RBI in seven games this spring.

Abel (illness) struck out two over 1.2 perfect innings of relief in Monday's 2-1 loss to the Yankees.

Making just his second appearance of the spring and pitching for the first time since Feb. 25 after an illness cost him some time, Abel was dominant in his return. In addition to recording a pair of punchouts, Abel retired the other three batters he faced via groundouts. The 22-year-old may have earned himself a longer stay in big-league camp on the heels of Monday's strong outing, but he's still most likely being ticketed for the Triple-A Lehigh Valley rotation to begin the season.