MLB Player News

Thomas was held out of the lineup for Monday's Cactus League game against the Athletics due to wrist soreness, Alex Weiner of ArizonaSports.com reports.

Thomas tracked balls during live batting practice instead. Manager Torey Lovullo said he's not worried about the injury, adding that Thomas could have played Monday, if needed. The young outfielder should be back in the lineup later this week.

Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol said Monday that Edman (wrist) is further along on his hitting program from the right side of the plate than the left side, but the 28-year-old remains without a timeline to make his Grapefruit League debut, John Denton of MLB.com reports.

While Edman hasn't experienced any reported setbacks with his surgically repaired right wrist upon reporting to spring training and has been able to hit off a tee as well as soft-toss pitching, Jeff Jones of the Belleville News-Democrat posits that Edman is still at least a couple weeks away from facing live pitching. With Opening Day just four weeks away, the Cardinals may be preparing for the possibility of Edman beginning the season on the injured list. If Edman fails to break camp as a member of the active roster, Dylan Carlson would likely step in as the Cardinals' primary center fielder, but Edman's absence may loom more largely in the infield. Youngster Masyn Winn is in line to serve as St. Louis' everyday shortstop this season, but Edman had profiled as the top backup option at the position, as the Cardinals have concerns about the defensive abilities of Brendan Donovan and Jose Fermin.

Gore gave up one run on two hits over two innings in Sunday's Grapefruit League game against the Marlins. He struck out four without walking a batter.

He did uncork a wild pitch, but Gore's control was impressive this early in the spring, as he fired 21 of 26 pitches for strikes against an experienced Miami lineup that included Luis Arraez and Jazz Chisholm. The 25-year-old lefty flashed upside last year with 151 strikeouts over 136.1 innings but also posted a 9.8 percent walk rate, so if he can improve his control, 2024 could end up being a breakout campaign for Gore.

Luzardo struck out three batters over two perfect innings in Sunday's Grapefruit League game against the Nationals.

The 26-year-old southpaw got his spring off to a flying start, tossing 17 of 23 pitches for strikes against a patchwork Washington lineup headlined by Joey Meneses and top prospect James Wood. Luzardo threw a career-high 178.2 innings last year, striking out 208 batters with a 3.58 ERA and 1.21 WHIP, and he heads into the 2024 campaign looking to establish himself as a reliable frontline starter.

Carpenter was scratched from the lineup for Monday's Grapefruit League game against the Marlins because of a left wrist contusion, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.

Carpenter was hit on the wrist by a pitch in a game over the weekend and is evidently still feeling the effects. The Cardinals are seemingly viewing Carpenter as day-to-day.

The Giants reassigned Szapucki (pectoral) to minor-league camp Monday, Maria I. Guardado of MLB.com reports.

Though Szapucki received an invitation to big-league spring training after re-signing with the Giants on a minor-league deal in November, he didn't appear in any Cactus League games while he continues to recover from the thoracic outlet syndrome surgery he underwent last May. According to Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle, Szapucki had his first rib removed as part of the procedure, along with his pectoralis minor and one of his scalene muscles. He's been able to throw off a mound during camp and is expected to be ready to make his season debut in April or May, likely with Triple-A Sacramento.

Yamamoto is listed as the Dodgers' starting pitcher for Wednesday's Cactus League game against the Rangers, Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic reports.

The Dodgers are expected to have both of their prized offseason acquisitions make their Cactus League debuts within the next two days, as Shohei Ohtani (elbow) is scheduled to serve as a designated hitter Tuesday versus the White Sox before Yamamoto takes the hill Wednesday. Since Yamamoto had been on a once-a-week pitching schedule in Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball while winning Pacific League MVP Awards in each of the past three seasons, the Dodgers will move to a six-man rotation in 2024 to help ease the 25-year-old's transition to MLB. The Dodgers are already penciling Yamamoto in to make his first regular-season start during their two-game season-opening series in South Korea versus the Padres on March 20 and 21.

Matsui recently underwent an MRI on his back, which showed inflammation but no structural damage, Dennis Lin of The Athletic reports.

Matsui was sent for tests after his back tightened up on him Saturday. The Padres are considering him day-to-day. Matsui struck out the side in an impressive Cactus League debut last week and is in the mix for closing duties in San Diego. He will need to get healthy first, of course, but at the moment, he doesn't sound to be dealing with any sort of major concern.

Reds manager David Bell said Monday that McLain (oblique) is making good progress, Charlie Goldsmith of The Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

McLain has been doing plenty of core/medicine ball work and soon will attempt to swing the bat with light intensity. Now six days into the projected 5-to-7 day recovery timetable that Bell had estimated for McLain when he initially suffered the right oblique injury, it's clear that the infielder will need at least a few more days beyond the initial estimate before he's ready for game action.

Mathias (shoulder) will start at third base and bat sixth in Monday's split-squad Cactus League game against the Brewers.

The non-roster invitee will be making his second start in as many days after he went 0-for-3 while manning the keystone for five innings in Sunday's 9-4 win over the Angels. Mathias finished the 2023 campaign on the Giants' 60-day injured list due to a right shoulder strain, but he looks to be back to full health as the start of the 2024 season nears.