MLB Player News

Cubs manager Craig Counsell isn't ready to hand out defined roles for Alzolay or any other member of the bullpen, Sahadev Sharma of The Athletic reports.

Counsell said Thursday that "every bullpen has to evolve" and that the role of his relievers is simply "to get outs." Alzolay certainly seems likely to get first dibs after saving 22 games while posting a 2.67 ERA and 67:13 K:BB over 64 innings for the Cubs last season. However, Hector Neris is also a candidate to be in the mix, along with Julian Merryweather and Mark Leiter. Counsell has often had go-to closers during his time with the Brewers and one might very well emerge sooner rather than later with the Cubs, but for now there's some uncertainty.

Farmer allowed four runs on three hits and one walk while striking out two over one inning in Thursday's spring game against Texas.

Farmer cruised through his first five Cactus League outings -- no runs or walks allowed and five strikeouts over five innings -- before the Rangers hung a four-spot on him in the fourth inning, courtesy of a Wyatt Langford grand slam. Farmer is expected to return as an important piece of the bullpen for Cincinnati, working as a bridge to closer Alexis Diaz.

Cruz walked one and struck out four over two hitless and scoreless innings in Thursday's spring game against the Rangers.

The 34-year-old Cruz spent his first full season in the majors in 2023 and could maintain a largely low-leverage role for the Reds in 2024. The right-hander's advanced metrics from last season -- 2.83 FIP, 34.5 whiff percentage, 35.1 strikeout percentage -- suggest a better result than the 4.91 ERA he posted. Cruz has options remaining, which could be a factor when manager David Bell determines the lefty-righty mix needed in the bullpen to start the season.

Castro allowed one run on two hits while striking out two over 1.1 innings in Thursday's spring game against Kansas City.

Castro has allowed runs in five consecutive appearances and owns an 11.12 ERA through 5.2 Cactus League innings. There was a one-month stretch from mid-May to mid-June in 2023 when Castro was closing games and regularly pitching high-leverage situations, but things fell apart quickly. Despite the poor spring results, Castro is expected to be part of the Opening Day bullpen.

Martinez's next Cactus League appearance has been pushed back from Thursday to Saturday because of a rib injury, Charlie Goldsmith of The Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

Reds manager David Bell said that Martinez "may have a rib out of place," but the right-hander was still able to play long-toss Thursday and will start in a couple days. At this point, it doesn't sound like an injury to be concerned about. Martinez has allowed one unearned run with a 7:1 K:BB over five innings this spring. He's expected to open the season in Cincinnati's rotation.

Megill, Abner Uribe and Joel Payamps "seem to be the most obvious" candidates to replace the injured Devin Williams (back) as the Brewers' closer, Curt Hogg of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports. However, manager Pat Murphy does not plan to name a closer anytime soon.

When asked Thursday about having a defined closer, Murphy replied, "I don't think that's important, especially not now." The skipper added that he's open to eventually naming a closer if a clear candidate emerges, but heading into the season it sounds like Murphy plans to use his high-leverage options at different points in the game, depending on the situation. Payamps, Uribe and Megill are all worthy of fantasy roster consideration, probably in that order of preference. Williams is expected to be sidelined for about three months with two stress fractures in his back, so there will be plenty of saves available in Milwaukee's bullpen during the first half.

Manager Dave Martinez said Thursday that Ferrer is dealing with a lat injury, Andrew Golden of The Washington Post reports.

Ferrer has pitched in just one exhibition game over the past two weeks, and his injured lat explains why. It's unclear when Ferrer will be ready to get back to making consistent appearances, but Martinez said the team will know more in a couple of days.

Montas allowed four runs on five hits and three walks while striking out two over three innings in Wednesday's spring start against the Giants.

Montas, making his third Cactus League start, walked three batters and threw a wild pitch in the first inning and was pulled from the game. He came back out for the second inning and pitched into the fourth, when he hit a batter and surrendered two home runs. Cincinnati's Opening Day starter was scheduled to go five innings, per Mark Sheldon of MLB.com, but his wavering command did him in early. Montas told Gordon Wittenmyer of the Cincinnati Enquirer that he couldn't land his breaking stuff for strikes and had just one consistent pitch (his sinker). He'll get two more spring starts to prepare for Opening Day.

Uribe could be in line to receive regular save chances with Devin Williams (back) out for three months, Curt Hogg of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports.

Uribe and Joel Payamps project as the two likely candidates to take over as Milwaukee's closer after Williams was diagnosed with two stress fractures in his back Wednesday. In his first season of big-league action, Uribe logged a 1.76 ERA and 1.17 WHIP across 30.2 frames. However, neither Uribe (six earned runs, 4.1 innings) nor Payamps (five earned runs, 2.2 innings) have put together a strong spring, making it unclear who the early favorite is for Opening Day.

Payamps could receive a large share of Milwaukee's save opportunities to begin the season with Devin Williams (back) set to miss the next three months, Curt Hogg of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports.

Two stress fractures in Williams' back will keep him sidelined until June, opening the door for Payamps to step in as the Brewers' closer. Payamps turned in impressive numbers as a setup man during his first season in Milwaukee, putting up a 2.55 ERA and 1.05 WHIP across 70.2 innings while registering three saves and 28 holds. However, he began to fall apart near the end of the season, surrendering seven runs (six earned) over 9.1 frames after Sept. 1. Payamps' struggles have followed him into spring training, and it's possible the Brewers decide to split save opportunities between Payamps and promising young flamethrower Abner Uribe.