MLB Player News

Alvarado (neck) will be on the Phillies' Opening Day roster, Matt Gelb of The Athletic reports.

Alvarado has been limited to a single Grapefruit League appearance due to a neck issue. Previous reports indicated the lefty was likely to open the season on the injured list, but he's evidently convinced the Phillies that he's ready to go. The team will use a 10-man bullpen to start the year, so it can avoid using him in the first few games if he still needs time to finish building up.

Mears (elbow) is expected to begin a throwing program next week, Alex Stumpf of DKPittsburghSports.com reports.

The Pirates placed Mears on the 60-day injured list March 15, so the 25-year-old right-hander is still in line miss the first two months of the season while he recovers from arthroscopic elbow surgery. The fact that he's on track to start throwing soon will at least give him a chance to rejoin the Pirates once the 60-day window comes to an end.

The Pirates placed Howard on the 10-day injured list Tuesday with a mid-back strain, Justice delos Santos of MLB.com reports.

According to Alex Stumpf of DKPittsburghSports.com, Howard's back injury had resulted in him being shut down from throwing as of Monday, so he seems likely to require more than the minimum amount of time on the shelf. Howard collected 12 holds and struck out 60 over 45 innings while filling a setup role for the Pirates in 2021, but poor ratios (5.60 ERA, 1.47 WHIP) made it difficult to extract value from him even in NL-only leagues.

The Pirates placed Kranick on the 10-day injured list Tuesday with a right forearm strain, Justice delos Santos of MLB.com reports.

According to Kevin Gorman of TribLive.com, Kranick first experienced tightness in his right arm while throwing a live batting practice during the lockout. According to Conor Foley of The Scranton Times-Tribune, Kranick was deemed asymptomatic of the injury shortly after reporting to camp and has resumed facing hitters, but he'll still have to start the season on the IL after not making an appearance during the Grapefruit League slate. Pittsburgh will likely want to see Kranick make at least two rehab starts before activating him from the IL, and since he has minor-league options remaining, he could end up settling at Triple-A Indianapolis once he's reinstated.

Long has allowed five runs on six hits and two walks with seven strikeouts across 4.2 innings in three Cactus League games.

Long made a solid impression Monday versus the Athletics with a perfect inning. He's been hit by the long ball, allowing two home runs in his three appearances. The southpaw is still viewed as a starter by the Giants, but it's possible he could serve as a multi-inning reliever early in the season -- the five-man rotation is locked in but will still need to stretch out in the first few weeks.

Hernandez was diagnosed with a bruised right forearm after he exited Tuesday's Grapefruit League start against the Cardinals, Christina De Nicola of MLB.com reports.

Hernandez was fortunate to avoid a more serious injury after his throwing arm was on the receiving end of a line drive off the bat of Tyler O'Neill that had an exit velocity of more than 105 miles per hour. Assuming Hernandez isn't dealing with too much soreness from the bruised arm during a scheduled bullpen session later in the week, he should still be part of the Marlins' season-opening rotation. Hernandez was tentatively lined up to start the Marlins' third game of the season Sunday in San Francisco, but he could be pushed to the back of the rotation order if manager Don Mattingly wants to give the right-hander more time to heal up.

Hernandez exited Tuesday's Grapefruit League game against the Cardinals after being struck on the right arm by a line drive off the bat of Tyler O'Neill, Jordan McPherson of the Miami Herald reports.

Facing his third batter of the day, O'Neill scorched a ball up the middle at 105.4 mph that caromed off Hernandez to third baseman Brian Anderson. The pitcher was immediately evaluated by a trainer and removed from the game. Hernandez is projected for a spot at the back of the Marlins' rotation to begin the season and was having a good spring, but as yet there's no word on the severity this injury.

May walked one and struck out one in a scoreless inning during Monday's Grapefruit League game against the Astros.

The veteran right-hander has a spotless 0.00 ERA this spring to go along with a 5:1 K:BB, albeit in only three appearances, and he appears ready to handle a setup role for the Mets once again. Over 62.2 innings in 2021, May collected seven wins, four saves and 16 holds with a 31.2 percent strikeout rate.

Machado gave up a hit and a walk while striking out one in a scoreless inning of relief during Monday's Grapefruit League game against the Cardinals.

The 28-year-old right-hander has looked good in camp, as he hasn't given up a run in three Grapefruit League appearances with a 5:1 K:BB. Machado picked up 10 holds over 40 appearances out of the Nationals' bullpen last year, and he figures to fill a similar middle-relief role in 2022.

Washington optioned Harvey to Triple-A Rochester on Tuesday, Matt Weyrich of NBC Sports Washington reports.

Harvey, a 2013 first-round draft pick, is likely one of the top arms in the Washington bullpen from a talent standpoint, but myriad injury concerns have limited him to fewer than 35 regular-season innings pitched in six of the last seven campaigns. He was tending to a triceps injury earlier this spring before being waived by the Giants and subsequently claimed by the Nationals. Harvey looks to be healthy again, but Washington may want him to get some more appearances under his belt at Triple-A before considering him as an option for the big-league bullpen. The Nationals' closer picture looks unsettled at the moment, so Harvey could factor into the mix at some point if health prevails and if he's able to make bats miss at the prolific rate he did during his brief stint with Baltimore at the tail end of the 2019 season.