MLB Player News

Diaz is in line to make his Mets and Grapefruit League debut Saturday versus the Astros, Mike Puma of the New York Post reports.

Coming off a 57-save season in which he posted a ridiculous 38.2 K-BB%, Diaz is firmly established as a top-tier closer and won't have to prove his worthiness for that role even as he heads to a new team in 2019. The Mets are expected to deliberately limit Diaz's workload this spring with the hope of keeping him fresh as possible for the games that count.

Hicks is scheduled to make his Grapefruit League debut Thursday versus the Mets, Jenifer Langosch of MLB.com reports.

The Cardinals deliberately delayed Hicks' first appearance of the spring as a means of conserving his bullets for the regular season. The 22-year-old is viewed as a candidate to close for the Cardinals, but manager Mike Shildt has yet to tip his hand regarding his plans for the ninth inning. Offseason pickup Andrew Miller and perhaps even -- when healthy -- Carlos Martinez (shoulder) could also be in the mix for saves early in 2019.

Manager Dave Roberts said Wednesday that he expects Jansen to make his Cactus League debut at some point next week, Jorge Castillo of the Los Angeles Times reports.

Even in what amounted to a subpar 2018 season by his lofty standards, Jansen still delivered a 3.01 ERA, 0.99 ERA and a 38-for-42 success rate in save chances to remain one of baseball's elite end gamers. While he dealt with a recurrence of the irregular heartbeat he had experienced earlier in his career, Jansen is confident that the cardiac procedure he underwent in November will provide a permanent fix. The Dodgers still chose to exercise caution with Jansen's usage in the first two weeks of spring, but he now looks ready to test himself in a game setting after building up his arm through bullpen and live-batting practice sessions over the last couple of weeks.

Rainey allowed four runs on four hits and a walk over two-thirds of an inning during Tuesday's spring loss to the Cardinals.

Rainey was acquired from the Reds for Tanner Roark in December and his first unofficial outing in a Nationals uniform was forgettable. The hard-throwing right-hander has historically struggled with walks (6.2 BB/9 at Triple-A Louisville in 2018), but that was of no concern Tuesday as he fooled no one and threw 12 total pitches to the seven batters he faced.

Sborz (0-1) was tagged with the loss in Tuesday's spring game against the Royals as he allowed one run on one hit and three walks.

Sborz had a 4.38 ERA and 1.43 WHIP at Triple-A Oklahoma City, though he did post a 47:15 K:BB over 37 innings. The 25-year-old faces long odds to make the Opening Day roster and Tuesday's lack of control certainly doesn't help.

Alzolay (side) is scheduled to resume throwing later in the week, Jordan Bastian of MLB.com reports.

Alzolay has been shut down for a couple of weeks due to a side issue, but he's finally ready to return to a throwing program. The plan is for the youngster to play light catch either Thursday or Friday before ramping things up from there. At this point, it's unclear if Alzolay will be ready for the start of the season. He's expected to open the year with Triple-A Iowa.

Strahm is working towards a spot in the rotation, though his role remains undecided.

Strahm technically started five games last season, though all came as the first pitcher on bullpen days. He has the talent and diverse arsenal to start, having recorded a 2.05 ERA last year while throwing four pitches at least 12 percent of the time, though he comes with durability concerns. He threw just 75.2 innings last year after missing time due to knee surgery, so a jump up to a full starter's workload could be tough. Injuries to fellow southpaws Jose Castillo (forearm) and Brad Wieck (cancer) could mean that Strahm is needed in the bullpen.

Nelson is upbeat and unconcerned Tuesday after tweaking his forearm in Monday's bullpen session, Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports.

Any injury concerns are worrying for a player who missed the entirety of 2018 with shoulder issues, but he's downplaying this problem. Nelson apparently caught his cleat during a pitch, causing the minor injury, but there is no thought that the issue is at all related to his shoulder problems. He'll play catch Tuesday and remains on track to be up to speed by the start of the regular season, barring setbacks.

Stephenson (shoulder) still isn't scheduled for game action yet, Mark Sheldon of MLB.com reports.

That said, the Reds are encouraged with the work that he has been doing. "He's getting closer. He's progressing. Nothing but positive reports," manager David Bell said.

Magnifico signed a minor-league contract with the Diamondbacks.

Magnifico spent the entire 2018 season with Triple-A Indianapolis, posting a 3.57 ERA, 1.47 WHIP and 64:44 K:BB across 70.2 innings. The deal doesn't include an invitation to big-league camp, so the 27-year-old will presumably open the year with Arizona's Triple-A affiliate.