MLB Player News

Roycroft is one of four competitors eyeing one of the final two spots in the Cardinals' Opening Day bullpen, Katie Woo of The Athletic reports.

Nick Anderson, Kyle Leahy and Riley O'Brien are the others in the mix. Roycroft has put his best foot forward to claim one of the jobs, tossing six scoreless frames with a 5:1 K:BB during Grapefruit League play. The 6-foot-8 right-hander excelled at limiting hard contact last season with a 33.7 percent hard-hit rate and two percent barrel rate, but he'll need to find a weapon against left-handed batters after they had a .955 OPS against him in 2024. If Roycroft makes the Opening Day roster, it's likely to be as a middle reliever initially.

Hicks has made three appearances during Cactus League play, recording five strikeouts, a 9.45 ERA and a 2.40 WHIP across 6.2 innings.

Hicks' struggles continued Friday, during which he gave up four earned runs over 2.2 innings in an 11-5 Cactus League loss to Milwaukee. He allowed five hits, including one home run, and one walk while striking out one batter. The right-hander is expected to stick in the Giants' starting rotation after covering 20 starts and nine relief appearances in his first season with San Francisco. In the 2024 campaign, he posted a 4.10 ERA, 1.45 WHIP and a 96:47 K:BB over 109.2 frames. Landen Roupp, Kyle Harrison and Hayden Birdsong are all competing for the fifth starting spot, which means Hicks could shift to a relief role if his struggles persist into the regular season.

The Marlins optioned de Geus to Triple-A Jacksonville on Friday.

De Geus landed back in Miami via waivers in late February but will not break camp with the big club after getting roughed up for six runs in 2.2 frames this spring. He could go back-and-forth between Jacksonville and Miami often this season as the club filters through relief options.

Kolek completed four innings in a Cactus League appearance against the Royals on Thursday, allowing one run on three hits while issuing one walk and striking out two batters.

Yu Darvish started the game and tossed four frames for San Diego, and Kolek followed with four innings of his own. The latter held Kansas City to a lone run, which is the only run he's surrendered through nine frames this spring. Kolek's five punchouts over that span isn't impressive, but he's walked just one batter and given up only five hits. The right-hander is among several pitchers competing for the Padres' final rotation spot this spring, and to this point it's unclear who among the group -- which also includes Kyle Hart, Matt Waldron and Randy Vasquez -- has the upper hand.

Bednar allowed five earned runs on three hits and two walks across one-third of an inning during Thursday's Grapefruit League game against the Twins.

This marked Bednar's fifth appearance of the spring, and he had maintained a 5:1 K:BB while allowing only one earned run across his first four innings. However, Thursday's outing was particularly concerning in light of Bednar's struggles in 2024, when he posted a 5.77 ERA and 1.42 WHIP while being removed from the closer role to end the year. The departure of Aroldis Chapman this offseason likely gives Bednar some leeway for save chances to begin the campaign, but he'll need to perform to maintain the role.

Strahm (shoulder) will be evaluated again by a doctor Saturday, Todd Zolecki of MLB.com reports.

Manager Rob Thomson noted that Strahm is feeling better since being diagnosed with a left shoulder impingement Tuesday, but it appears the Phillies are going to postpone his throwing program another couple of days. Even if he's cleared to resume throwing this weekend, the fact he's been shut down for nearly a week could still affect his availability for Opening Day.

The Cardinals optioned Loutos to Triple-A Memphis on Thursday.

Loutos will fall short of the Cardinals' Opening Day bullpen after giving up two runs (one earned) on five hits over three innings in the Grapefruit League. The 26-year-old righty turned in a 3.40 ERA over 53 frames with Memphis last season and was able to make three appearances in the major leagues. Assuming his Triple-A performance holds, he should have a decent chance at getting called up throughout the season to provide St. Louis with a fresh bullpen arm.

Beck, who made his first Cactus League start Wednesday against the Guardians, is still likely to begin the 2025 campaign as a long reliever, Jack Magruder of MLB.com reports. "We have a lot of really good arms. He's one of them," manager Bob Melvin said. "Maybe more long relief than starting right now with the guys we have a little bit ahead of him."

Beck allowed one run on one hit (a home run) over 2.2 innings while striking out three in the Giants' 11-2 win over Cleveland. Overall, Beck has made four appearances in Cactus League play, recording a 5.40 ERA while striking out four in 6.2 innings. The right-hander has mostly been used in relief over two seasons with San Francisco, though he could enter the starting rotation if injuries arise. The 28-year-old missed the majority of the 2024 campaign due to an aneurysm in his upper right arm that required surgery. Beck made seven appearances (one start) last season, recording a 1.69 ERA and a 14:4 K:BB across 16.0 innings.

Mears is back in Brewers camp after battling a stomach bug that caused him to lose nine pounds, Adam McCalvy of MLB.com reports.

Mears suspects he will need 4-to-5 days in order to regain strength before he's ready to get back on a mound. He's already made three appearances this spring, so he won't be starting from scratch, which should allow the reliever time to ramp back up fore Opening Day.

The Padres optioned Cruz to Triple-A El Paso on Thursday.

Cruz reached Triple-A for the first time last season, where he logged a 4.42 ERA and 1.47 WHIP over 38.2 frames. He performed a bit better in the Cactus League, surrendering just one run in five innings, but San Diego will need a larger sample size from him at El Paso before granting him a bullpen spot.