MLB Player News

Montes de Oca suffered a forearm injury during Sunday's Grapefruit League game against the Rays and will undergo medical imaging Monday, Tim Britton of The Athletic reports.

Montes de Oca seems unlikely to be available for at least a couple weeks, depending on the specifics of the injury. The 26-year-old righty made his MLB debut last season and gave up four earned runs with a 6:2 K:BB over 3.1 innings.

Montes de Oca exited Sunday's Grapefruit League game against the Rays with an apparent injury after he was visited on the mound by an athletic trainer, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com reports.

Montes de Oca has pitched well thus far in camp, but he issued three straight walks Sunday before being removed with what could be an arm-related issue. The 26-year-old should be considered day-to-day until more information is available.

The Mariners optioned Then to Double-A Arkansas on Sunday.

Then is heading into his third season as a member of the Mariners' 40-man roster, but he doesn't appear especially close to making his MLB debut. The 23-year-old right-hander covered just 12 frames in the minors between Arkansas and the Mariners' rookie-level Arizona Complex League affiliate in 2022, making one-inning appearances in each of those outings.

The Mariners reassigned McCaughan to Triple-A Tacoma on Sunday.

After making two appearances (one start) for Seattle in 2021, McCaughan spent the entire 2022 campaign at Triple-A Tacoma, where he logged a 4.55 ERA and 1.18 WHIP while striking out 141 batters over 154.1 innings. The 26-year-old right-hander is expected to continue serving as organizational starting pitching depth at Tacoma in 2023, and his lack of a 40-man roster spot likely won't make him the Mariners' first choice if a spot starter is needed at the big-league level.

Naughton has allowed three earned runs on five hits and two walks while striking out four over 4.2 innings through five Grapefruit League appearances.

Naughton was on and off the Cardinals' major-league roster for much of 2022, posting a 4.78 ERA, 1.44 WHIP and 31:7 K:BB across 32 innings. He started three of his six appearances, but his path to staying in the majors this season is in the bullpen since the Cardinals have a surplus of potential starters. Naughton remains unlikely to challenge for a high-leverage role, so he won't be a factor in most fantasy formats.

Johnson (knee) worked around a walk to pitch a scoreless seventh inning in Saturday's 4-2 loss to the Mariners in Cactus League play.

Johnson was making his first Cactus League appearance in just under a week after experiencing right knee soreness following his previous outing. The knee issue didn't dramatically derail Johnson during his buildup program, so he looks like he'll be ready to go for the start of the regular season.

Gillaspie has yet to allow an earned run over five innings across five Grapefruit League games.

The 25-year-old has added a 7:2 K:BB and allowed just two hits so far. Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com isn't projecting Gillaspie for the Opening Day bullpen as of Sunday, but the right-hander can't pitch much better than he has so far in the spring. The Orioles' crowded rotation competition could lead to a couple of potential starters initially working out of the bullpen, which could lead to Gillaspie beginning the year at Triple-A Norfolk despite his strong spring. He was solid in the majors last year, logging a 3.12 ERA and 1.33 WHIP over 17.1 innings, but his 5.09 ERA and 1.37 WHIP at Triple-A suggest he could benefit from a bit more time in the minors.

Hall (back) threw a successful session of live batting practice Saturday and is scheduled to throw again Tuesday, Jake Rill of MLB.com reports.

Manager Brandon Hyde announced previously that Hall won't be stretched out enough to start by Opening Day, but the young left-hander appears to be progressing well as he ramps up his rehab work after he experienced right lower-back discomfort early in camp. The 24-year-old could soon be cleared for game action if his work against live hitters continues to go well.

Schreiber struck out two over 1.2 scoreless innings in Saturday's spring game against the Twins.

Schreiber made a second consecutive scoreless appearance in which he was asked to face five batters. The right-hander was a key member of the bullpen in 2022 and will repeat that role this season, pitching anywhere in the final three innings of games.

Houston optioned Dubin to its minor-league camp Sunday, Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle reports.

Dubin has been with the big-league club to start spring training but will now shift over to the minor-league side. The right-hander posted a 4.78 ERA, 1.45 WHIP and 80:32 K:BB over 58.1 innings at Triple-A Sugar Land last season, and he'll likely need improved results in 2023 if he's going to make his MLB debut.