MLB Player News

Carrasco received an injection in his elbow Wednesday and will be shut down for a few days, Tom Withers of the Associated Press reports.

Carrasco underwent an MRI on his sore right elbow, which didn't reveal anything other than the mild inflammation he'd been diagnosed with over the weekend. While he's only expected to be shut down for a few days, even in the best-case scenario that doesn't leave much time for him to build up to a starting workload by Opening Day, especially considering his spring debut was delayed by a hip issue.

Gilbert started Tuesday's Cactus League win over the Angels on Tuesday and fired two scoreless innings during which he allowed no hits or walks and recorded three strikeouts.

The promising 22-year-old kept his spring ERA perfect with Tuesday's effort, his second two-inning outing in Cactus League play. Making Gilbert's performance Tuesday particularly impressive was who two of his three strikeout victims were. Daniel Kramer of MLB.com reports Gilbert mowed down Jo Addell on a sweeping slider and also rang up Shohei Ohtani with a curveball that clocked in at approximately 75 mph. The start may have been Gilbert's last one of spring, but Kramer reports that the impressive right-hander, who won the organization's Minor League Pitcher of the Year award last season, could be called up to the majors by the middle of the 2020 campaign. "He is getting comfortable, and he knows that it's not going to be long. He's going to help us in Seattle real soon," Mariners manager Scott Servais said.

Paxton (back) resumed playing catch Wednesday, making approximately 25 throws from 60 feet, Ken Davidoff of the New York Post reports.

After reporting no back pain following the session, Paxton will presumably increase his long-toss distance gradually over the next week or so before potentially getting back on a mound. Paxton indicated that if he avoids any setbacks while building up to a starter's workload, he believes he'll be ready to return from the injured list as soon as mid-May in a best-case scenario. Paxton's absence to begin the campaign as well as the season-ending injury to Luis Severino (elbow) has already cleared a spot in the Opening Day rotation for Jordan Montgomery, leaving a slew of other pitchers to compete for the final starting job over the final two weeks of spring training.

Valdez allowed four runs on four hits and one walk while striking out two over 3.2 innings in Tuesday's split-squad game against the Mets.

Valdez made his third spring start, and this was the first blemish. He was already in competition for the No. 5 spot in the rotation, and now the Astros are looking for a temporary fill-in for ace Justin Verlander (lat). Others in the mix for those two spots are Josh James, Austin Pruitt and Bryan Abreu.

Kopech threw a perfect inning in Tuesday's spring game against the Rangers, Daryl Van Schouwen of the Chicago Sun-Times reports.

This was Kopech's first appearance in a competitive environment since late 2018, when he underwent Tommy John elbow surgery. He was amped up for the outing as six of his 11 pitches registered triple digits on the radar gun. One scout on hand said the right-hander was impressive and noted the sharpness of the breaking stuff. With his highly anticipated return out of the way, Kopech can turn toward ramping up his pitches and innings in preparation for an eventual return to Chicago's rotation. May or June is the best estimate for when he will be ready to toe the rubber for the White Sox.

Boyd, who allowed just one run across 4.1 innings in Tuesday's Grapefruit League game against the Pirates, has a 1.93 ERA this spring.

Boyd has looked like the staff leader the Tigers need him to be. He did at times last year, too, as the lefty had a 2.85 ERA through the first two months of the season. However, Boyd struggled some after that and ultimately finished with a 4.56 ERA. The 29-year-old has elite strikeout potential, but he's yet to have a true breakout campaign.

Cole allowed one run on two hits while striking out six Tuesday against Toronto in his fourth Grapefruit League start.

Cole was much sharper than in his previous spring start during which he allowed six earned runs over two innings. Per George A. King III of the New York Post, the right-hander hit 100 mph with his final pitch of the third inning against the Blue Jays. Cole threw 55 pitches in the outing -- 36 for strikes -- as he nears readiness for taking the mound Opening Day.

Dunn fired three scoreless innings in a Cactus League loss to the Brewers on Monday, allowing one hit and no walks while recording five strikeouts.

The young right-hander faced 11 batters overall, so he mowed down nearly half the hitters that came to the plate against him. Daniel Kramer of MLB.com reports Dunn's strikeout victims included Christian Yelich, Avisail Garcia, Jedd Gyorko and Justin Smoak, making the feat all the more noteworthy. Dunn, who could see multi-inning relief work if he's unable to secure a rotation spot to open the season, received high praise from manager Scott Servais, who called the prospect's appearance "probably the best outing he's had so far this spring."

Walker started a Cactus League loss to the Brewers on Monday and allowed an earned run on four hits and a wild pitch across three innings. He struck out four.

The deliberate approach the Mariners took with Walker to start spring was seemingly validated in Monday's start, as the oft-injured right-hander looked impressive while facing big-league hitters in a Mariners uniform for the first time since September 2016. Daniel Kramer of MLB.com reports Walker's appearance got off to an inauspicious start with a leadoff home run by Lorenzo Cain. However, the right-hander impressively rebounded and ultimately struck out both Cain and Christian Yelich -- the latter on a new spike curveball -- during his 43-pitch outing. Kramer adds that Walker's velocity topped out at 95 mph, a sign that both his previously troublesome elbow and shoulder are in fine shape. Manager Scott Servais was impressed with the new version of the breaking pitch that Walker deployed, talking it up as a weapon his likely No. 5 starter could find consistent success with. "Taijuan's curve is quite a bit different," Servais said. "We talked about some mechanical changes that he's made. He's shortened up his arm stroke. He always had a good curveball. This one is much more consistent. It's got more bite and more finish to it."

Paxton will play catch Wednesday, Lindsey Adler of The Athletic reports.

Paxton is working his way back from early February back surgery. He'll be resuming throwing just over a month after undergoing the procedure and appears to have a chance to reach his goal of pitching in big-league games by the start of May.