MLB Player News

Indians starting pitcher Carlos Carrasco is one of two men remaining in the battle for the fifth rotation spot, but he didn't help his cause Thursday, giving up four earned runs in five innings against the Diamondbacks. He struck out three batters without issuing a walk.

Carrascos' ERA is up to 6.00 in 18 spring innings. He is clearly behind Scott Kazmir based on spring performance. We'll see if the final decision matches the statistics.

White Sox pitcher Chris Sale moved to 3-0 this spring after surrendering three earned runs in seven innings against the Brewers Thursday. He also added three strikeouts while holding the Brewers to just four hits and a walk.

Sale is going to draw concern from fantasy owners this season after seeing his inning count rise considerably from 2011 to 2012, but he's shown nothing thus far to discount his top-20 SP ranking.

The Indians' fifth starter competition has come down to Carlos Carrasco and Scott Kazmir. Although Kazmir has had the better spring, a good Cactus League performance doesn't guarantee that he will succeed with a return to the majors. Whether Carrasco can win the job outright or get a chance later in the season should Kazmir falter, his progress is worth tracking.

Carrasco is not only working his way back from Tommy John surgery, having missed all of last year, but also from a disappointing 2011 season. If he can regain the form he showed as a prospect, Carrasco could provide strikeouts and a good WHIP, though he has had some problems with the long ball. Even if he starts the year in Triple-A, Carrasco is someone to keep an eye on in deeper mixed leagues and AL-only formats.

After the demotion of prospect Trevor Bauer to Triple-A Columbus Thursday, the competition for the fifth spot in the Indians' rotation is down to Scott Kazmir and Carlos Carrasco, according to MLB.com.

Kazmir, who hasn't pitched in the majors since 2011, has tossed eight scoreless innings this spring, striking out eight and walking one. Carrasco, who missed last season recovering from Tommy John surgery, is 1-1 with a 5.54 ERA in four spring outings (three starts).

The Indians announced Thursday they optioned Scott Barnes and Corey Kluber to Triple-A Columbus. They also signed Giovanni Soto to minor-league camp.

Astros manager Bo Porter announced Wednesday that starting pitcher Jordan Lyles was optioned to minor-league camp, taking him out of the competition for the starting rotation following a disastrous spring.

"I told (Lyles) it's not a demotion, it's a delay," Porter told the Houston Chronicle.

Lyles was 0-3 with a 17.74 ERA and 3.17 WHIP in five spring outings (four starts). He allowed 24 runs (23 earned runs) and 36 hits in 11 2/3 innings.

Porter also announced pitcher Bud Norris will start opening day (March 31) against the Rangers. He will be followed by Lucas Harrell and Philip Humber in the three-game series. 

The competition for the final two spots in the rotation is down to Erik Bedard, Brad Peacock and Alex White, with John Ely also being optioned to minor-league camp Wednesday.

Rangers pitcher Yu Darvish said Tuesday that the stiff neck that held him out of Monday's Cactus League start was feeling better. The right-hander is expected to throw a bullpen session on Thursday before being re-evaluated.

Darvish has allowed one run and struck out 10 over 8 2/3 innings his spring.

Manager Ron Washington told ESPN.com he expects Darvish to be ready for the start of the regular season.

"It's not a big issue. If he is fine today, then he'll do a bullpen," Washington said. "If that goes well, Mike (Maddux) will pencil him back in the game Thursday or Friday. We'll let him pitch a couple of innings in the minors, shut him down and get him ready for his next start. A lot of it is going to depend on today. The neck wasn't that big of an issue, it was just precautionary."

Baltimore pitching prospect Kevin Gausman, who remains in major league camp while top prospect Dylan Bundy was cut last week, made a two-inning appearance on Tuesday in a Grapefruit League game against the Red Sox. 

Gausman struck out three batters and allowed just one hit over two scoreless frames. He mowed down Mike Napoli and Jarrod Saltalamacchia to begin the sixth inning. 

"He was good again," manager Buck Showalter said. "You can see why everybody's so high on him. He's thrown well here. I'm impressed with the little things, his time to the plate from the stretch. When he does get centered up, he comes back out and continues to pound the zone. He won't get fearful of the barrel of the bat like a lot of guys do who don't have a lot of experience."

The Orioles have another round of cuts coming on Thursday and it appears that could be the end of the line for Gausman, who is the No. 2 overall prospect for Baltimore and is rated No. 26 overall in the majors by Baseball America. 

"He's pitched well and Thursday we'll take a step back and decide whether it's time for him to go or not," Showalter said. 

Astros starting pitcher Jordan Lyles surrendered six runs and 10 hits over 3 2/3 innings during Houston's 10-6 loss to Toronto in a Grapefruit League matchup Tuesday. He did not walk a batter for the third consecutive start and finished with three strikeouts during his longest outing of the spring. But it represented the latest poor outing for the young right-hander, who has allowed 36 hits and 23 earned runs in 11 2/3 innings this spring.

"My stat lines this spring haven’t been good in any way, but at the end of the day you can’t look at that," Lyles told MLB.com. "Personally, I would like to be better, but I’m working on things and I’m going to try to be ready for April and not this month. I’m looking forward to the season. This is the best I felt in spring training and the numbers aren’t there for me right now. I’m not overly worried about that."

Yu Darvish will miss his scheduled Monday start with a stiff neck, Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reports.

Darvish said he would have pitched through the injury for a regular season game. As such, it seems unlikely the injury will have any long-term effect on Darvish or his fantasy value. Darvish has a 1.04 ERA over 8.2 innings in his first three spring training starts, including 10 strikeouts. Expect to see him on the hill for the Rangers on opening day.