MLB Player News

Cabrera suffered an apparent injury while warming up for Sunday's Grapefruit League outing against the Cardinals and was scratched from the start, Jordan McPherson of the Miami Herald reports.

The specifics of the situation remain unclear, but it's a concerning development as Cabrera attempts to lock down a spot at the back end of Miami's rotation. The 25-year-old's status should be updated soon as he's evaluated.

Cubs manager Craig Counsell said Sunday that Taillon's availability for Opening Day is in jeopardy with the right-hander having shown little improvement in his recovery from a lower back injury since being scratched ahead of Saturday's scheduled Cactus League start against the Rockies, Sahadev Sharma of The Athletic reports.

While Counsell noted that the Cubs aren't yet concerned about Taillon potentially facing a long-term absence, the 32-year-old will be sent in for further testing as the organization looks to get a clearer picture of the injury. Taillon has yet to pitch in a Cactus League game this spring, but he hadn't been shut down from activity prior to being scratched Saturday, as he had been building up in simulated games. However, if Taillon isn't able to quickly move past the back issue within the next week, a stint on the injured list to begin the season would become an increasingly likely outcome. If Taillon is on the shelf at the start of the season, the Cubs could open up a rotation spot for one of Javier Assad, Drew Smyly or Hayden Wesneski.

Abbott allowed three runs on seven hits and one walk while striking out five over three innings in Saturday's spring start against the Diamondbacks.

Abbott was supposed to pitch four innings, but manager David Bell pulled him after the pitcher allowed the first batter to reach base in the fourth, according to Charlie Goldsmith of the Cincinnati Enquirer. The left-hander had a second consecutive subpar Cactus League start and overall has given up seven runs and 14 hits over eight spring innings, although that comes with a more reassuring 8:1 K:BB. Despite the results, Bell did not sound worried. "He's still working toward being really sharp like we know he can be," the manager said. "He's going through that normal process in spring training. He came in looking really good and he'll get back there by the end of camp." Abbott added that he's been focusing on inside fastballs to righties during camp and used the word "bad" to describe the execution of those inside fastballs Saturday. He's still in the mix for a rotation spot, but that likely depends on the progress Nick Lodolo (lower leg) makes.

Williams gave up five runs on eight hits over three innings in Saturday's Grapefruit League game against the Astros. He struck out three without walking a batter.

Facing most of Houston's Opening Day lineup, Williams looked overmatched as he served up homers to Jose Altuve and Kyle Tucker in the first inning. Those were the only extra-base hits the veteran right-hander allowed, however. Williams is penciled into a spot in the Washington rotation after finishing third on the staff last season with 144.1 innings, but his 5.55 ERA and 1.60 WHIP don't offer much hope of fantasy utility.

Rodriguez allowed two runs (one earned) on four hits while striking out four over four innings in Saturday's spring start against the Reds.

Rodriguez took the mound for a third time during Cactus League action and recorded his best results. The left-hander threw 55 pitches and told Alex Weiner of Arizona Sports that he felt about 80 percent of the regular-season version of himself. To get that extra 20 percent, Rodriguez wants to get his fastball velocity up. "I noticed today it was like 90-92 (mph), so like 100% is 91-94 (mph) ... but location-wise, I feel like it was 100%, the pitches were right where I wanted," Rodriguez said. The pitcher has allowed nine runs (eight earned) on 13 hits and four walks while striking out 10 over eight spring innings.

Puk struck out six over 3.1 scoreless innings in Saturday's Grapefruit League game against the Nationals. He allowed five hits and a walk.

The 28-year-old southpaw has yet to make a start during his big-league career, with all 142 of his appearances to date coming in relief, but Puk is making a very compelling case to begin the season in the Marlins' rotation. He's delivered a 15:4 K:BB through 8.1 spring innings with a 0.00 ERA, and his emergence makes it easier for the team to give Braxton Garrett (shoulder) the time he needs to get 100 percent healthy, rather than pushing him to be ready for Opening Day. If Puk carries his spring success into the regular season, he could be hard to dislodge from a starting role, but he also hasn't thrown more than 66.1 innings in a season since 2017, when he was working his way through the Oakland system.

Sale allowed three runs on four hits and a walk over 3.2 innings in Saturday's Grapefruit League game against the Orioles. He struck out two.

The veteran lefty came into the game with a 0.00 ERA through his first two spring outings, but a Baltimore lineup that featured only two likely regulars in Adley Rutschman and Jordan Westburg stung Sale for three hits and a walk in the second inning, with a Coby Mayo double being the biggest blow. Sale still has an 11:3 K:BB through 8.1 Grapefruit League innings, and staying healthy remains his most important goal ahead of Opening Day.

Ortiz allowed three earned runs on three hits and three walks while striking out six across three innings in Saturday's Grapefruit League game against the Tigers.

The stat line isn't particularly positive, but Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette provided more context for the outing by noting that Ortiz was struggling with his fastball velocity. Even without that, he settled in for a solid showing after allowing four baserunners and two earned runs in the first inning. Ortiz still has inconsistent command -- he has five walks across eight innings this spring -- but he has racked up 11 strikeouts in three Grapefruit League appearances. He's competing for the fifth rotation spot and has arguably made the best case for himself among the likes of Quinn Priester, Bailey Falter and Roansy Contreras.

Walker averaged just 89.4 mph with his four-seam fastball during Saturday's Grapefruit League debut versus the Blue Jays, Alex Coffey of the Philadelphia Inquirer reports.

The right-hander allowed one run on two hits and one walk while notching three strikeouts over two innings. Both Walker and Phillies manager Rob Thomson were unconcerned about the righty's low velocity, noting that Walker hasn't thrown much this spring due to a sore knee and also being away for personal reasons. Walker's velocity was down in 2023 after he lost about 20 pounds last offseason, but he put that weight back on this winter in hopes of regaining the zip on his fastball. His velocity will be worth tracking in the next couple weeks.

With Emmet Sheehan (upper body) set to begin the season on the IL, Stone and Michael Grove look like the leading candidates to claim the Dodgers' No. 5 rotation spot, Jack Harris of the Los Angeles Times reports.

Stone was originally thought to be competing with Sheehan for the team's final rotation spot, but it appears that Grove is in the running as well. Grove may have helped his case with a standout Cactus League start Saturday during which he pitched 3.1 scoreless frames, allowing just one hit and one walk while striking out six batters, but he struggled in two previous spring appearances. Meanwhile, Stone has been excellent in surrendering just one run over 5.2 innings with a 4:1 K:BB, so he's probably the frontrunner between the two. Manager Dave Roberts mentioned Kyle Hurt and Ryan Yarbrough are in the mix for the No. 5 starter role as well.