MLB Player News

Morton (1-0) allowed no runs on three hits and two walks over 5.2 innings to pick up the win Monday against the White Sox. He struck out six.

It wasn't entirely clean early on for Morton, who loaded the bases in the first on a single, a walk and hit batter and allowed a total of six batters to reach base in the first two-plus innings, but Morton settled down to retire the final 11 batters he faced in cruising to his first win of the season. The 40-year-old veteran continues to excel despite his advanced age. His next opportunity to toe the rubber is tentatively scheduled to take place Sunday in a home matchup against the defending National League champion Diamondbacks.

Sanchez did not factor into the decision Monday against the Reds, allowing two runs on five hits and one walk over five innings. He struck out eight.

Sanchez blew away the Reds on Monday with an electric three-pitch mix of fastballs, changeups and sliders to gather eight strikeouts. The Phillies lefty showed increased average velocity on both his fastball (94.3-mph, up from 92.1-mph in 2023) and changeup (84.5-mph, up from 81.8-mph in 2023) over his 85-pitch outing. He managed to toss a clean five innings before being lifted in the sixth after allowing a walk and double. Sanchez is tentatively slated to face the Nationals on the road in his next start.

Abbott did not factor into the decision Monday against the Phillies, allowing two runs on three hits and two walks over 5.1 innings. He struck out four.

Abbott drew a difficult task in his first 2024 start facing the Phillies on the road but escaped relatively unscathed. He settled in and pitched 4.2 scoreless innings after allowing two runs in the first inning on an Alec Bohm double. However, the Reds lefty struggled to avoid contact on his fastball, generating just one whiff despite throwing it 44 times. Abbott is currently scheduled to face the Mets at home in his next start.

Gore did not factor into the decision Monday against the Pirates, allowing three runs on five hits and two walks over 5.1 innings. He struck out six.

Gore struggled to find a groove and work deep into his outing against the Pirates as he required 101 pitches to complete his 5.1 innings. However, the 25-year-old lefty's arsenal showed increased velocity over last season as he averaged 97-mph on his fastball (up from 95-mph in 2023) and 91.7-mph on his slider (up from 88.6-mph in 2023). Gore also mixed in his changeup more than last season, throwing it 16.8 percent of the time Monday versus 3.0 percent in 2023. He looks for better results from his new arsenal in his next scheduled start, tentatively slated to be at home against the Phillies.

Gonzales did not factor into the decision Monday against the Nationals, allowing one run on four hits and two walks over five innings. He struck out two.

Gonzales drew an easy assignment in his Pirates debut Monday facing the Nationals and made the most of it. The 32-year-old turned back the clock as he averaged 90.2-mph on his fastball, up 1.2-mph from last year. The last full season in which Gonzales averaged above 90-mph on his fastball was in 2018. However, he remains useful in only the deepest of fantasy leagues at the moment. The Pittsburgh lefty is tentatively scheduled to face the venerable Orioles offense on the road in his next start.

Cobb (hip) continued his rehab process, throwing a bullpen session in Arizona on Sunday, Shayna Rubin of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

Cobb made a five-inning rehab start Thursday and then followed it up with another throwing session a few days later. The right-hander is eligible to be activated from the 15-day injured list April 9, and while he appears to be built up, it's unclear how many exhibition outings the club wants to give Cobb to make up for missing spring training.

Snell will make his first start of the 2024 season April 8 against the Nationals, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

Snell has looked sharp while at extended spring training, and the team has decided that he's ready to make his regular-season debut. The southpaw will throw one more sim game later in the week in preparation, per Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area, before he toes the rubber in looks to be a favorable matchup at his new home ballpark.

Montgomery is scheduled to make a start with Triple-A Reno on Sunday, Nick Piecoro of The Arizona Republic reports.

Montgomery tossed three innings and 50 pitches in a simulated game Monday at the Diamondbacks' spring training facility and is ready to move on to an official game setting next. The left-hander has said he's aiming for April 19 as the date of his first start with the big club, which would point to one additional start in the minors after Sunday before he joins Arizona.

Garrett (shoulder) will throw a three-inning and/or 50-pitch simulated game at extended spring training Tuesday, Christina De Nicola of MLB.com reports.

It's not clear what the next step will be after that, but there would seem to be a chance Garrett would be ready to begin a rehab assignment. The left-hander has dealt with a left shoulder impingement since early on in spring training. He should rejoin the Marlins' rotation before the end of April.

Megill (shoulder), whom the Mets placed on the 15-day injured list earlier Monday, won't throw for the next five days before beginning his ramp-up process, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com reports.

Though the injury that landed him on the shelf is being characterized as a right shoulder strain rather than right shoulder soreness, Megill seems optimistic that he won't miss significant time and could even be back around when he's first eligible to return in mid-April. A precise timeline for Megill's return won't come into focus until he reaches the point in his throwing program that he's facing hitters. While 40-man roster members Joey Lucchesi or Jose Butto would seem to be the most logical candidates to replace Megill in the rotation, both were optioned to Triple-A Syracuse in spring training and thus aren't eligible to be promoted until April 12 unless the Mets place a player on the IL in a corresponding move. As such, the Mets may turn to a non-roster player to make spot starts for Megill's next two turns through the rotation.