MLB Player News

Wacha allowed two unearned runs over three innings in a Cactus League contest against Cleveland on Thursday. He yielded three hits and no walks while striking out two batters.

Wacha signed with the Padres in mid-February and took the mound for the first time in a San Diego uniform Thursday. The veteran right-hander gave up a pair of runs in the second inning, but both were unearned because the inning began with his own error. Wacha enjoyed a bounce-back campaign with Boston last season and is expected to serve as the Padres' No. 4 starter in the upcoming campaign.

Burrows is incorporating a slider into his pitch mix, Justice delos Santos of MLB.com reports.

Burrows is among the top pitching prospects in the Pirates' organization, and he already possesses an above-average curveball. The slider is still a work in progress, though he has thrown the pitch eight times across three innings of work this spring. Burrows is extremely unlikely to break camp with the team, but he'll be among the top candidates to get the call when the Pirates need reinforcements in the rotation this season.

Syndergaard has tossed five scoreless innings through two spring appearances, allowing one hit and no walks while striking out four batters.

The Dodgers signed Syndergaard over the winter with the hope of turning him into another pitching reclamation success, as they did with both Tyler Anderson and Andrew Heaney last season. Though spring-training stats should always be taken with a grain of salt, the results have been encouraging thus far given Syndergaard's first two outings. On a less positive note, the veteran right-hander has yet to display the in-game bump in velocity that manager Dave Roberts hinted at in mid-February, as he topped out at 93 mph in his first outing and 94 mph in his second, per Jack Harris of the Los Angeles Times. Syndergaard averaged 94.1 mph on his fastball last season, well below his early-career velocity, which averaged over 98 mph.

Hill has allowed one earned run on three hits and two walks while striking out four across five innings of Grapefruit League action.

Hill signed a one-year deal with the Pirates over the winter and was brought on in part to mentor the team's young starting staff. However, so long as he is healthy, Hill should be a consistent member of the rotation. He's looked fairly sharp early in camp and will be looking to improve on the 4.27 ERA and 1.30 WHIP that he posted across 124.1 innings in 2022.

Allard suffered a Grade 2 right oblique strain Thursday and will begin the season on the injured list, Justin Toscano of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.

Allard had been off to a strong start this spring, allowing just one earned run through five innings while striking out four batters. He was traded from Texas to Atlanta over the offseason and will likely begin the year in Triple-A Gwinnett once he's healthy.

Peterson (foot) threw live batting practice without issue Thursday in Mets camp, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com reports.

Peterson would have been an option to start Thursday afternoon's exhibition game against Team Venezuela, but the Mets wanted to keep him in a more controlled environment after he took a comebacker off his left foot in a Grapefruit League outing over the weekend. All is well, per manager Buck Showalter. Peterson, 27, is competing with Tylor Megill for a spot in the season-opening rotation in Queens with Jose Quintana sidelined indefinitely due to a rib fracture.

Priester was reassigned Thursday to the minor-league side of Pirates camp, Kevin Gorman of TribLive.com reports.

Priester finished the 2022 season at Triple-A Indianapolis and is headed back there to begin the 2023 campaign. The 22-year-old right-hander could push to make his MLB debut at some point this summer, though 2024 is probably more of the focus.

Reds manager David Bell said Thursday that Lodolo will start the second game of the 2023 regular season, Charlie Goldsmith of the Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

No surprise here after Hunter Greene was named the team's Opening Day starter on Thursday afternoon. Lodolo and Greene will aim to form an exciting one-two punch for the up-and-coming rotation in Cincinnati, with Graham Ashcraft possibly adding a third jab to the equation. Lodolo, 25, recorded a 3.66 ERA with a 131 strikeouts across his first 103.1 big-league innings in 2022.

Reds manager David Bell announced Thursday that Ashcraft will begin the season as the team's No. 3 starter, Charlie Goldsmith of the Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

Hunter Greene was named the Opening Day starter for the Reds on Thursday afternoon, and now Bell adds that Nick Lodolo will pitch the second game of the regular season with Ashcraft following in the third. Ashcraft, 25, worked to a 4.89 ERA and 71:30 K:BB over his first 105 major-league innings (19 starts) in 2022. He's trying to add more swing-and-miss this spring.

Greene will start Cincinnati's Opening Day game versus the Pirates on March 30, Charlie Goldsmith of The Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

Greene will lead Cincinnati's trio of promising young starts -- himself, Nick Lodolo and Graham Ashcraft -- into what will likely be another tough season for the Reds. The right-hander threw four scoreless innings in Thursday's spring training action and has a 5.40 ERA through three spring appearances. He figures to start at least a couple more games between now and Opening Day.