MLB Player News

Flaherty allowed two earned runs on two hits and a walk while recording four strikeouts over four innings in a Grapefruit League loss to the Nationals on Wednesday.

Facing off against Max Scherzer, Flaherty gave a solid accounting of himself for the second time in less than a week against the Nationals after having faced part of their squad in a "B" game Friday. The right-hander now has strong back-to-back outings under his belt following a forgettable spring debut, and he was able to stretch out to 64 pitches in Wednesday's start.

Velasquez is at real risk of losing not just his rotation spot but his roster spot as well, Matt Gelb of The Athletic reports.

Velasquez has continually failed to deliver on his potential, posting an ERA of 4.85 or worse in each of the last four seasons. The ERA estimators have been a bit kinder to him, with both xFIP and SIERA giving him a mark of 4.75 or better in each of those campaigns, but he may simply be someone who consistently underperforms those metrics. The Phillies brought in veterans Matt Moore and Chase Anderson on big-league deals this offseason, and the plan appears to be for them to start. Velasquez's career 4.78 ERA as a reliever is a near match for his 4.72 mark as a starter, so the Phillies could elect to give his roster spot to someone else if he can't win a rotation role.

Anderson surrendered five earned runs in three innings against the Yankees on Wednesday, allowing eight hits and no walks while striking out a pair.

The lefty, who gave up homers to both Giancarlo Stanton and Gleyber Torres, is expected to start 2021 as part of the team's rotation. His home field, PNC Park, is ideal for left-handed pitchers. At best, he may serve as a streaming option against weak-hitting squads at home.

Cardinals manager Mike Shildt said Thursday that recent imaging conducted on Mikolas' right shoulder revealed no structural damage, Rob Rains of StLSportsPage.com reports. "Early returns are favorable," Shildt said. "Nothing in the imaging that dictated anything invasive."

Fortunately for Mikolas, he looks to be dealing with nothing more than soreness in his shoulder, so the Cardinals will have him back off his throwing program for a bit with the hope that extra rest helps remedy the issue. Even though he's not expected to be shut down for an extended period, Mikolas looks unlikely to be built up for a starter's workload by the time Opening Day arrives. If Mikolas indeed opens the season on the injured list, Daniel Ponce de Leon, John Gant and Johan Oviedo would likely be the top candidates to fill his spot in the rotation.

Fried struck out three and didn't walk a batter over four innings Wednesday against the Red Sox in his first game action of the spring, Gabriel Burns of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.

The southpaw tossed 51 pitches and was in attack mode from the jump, throwing first-pitch strikes to 12 of the 15 batters he faced. "For me, my first couple spring-training starts, I'm normally trying to shy away from contact and trying to miss bats," Fried said afterwards. "Today, I wanted to attack hitters early, get some early contact and get the guys working behind me." He remains a candidate, and perhaps the favorite, to get the Opening Day assignment for Atlanta.

Walker tossed 36 pitches in his first game action of the spring Tuesday, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com reports.

The right-hander breezed through the first inning before running into trouble in the second, but his workload was the most important takeaway. Walker has enough time to get stretched out to about 90 pitches before Opening Day, and he's expected to slot into the No. 4 spot in the Mets' rotation.

Martinez fired three scoreless innings in a Grapefruit League loss to the Mets on Tuesday, allowing two hits and two walks while regarding three strikeouts.

The right-hander's strong effort validated the confident tone he'd sounded after a disastrous spring debut against the Astros on Thursday. Martinez stretched out to 53 pitches in Tuesday's start, throwing 33 for strikes to stay in the thick of the race for the No. 5 job in the starting rotation.

Gore is a serious candidate for a spot on the Opening Day roster, AJ Cassavell of MLB.com reports.

The hyped prospect had an up-and-down outing in Wednesday's Cactus League contest against Colorado, allowing two runs on four hits and a walk across two innings while striking out four. Though his command has been shaky, Gore has shown this spring that he has the stuff to get big-league hitters out, and San Diego may elect to have him start the campaign on the big-league roster. If he breaks camp with the club, Gore could be used as a multiple-inning reliever, though he could also pick up an occasional start or even function as the team's temporary No. 5 starter if Dinelson Lamet (elbow) isn't ready to go at the start of the campaign.

Gomber gave up three hits and two walks while striking out five over three scoreless innings in Wednesday's spring win over the Padres. He didn't factor into the decision.

Gomber continued to perform at a high level during his third spring start Wednesday. He gave up a pair of walks to load the bases with two outs in the third inning, but he struck out Tommy Pham swinging to end the frame. The southpaw recorded a strikeout with each of his four pitches against San Diego, Thomas Harding of MLB.com reports. Gomber is the clear favorite to win a back-end rotation role with the Rockies to begin the year after allowing five hits and two walks while striking out eight over seven innings during his first three Cactus League starts.

Senzatela (hamstring) threw a bullpen session Wednesday, Thomas Harding of MLB.com reports.

Senzatela continues to recover from a minor hamstring strain that he sustained at the beginning of March, and manager Bud Black was impressed with his bullpen session Wednesday. The right-hander is expected to throw in a simulated game in the coming days, and he should progress to Cactus League games after that if all goes well.