MLB Player News

Finnegan was added to the Reds' 60-man player pool Friday.

Finnegan wasn't included in the initial group of players and missed out on summer camp, but he'll head to the alternate training site to begin participating in workouts. The 27-year-old hasn't appeared in the majors since 2018, when he had a 7.40 ERA, 2.03 WHIP and 14:15 K:BB over 20.2 innings (five starts).

Strasurg (hand) will make his season debut Sunday against the Orioles, Mark Zuckerman of MASNSports.com reports.

Strasburg was expected to start the Nationals' second game of the season but was a late scratch due to a nerve issue in his hand, something he's apparently dealt with before. He maintained his throwing program after his original scratch and has been able to build up to close to a full workload, though he's not expected to throw more than 80 pitches, Brittany Ghiroli of The Athletic reports.

Mejia was activated off the Marlins' taxi squad and will start against the Mets for his big-league debut Friday, though the game is expected to be a bullpen game, Jordan McPherson of the Miami Herald reports.

Mejia recorded an excellent 2.09 ERA and 0.90 WHIP in 90.1 innings last season, backed up by a 25.5 percent strikeout rate and a 6.9 percent walk rate, but those numbers came at the Low-A and High-A levels. With the Marlins still without a large number of players due to the team's coronavirus outbreak, they'll be forced to turn to a handful of players like Mejia to make their debuts far ahead of schedule.

Eflin did not factor in the decision against the Yankees on Thursday, tossing four innings and allowing two unearned runs on four hits and one walk while striking out five.

Eflin missed the start of the season while dealing with back spasms, but he looked sharp against the potent Yankees offense in his first start, allowing only a pair of unearned runs in four frames. The right-hander departed with a lead but didn't go deep enough into the game to pick up the win, as he was limited to 77 pitches in the outing. Eflin will look to build upon his performance when he faces Baltimore at home Wednesday in his next scheduled start.

Gallen took a no-decision during Thursday's win over the Astros, allowing two runs on six hits and a walk while striking out seven across six innings.

The 25-year-old turned in another solid start, limiting the Astros to an RBI single by Yuli Gurriel and a solo home run by Jose Altuve. Gallen started off the season with some command issues, walking five batters in his first start. In his two subsequent starts, the right-hander has only issued two free passes. He'll carry a 2.81 ERA and 1.25 WHIP into a tough contest Tuesday at Coors Field.

Castillo (0-2) allowed three runs on four hits and four walks while striking out nine over five innings in a loss to Cleveland on Thursday.

Jose Ramirez turned around a 3-2 fastball in the first inning against Castillo, and the right-hander was more generous with the free passes than he was in his first two starts. However, this was far from a bad performance; Castillo just got no support from his teammates. The Reds were shut out once again and have scored a total of seven runs in the three games Castillo has started. He will look to finally get in the win column next week at home against the Royals.

Lucchesi was optioned to the Padres' alternate training site Thursday.

With rosters shrinking from 30 to 28 players Thursday, Lucchesi was one of the odd men out for San Diego. The left-hander struggled a bit in his two starts in the majors this season, allowing five earned runs on 11 hits in just 5.1 innings pitched. His demotion could signal the MLB debut of MacKenzie Gore; otherwise, Cal Quantrill could be an option to step into the rotation.

Anderson allowed two hits and two walks while striking out three across five scoreless innings Thursday against the Rockies. He did not factor into the decision.

Anderson got a shot in the rotation due to an injury to Drew Smyly (finger). He was effective in a tough environment, holding the Rockies scoreless at Coors Field. Anderson wasn't overpowering, but didn't allow any extra-base hits to stay out of trouble. Reports suggest Smyly won't return to the mound until at least mid-August, meaning Anderson could stick in the rotation for the time being. If that is the case, he'd line up to start next on Tuesday at Houston.

Toussaint took a no-decision during Thursday's win over the Blue Jays, striking out nine while surrendering three runs on four hits across 6.2 innings.

Making his second start of the season, Toussaint reached career highs in both innings pitched (6.2) and strikeouts (nine). The 24-year-old gave up a solo home run to Bo Bichette in the fourth frame and did not issue any walks. Despite a shaky first appearance in relief this season during which he was roughed up for six runs over 2.2 innings, Toussaint has been solid in both starts so far. Next up, he'll head to New York for a tough matchup against the Yankees.

Brubaker allowed three earned runs on four hits and two walks while striking out two across three innings Thursday against the Twins. He did not factor into the decision.

Brubaker made his first major-league start against one of the toughest lineups in the league. He scuffled immediately, surrendering a three-run home run to Miguel Sano in the first frame. He did settle in a bit from there, working two scoreless innings to close his outing. Brubaker ended his day at 52 pitches, though it was announced prior to the game that he was not expected to shoulder a full workload. He may have the chance to work a bit deeper in his next start, currently projected to come on Tuesday at St. Louis.