MLB Player News

Walker (elbow) had a 20-pitch bullpen session Tuesday, Steve Gilbert of MLB.com reports.

The throwing session was Walker's first since undergoing Tommy John elbow surgery in April of 2018. "Obviously, it's been a long, grinding process, and these are when you start to see some really good moments for these guys, a smile on their faces. I think it was a good day for Taijuan," said manager Torey Lovullo. Walker will slowly ramp up over the next few months and could be an option for the Diamondbacks after the All-Star break.

DeSclafani will pitch fourth among Reds starters to begin the season, Mark Sheldon of MLB.com reports.

Luis Castillo will get the Opening Day nod for the Reds, followed by Sonny Gray, Tanner Roark and then DeSclafani. That means that DeSclafani has to face the Brewers instead of the Pirates for his first start.

Gray will start the Reds' second game of the season against the Pirates on March 30, Mark Sheldon of MLB.com reports.

Gray threw 70 pitches in a spring training game Tuesday against the Indians that was mostly against their minor-league hitters, though he did face Francisco Lindor and Jason Kipnis multiple times. "Overall, I feel good and got to work on a lot of stuff," Gray said. "It was obviously a little later start to spring than I would have liked but sometimes those things are out of your control. I feel very good and look forward to what's ahead."

Anderson ditched his altered delivery in Tuesday's spring start, according to MLB.com's Adam McCalvy, and allowed two earned runs over four innings. He allowed six hits and posted a 4:1 K:BB in the outing.

Anderson attempted using a Nolan Ryan-like, over-the-head windup to begin the spring, but he allowed nine earned runs over 10 innings, and decided to put a halt to the experiment in Tuesday's start. The results were mixed, but better, and manager Craig Counsell said Anderson had "the best velocity" he's had this spring. It's not clear which approach Anderson will choose to employ moving forward, but regardless, he figures to find himself somewhere in the Brewers' rotation when the regular season begins.

Manager David Bell announced Tuesday that Castillo will start Opening Day against the Pirates, Bobby Nightengale of The Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

Castillo has produced sub-par results in spring training with a 12.46 ERA and 1.29 WHIP over four appearances, but he still receives the Opening Day nod over veterans Sonny Gray and Tanner Roark. The 26-year-old made 31 starts for the Reds in 2018, compiling a 4.30 ERA, 1.22 WHIP and 165:49 K:BB across 169.2 innings.

Greinke was named the Diamondbacks' Opening Day starter versus the Dodgers.

The announcement comes as little surprise as Greinke receives the team's Opening Day nod for the third time in four years. The 35-year-old had a subpar 4.37 ERA, 1.27 WHIP and 7.6 K/9 during his first year in Arizona in 2016, but has since posted a 3.20 ERA, 1.08 WHIP and 9.1 K/9 across the past two seasons.

Hill has a 3.27 ERA, 1.18 WHIP and 11 strikeouts against no walks through 11 innings in Cactus League play this spring.

Hill has historically struggled in spring training during his career, but he's been solid in the Cactus League this spring and looks to be healthy ahead of the regular season. He had a 3.66 ERA and 1.12 WHIP over 132.2 innings last year, and the 39-year-old has emerged as a candidate to start Opening Day for the Dodgers with staff ace Clayton Kershaw (shoulder) confirmed to be sidelined. As long as he stays healthy and part of the rotation, Hill is a good candidate to act as a ratio stabilizer, although he shouldn't be considered likely to log a high number of innings given his age and injury history.

Nix was diagnosed with torn UCL in his right elbow Tuesday and will visit Dr. Neal ElAttrache to determine whether to undergo surgery, Kevin Acee of The San Diego Union-Tribune reports.

Nix was shut down Thursday after experiencing arm soreness and the underlying injury could end up costing him a significant chunk of time. The 23-year-old made his MLB debut last season and made nine starts with a 7.02 ERA and 1.54 WHIP and was competing for a spot in the starting rotation this spring. Pending Dr. ElAttrache's opinion, Nix could return to throwing in 6-to-8 weeks as the initial diagnosis was a low-grade strain, according to AJ Cassavell of MLB.com.

Manager Dave Roberts confirmed Kershaw (shoulder) will open the season on the injured list, Pedro Moura of The Athletic reports.

Kershaw has already been ruled out for Opening Day, so this isn't all too surprising. The southpaw is scheduled to face live hitters Wednesday, after which a more concrete return date will hopefully come into focus. He isn't expected to pitch in the team's exhibition Freeway Series next week, as this would allow the Dodgers to backdate his IL move three days, making him eligible to return April 5 against the Rockies, if all goes as planned. It's still unclear who will start in place of Kershaw on Opening Day.

Darvish isn't worried about the blister that forced him to prematurely exit Tuesday's game against the Mariners, Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune reports.

Darvish said he didn't feel the blister until his final pitch. The right-hander said the issue will be treated with laser therapy and cream, and he doesn't believe it will force him to miss a start. If all goes as planned, Darvish is hoping to play catch Wednesday before throwing a bullpen session Friday. It remains a situation to monitor with Opening Day rapidly approaching.