MLB Player News

Kershaw (shoulder) played catch on flat ground Sunday on the back fields, Bill Plunkett of The Orange County Register reports.

Kershaw's latest throwing session went off without a hitch, and manager Dave Roberts expects his ace to "ramp up the intensity" in the coming days. "He feels good," stated Roberts. "Ever since last Monday, with some of the rest we've built in, he's in a good place." Kershaw hasn't thrown off a mound in nearly two weeks, but a return to the hill could be on the horizon as long as he continues to feel strong.

Lorenzen will get some spring training game reps in center field, Mark Sheldon of MLB.com reports.

Lorenzen has been impressive so far in fielding practice, but he hasn't yet seen any game action in the field yet. The Reds are likely to use some sort of hybrid solution in center field to begin the season, depending on when Nick Senzel is up with the big club. Lorenzen could be a part of that picture late in games as a way to give the team added flexibility.

Keller struggled for the second time in two outings Sunday, allowing four runs on three hits and two walks in one inning. He didn't strike out a batter.

Pittsburgh's top pitching prospect was scheduled to hurl two innings, but he was only able to get through one frame on 29 pitches. Keller has surrendered six earned runs in two innings and has yet to strike anyone out. Fortunately for fantasy owners, he's demonstrated a history of improvement after initially struggling at higher levels. The 22-year-old will likely receive another outing or two to bounce back before Pittsburgh's veteran starters begin appearing in Grapefruit League action.

Darvish pitched two scoreless innings without giving up a hit to pick up the win in Sunday's Cactus League game against the White Sox. He walked one and struck out three.

Darvish made only eight starts in 2018 before a right triceps impingement cut the campaign short, so the team is no doubt going to be cautious with the 32-year-old this spring, but he's a great bounceback candidate this season if he stays healthy.

Syndergaard walked five batters but struck out four and allowed just an unearned run over 2.2 innings in Saturday's Grapefruit League game against the Astros.

He had trouble locating his fastball in his second start of the spring, but when he did get the ball in the zone, Syndergaard was still overpowering a Houston lineup that included Jose Altuve, George Springer, Alex Bregman and other likely Opening Day starters. The right-hander still has plenty of time to settle in before the games begin to count, as Thor looks to stay healthy and improve on last season's 25 starts and 9.0 K/9.

Wood is dealing with back stiffness, Mark Sheldon of MLB.com reports.

Wood made his lone appearance of spring training Feb. 25 and allowed three runs on two hits and a walk over one inning. The 28-year-old didn't say anything was awry following his spring debut, so it's not fully clear when the back issue actually cropped up. Regardless, manager David Bell indicated Wood is set to pitch again shortly after Tuesday's off day.

Wainwright will start Monday's Grapefruit League game against the Tigers, Jenifer Langosch of MLB.com reports.

The veteran right-hander already got his spring off to a good start with a pair of scoreless frames last Tuesday. Wainwright will look to continue making his case for a spot in the starting rotation after an eight-start 2018 campaign that was cut short by elbow problems.

Corbin gave up one unearned run on two hits with no walks and one strikeout across three innings during Saturday's spring win over the Twins.

The run is the first allowed by Corbin this spring, and he's yet to allow an earned run over five innings. The 29-year-old signed a massive six-year, $140 million contract with the Nationals in December and will play a vital role in the starting rotation behind Max Scherzer and Stephen Strasburg.

Hamels will throw a simulated game Monday instead of making a Cactus League start, Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times reports.

Hamels was in line to face the Reds on Monday, but the Cubs will opt to skip his turn in the rotation and have him throw the simulated game instead. The 35-year-old pitched two scoreless innings in his spring debut Wednesday and is coming off a strong finish to 2018 in Chicago, so it appears the team is simply letting the veteran ramp up slowly in the early going this season.

Gonzalez was claimed off waivers by the Giants on Saturday, Joe Frisaro of MLB.com reports.

Gonzalez made one start and seven relief appearances for the Marlins but failed to impress, recording a 5.73 ERA in 22 innings. He avoided walks fairly well, walking just 7.8 percent of opposing hitters, but he only managed an 18.5 percent strikeout rate. He could see some innings in San Francisco this season but is unlikely to play a significant role.