MLB Player News

DeSclafani (elbow) underwent a platelet-rich plasma injection to try to speed up his healing process, MLB.com's Mark Sheldon reports.

DeSclafani has been shut down from throwing but has started his rehab. At minimum he'll miss the first month of the season.

Williams threw four shutout innings Wednesday, limiting the Phillies to two hits and no walks while striking out six.

The showing likely solidifies his spot on the Opening Day roster. Whether he serves as the team's fifth starter or pitches out of the bullpen remains to be seen. He concludes Grapefruit League action with a 2.04 ERA in 17.2 innings.

Matz (elbow) won't be ready for the start of the season, MLB.com's Anthony DiComo reports.

He went for an MRI on his elbow Wednesday and regardless of the result, DiComo says Matz won't be ready for the start of the season, meaning he will start the year on the disabled list. Manager Terry Collins first mentioned Seth Lugo and Rafael Montero as potential replacement options, Mike Puma of the New York Post reports. This comes with the territory with Matz, as he always offers mid-rotation production when healthy, but is essentially a lock to miss time due to injury each year. Lugo is the most promising replacement option for fantasy purposes, as he boasts one of the best curveballs in the world.

Lyles seems likely to break camp as a member of the Rockies' bullpen, Patrick Saunders of The Denver Post reports.

The right-hander has experienced his fair share of struggles this spring (6.55 ERA, four walks in 11 innings pitched), but the myriad of injuries plaguing the Rockies seem to have opened up a spot in the bullpen for Lyles. The fact that he's out of options may have also played a role, but a roster spot is a good sign for him nonetheless. That being said, his fantasy value will be severely limited for much of the season, as his low strikeout rates won't garner much value in a middle-relief role.

Jurrjens agreed to a minor-league contract with the Dodgers on Wednesday, Hudson Belinsky of Baseball America reports.

The 31-year-old was out of baseball in 2016, but he does possess a lot of major-league experience that could serve him well in an organizational depth role. That seems to be his ceiling this season, however, as Jurrjens is behind a host of other starting pitchers in the Dodgers' pecking order, so he'll likely spend most if not all of 2017 with Triple-A Oklahoma City.

Wood -- who is competing for the Dodgers' final rotation spot -- was shelled for six runs (five earned) on 11 hits over six innings Tuesday. He struck out four and walked one in a loss to the Reds.

The veteran picked a terrible time to have his worst Cactus League outing. Wood was already considered the underdog in the position battle due to his track record of pitching successfully out of the bullpen, whereas Brandon McCarthy has only experienced success as a starter in the majors. Even though an official decision hasn't been made, The Orange County Register's Bill Plunkett reported that the 26-year-old sounded like a player who knew his fate after the game when he said, "We've got a lot of guys who deserve to be in the rotation. It's lucky and unlucky that I had success out of the bullpen when I first came up." We will have to wait for an official announcement to be made, but early signs point to McCarthy -- and not Wood -- winning the Dodgers' final rotation spot.

Williams is one of two remaining candidates for the Pirates' fifth starter role, Bill Brink of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.

It's down to Williams and Tyler Glasnow with Drew Hutchison officially optioned out of big-league camp Wednesday. Williams has had a fine run in the Grapefruit League, but Glasnow has nearly twice as many strikeouts (23) as Williams (12) and has shown improved control this spring. Williams also struggled mightily at the major-league level last season (7.82, 1.89 WHIP) although it was just a 12.2-inning sample.

Glasnow is one of two remaining candidates for the Pirates' fifth starter role, Bill Brink of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.

Drew Hutchison was optioned down Wednesday, leaving Glasnow and Trevor Williams as the top options to round out the starting staff in Pittsburgh. The hurler who loses out on the rotation spot will likely make the team's bullpen. Much has been made of Glasnow's strikeout upside -- he posted a 9.3 K/9 in the majors last season and owns an 11.6 career K/9 in the minors -- but it's the steady control he's shown this spring which could secure Glasnow a regular spot in the rotation. Glasnow has issued six walks in 14.1 Grapefruit League innings.

Nola was hit hard in his final spring start, allowing five runs on seven hits over 1.2 innings against the Blue Jays. He struck out four and walked one.

Nola told Ryan Lawrence of the Philly Voice after the game that he felt great, but left some balls over the plate which were hammered by Toronto hitters. Nola's overall numbers this spring look bad, but his velocity has been in line with his career norms so there are not any visible signs that his elbow is giving him issues again. He will pitch in a minor-league game Sunday before he makes his first start of the season on April 8 against Washington.

Gray (toe) will throw against batters Wednesday, Nick Groke of the Denver Post reports.

Since being pulled from a game less than a week ago with a toe injury, the club has reported that Gray's health has significantly improved. He's slated to throw 80-90 pitches against Rockies minor leaguers Wednesday. There's yet to be any word regarding his availability for the start of the season, but more information should be available following Wednesday's workout.