MLB Player News

Reds starting pitcher Anthony DeSclafani has been pitching like a Cy Young candidate to begin the 2015 season, opening the year with a 2-0 record and 0.86 ERA in three starts.

It's been a nice turnaround for the right-hander, who struggled in his first stint in the majors in 2014 with the Marlins.

"Obviously, I believe in myself," DeSclafani said, per MLB.com. "Any big leaguer who is up here believes in himself. I just try to stay consistent in my mindset, on a day-to-day basis, on an outing-to-outing basis.

"You've just got to do your best to execute your pitches and let the defense play behind you. And they've been phenomenal. I've felt great with this team since Day 1. They've been really great and supportive, and I can't ask for anything more than that."

The Reds have been particularly impressed with DeSclafani's approach, makeup and demeanor.

"He's just an inherently confident guy," manager Bryan Price said. "That's one thing we ask our pitchers to do, is to be emotionally stable when they pitch. He's throwing the ball really well; he's throwing three pitches for strikes. He's doing all the little things. He's got a really nice changeup that he's developed here through spring training and into the early part of the season. I think it's a necessary pitch for Anthony to be a quality starting pitcher.

"There's something to be said for young guys getting their feet wet at the big-league level and he's done it with some style. He's been very effective for us. We hope to see that trend continue."

As expected, the Mets promoted catcher prospect Kevin Plawecki and reliever Hansel Robles from Triple-A Las Vegas on Tuesday. 

The Mets also added catcher Travis d'Arnaud (finger) and reliever Jerry Blevins (arm) to the 15-day disabled list, while moving Zack Wheeler (elbow) from the 15-day to 60-day disabled list.

Padres pitcher Odrisamer Despaigne allowed two earned runs in Monday night's 14-3 win over the Rockies. 

Despaigne had plenty of run support early, with the Padres scoring nine of their 14 runs in the first two innings. Despaigne gave up both of his runs in the fourth inning. He struck out five batters and walked two. He allowed six hits in 6 2/3 innings. 

Despaigne is now 2-0 this season in three starts and holds a 1.47 ERA. 

Dodgers pitcher Zack Greinke will make his next start Friday instead of Thursday against the Giants, manager Don Mattingly said per the L.A. Times.

Mattingly wants to be able to keep Greinke fresh early in the season and has nothing to do with San Francisco's early struggles, according to the report.

"It's too early for any of that," Mattingly said. "This is really just our guys getting rest."

Greinke is 2-0 in three starts this season with a 1.83 ERA and 14 strikeouts.

Reds pitcher Anthony DeSclafani tossed eight scoreless innings in Cincinnati's 6-1 win over the Brewers Monday. 

DeSclafani worked efficiently throughout the start, allowing just two hits in the outing. He did not allow a baserunner to get past second base in his eight innings.

"He was locked in," Reds manager Bryan Price said per the Associated Press. "This is what we heard about when we were in the trade discussions with Miami but no one can expect anybody to come out and throw as well as he has."

DeSclafani, now 2-0 on the year, has allowed just two runs in his first three starts of the season and owns a 0.86 ERA.

He will look to keep rolling Saturday against the Cubs. DeSclafani allowed two hits in his last start against Chicago. 

The Mets will promote catcher Kevin Plawecki and reliever Hansel Robles from Triple-A Las Vegas on Tuesday, the team announced Monday. The team will also transfer Zack Wheeler (elbow) to the 60-day disabled list.

Plawecki and Robles are being called up due to injuries to Travis d'Arnaud and Jerry Blevins. D'Arnaud is expected to miss at least a month due to a metacarpal fracture of the little finger of his right hand. Blevins has a distal radius fracture of the left arm and will miss more than six weeks.

Plawecki is considered the 63rd-best prospect in baseball by MLB.com and Baseball America. He is batting .216 (8 for 37) with one triple, two doubles and six RBI in nine games for Triple-A Las Vegas. 

Robles is 1-0 with a 0.00 ERA in five relief outings for Las Vegas. He has 10 strikeouts in 7 2/3 innings.

Pirates pitcher Charlie Morton threw 55 pitches in an simulated game at extended spring training on Friday. He's currently on the disabled list with a hip injury. 

Before he goes on an injury rehab assignment with a Pirates minor league affiliate, the team will likely have him make one more extended spring appearance, according to the Post Gazette. 

Cardinals starter Adam Wainwright (2-1) yielded one run on seven hits in eight innings of work Sunday to defeat the Reds.

The one run Wainright allowed came in the third inning via an RBI single from Brandon Phillips.

Wainright struck out four and walked two.

"When you think careful, you end up making a mistake and you don't throw pitches with conviction," Wainwright said to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. "I wanted to pitch (Bruce) tough. I wanted to throw him pitches he could swing at. If you give in right there he can hit a tank bomb and all of sudden you’re down 4-1."

The right hander lowered his ERA to 1.72 with Sunday's performance.

Wainright's next start is set for Saturday in Milwaukee.

Diamondbacks manager Chip Hale said that pitchers Patrick Corbin and David Hernandez are scheduled to throw live batting practice on Tuesday, reports AZCentral.com.

It'll be the first time either pitcher will face real hitters since their Tommy John surgeries.

Pirates pitcher Gerrit Cole earned a win Sunday, giving up two earned runs on five hits and one walk in six innings while striking out six in his team's 5-2 victory over the Brewers.

Cole (2-0) delivered his second straight quality start despite running into trouble in the second inning, giving up back-to-back singles to open the inning and watching the Brewers erase his 2-0 lead. The Pirates were able to hand Cole another lead in the bottom of the third, and he didn't let that one slip away, facing the minimum amount of batters from the third inning through the end of his start.

Cole owns a 3.18 ERA and 20:5 K:BB ratio in 17 innings. He's slated to face the Diamondbacks Friday.