MLB Player News

Reds pitcher Anthony DeSclafani turned in a quality start in a no-decision during Thursday's contest against the Pirates.

DeSclafani, acquired from the Marlins during the offseason as part of the Mat Latos deal in December, tossed five scoreless innings before allowing a two-run home run to Joey Votto in the sixth inning for his only blemish of the afternoon. He was charged with two runs on five hits and one walk while striking out six over six innings of a 3-2 walkoff win.

DeSclafani will make his next scheduled start Tuesday at Wrigley Field against the Cubs. He allowed four earned runs over 6 1/3 innings last season against Chicago.

Phillies pitcher Sean O'Sullivan was named the starter for Sunday's contest against the Nationals, reports Comcast SportsNet Philadelphia. O'Sullivan, considered the favorite for the No. 5 spot in the rotation, holds a 5.91 career ERA over 231 1/3 big-league innings. He worked just 12 2/3 innings in the majors last season for the Phillies. 

"We've seen him before. He did a good job for us last year in some spot starts, and (him) being a guy who has some experience in doing that," manager Ryne Sandberg said, per the Philadelphia Inquirer.

Nationals pitcher Stephen Strasburg opened the season on a sour note, suffering his first loss of the season Thursday afternoon against the Mets.

Strasburg (0-1) was outdueled by Matt Harvey, who made his long-awaited return from Tommy John surgery. A fielding error by Ian Desmond helped the Mets tack on four runs in the third inning. David Wright singled in two runs in the sixth inning to knock Strasburg out of the game. He said after the game he wasn't frustrated about the sloppy defense, MLB.com reports.

"You can't let those things affect you. Those guys are going to go out there and give you everything they have, every single day," Strasburg said. "That's all I'm expecting because I'm trying to go out there and do the same thing. I know when you face adversity, you want to go out there and pick each other up. I went out there and I tried to do that."

Strasburg permitted six runs -- three earned -- on nine hits and three walks while striking out five over 5 1/3 innings of a 6-3 defeat.

"I thought he pitched well enough to keep us in it. That's for sure." manager Matt Williams said.

The right-hander will look to get back on track Tuesday at Boston. He allowed two earned runs over six innings of work his last time out against Boston in 2012.

Pirates pitcher Gerrit Cole didn't factor into the decision Wednesday after allowing three earned runs on five hits and two walks in five innings and striking out six in his team's 5-4, 11-inning loss to the Reds.

Cole began his start by giving up a solo home run to Reds third baseman Todd Frazier in the first inning, and while the Reds were able to tack on runs in the third and fourth inning, the starter's offense battled back to take him off the hook for the loss. He'll look for better results Monday against the Tigers.

Mets pitcher Jacob deGrom allowed two runs over six strong innings of work in New York's 2-1 loss to the Nationals Wednesday.

DeGrom's only blemish came in the first inning when Ryan Zimmerman took him to deep left field for a home run, bringing in two. He begins the year with a 3.00 ERA. 

DeGrom will look to get his first win of the year Monday against the Phillies.

Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw is scheduled to have a root canal performed Monday, according to the L.A. Times.

Kershaw, who is scheduled to start again on Sunday, is not expected to miss any time or have his pitching schedule adjusted because of the procedure. Kershaw started the year with a no decision last Monday, allowing three runs on six hits with nine strikeouts.

Cardinals pitcher Lance Lynn allowed two runs (one earned) on just two hits and one walk in six-plus innings Wednesday but was stuck with a loss in his team's 2-0 defeat against the Cubs.

Lynn, who racked up nine strikeouts in his season debut, made it through six innings without giving up a run, but hit the first batter of the seventh, who advanced to second on a throwing error by Lynn on a pickoff attempt. An RBI single chased Lynn from the game, and a second runner came home later in the inning.

Lynn will look to bounce back with his first win of the year Wednesday against the Brewers.

Cubs manager Joe Maddon said pushing back Jason Hammel from Wednesday to Saturday following Tuesday's rainout had nothing to do with an injury, per MLB.com.

"Nobody's ill, nobody's hurt," Maddon said of the switch. "We just wanted to do it this way. It's really not complicated."

Hammel's last spring start was April 1 against the Brewers. He went 3-1 with a 3.24 ERA in six spring starts. He had 22 strikeouts to three walks in 25 innings.

Dodgers pitcher Zack Greinke turned in a quality start but was not backed by enough run-support in his season debut Tuesday night against the Padres.

Greinke allowed a run-scoring triple to Justin Upton in the opening frame for his only blemish of the night. He was charged with one run on two hits and no walks while striking out four over six innings of work.

"Zack was pretty good tonight," manager Don Mattingly said, per MLB.com. "His stuff was sharp."

The Padres scored the game-tying run in the seventh to knock him out of a decision. Of his 89 pitches, 60 were strikes. He opens the season with a 1.50 ERA.

"I had good command," Greinke said. "I located pretty well. I didn't throw many curves, but the other three pitches were pretty good and I mixed it up."

Greinke also spoke highly of catcher Yasmani Grandal, who made his first start Tuesday.

"He's been unbelievable back there," Greinke said. "As a catcher he's better than advertised. He's been as good as you could expect. His hands are great, he's blocked everything I've thrown. People stole on him last year, but he's had some really good throws in games I pitched this spring. His game-calling has been good. I couldn't draw up a better catcher at the moment."

Greinke will look for his first win of the season Sunday at Arizona. He went 3-0 with a 1.42 ERA in four starts against the Diamondbacks in 2014.

Braves pitcher Alex Wood pitched five innings in Tuesday's 12-2 victory over the Marlins.

Wood gave up two earned runs and three walks with four strikeouts on four hits. Wood is now 1-0 on the season. The 24-year-old has an ERA of 3.07 in his career against the Marlins.