MLB Player News

Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw struck out three batters but had an inconsistent outing in Sunday's 5-2 win over teh Mariners. 

Kershaw went 3 1/3 innings and allowed four hits and one earned run. He also walked three batters. Kershaw faced 16 hitters in the game. His spring ERA is now 2.16. 

"I was all over the place, had no idea where the ball was going," Kershaw said, via MLB.com. "I'm getting worse as the spring is going. I walked three in three innings. I have a lot of things to figure out. I would have liked to get through four innings, but my pitch count was so high I couldn't do it."

Braves starting pitcher Julio Teheran surrendered seven runs (six earned) on nine hits and one walk in 3 1/3 innings while striking out two in Sunday's spring loss to the Blue Jays.

Teheran was pitching on a hard infield, creating some bad hops for his defense, but also gave up some hard hits.

"It wasn’t my best location," Teheran said after the outing, per the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. "I wasn’t throwing the first pitch for strikes and that’s the most important thing for a pitcher. I wasn’t commanding very well. I tried to battle and make pitches."

Despite the issues, the Atlanta ace said his arm is feeling good.

"I feel good," Teheran said. "My arm feels good. That’s the most important thing. I’m getting ready for the season and having a bad outing is something that’s going to happen."

Cardinals pitcher Carlos Martinez struggled Sunday, allowing five earned runs on four hits and two walks in 3 1/3 innings while striking out one in his team's tie with the Twins.

Martinez came into the game with just one earned run allowed in 4 2/3 innings, but Sunday's dud gives him a 6.75 ERA in eight innings. He's competing for the fifth spot in the rotation this spring.

"Carlos also had two extremely impressive outings, and this one wasn't as bad as it looked," manager Mike Matheny said. "The door's open. It's just competition. We're truly trying to watch with an open mind to see what looks the best. Obviously we have a lot of games left, a long way to go to get everybody there."

Pirates pitcher Gerrit Cole threw 3 2/3 innings Saturday, using 65 pitches in his outing against the Red Sox. Cole was happy to get as much work as he could Saturday, reports MLB.com.

"Yeah, I'm glad I got up to the max," Cole said. "I started to get a little fatigued at the end, so it was nice to still be able to make some quality pitches in the fourth … outside of the one [Mike] Napoli deposited again."

Cole has yet to be named the opening day starter for Pittsburgh and manager Clint Hurdle didn't mind what he saw from him in his outing,

"We wanted Cole to throw between 65 and 70 pitches, so we got that checked off," Cole said. "He was out there to work on specific things: Throw his breaking balls and changeup,and the offside pitches were mostly strikes. It was a good outing for him, on effort, consistency, focus."

Cardinals pitcher Lance Lynn will test his injured hip on Wednesday. 

Manager Mike Matheny said Lynn would pitch in a simulated game on Wednesday. Assuming that goes well, he should return to the rotation after that.  

Kyle Hendricks pitched five perfect innings for the Cubs on Saturday, retiring all 15 batters he faced. 

Hendricks threw 54 pitches, including 40 strikes, and fanned three. 

In two starts, Hendricks has not given up a run or walked a batter. Opponents are hitting .125 off of him. 

Zack Wheeler downplayed his elbow soreness after being scratched from Saturday's start for the Mets. Despite that, the team decided to give the pitcher an MRI on the elbow anyway, Terry Collins told the media. 

Collins said that there were a "lot of games" where Wheeler tried to pitch through elbow soreness last year, and he's glad Wheeler spoke up this spring instead of aggrevating the problem. 

Adam Wainwright was able to fully participate in fielding drills for the Cardinals on Saturday, according to MLB.com's Jennifer Langosh.

"Everything felt good," Wainwright said afterward. "I think everything is very positive."

Later in the day, manager Mike Matheny said Wainwright would pitch a simulated game on Monday, with fielders behind him to give a realistic game experience.

The righthander is recovering from an abdominal strain and appears to be on track to make his first start of the spring within the week. 

Mets starting pitcher Zack Wheeler told reporters he's not concerned with his injuries, adding that he's dealt with elbow tenderness and with a blister under his middle fingernail before. He insisted that it didn't impact his performance last season, per Newsday.

"It wasn't affecting me all that much so I could go out there and compete like I wanted to," Wheeler said.

Wheeler was scratched from Saturday's Grapefruit League game against the Nationals. He is not scheduled to have an MRI. Tyler Pill will take the hill in Wheeler's place on Saturday.

Wheeler allowed two runs on two hits, two walks and two hit batters in 1 1/2 innings during his first start of the spring on Monday. He went 11-11, with a 3.54 ERA in 32 starts for the Mets last year.

Mets starting pitcher Zack Wheeler will not pitch in Saturday's Grapefruit League game against the Nationals due to "elbow tenderness" and a blister under his fingernail, according to Newsday and the New York Post.

According to ESPN, Wheeler will not undergo an MRI. Tyler Pill will take the hill in Wheeler's place on Saturday. General manager Sandy Alderson told reporters Wheeler's elbow issue is not considered to be major.

Wheeler allowed two runs on two hits, two walks and two hit batters in 1 1/2 innings during his first start of the spring on Monday. He went 11-11, with a 3.54 ERA in 32 starts for the Mets last year.