MLB Player News

Brown remains in the mix for the Cubs' No. 5 rotation spot along with Colin Rea, Jordan Bastian of MLB.com reports.

Brown took the loss in relief in Chicago's season opener in Tokyo on Tuesday, but he could slot into the rotation once the Cubs begin the domestic portion of their season later this week. The veteran Rea seems like the favorite for the role, with Brown shifting to long relief, but manager Craig Counsell said he is still considering both pitchers. Javier Assad (oblique) could ultimately reclaim the spot once he returns, but either Brown or Rea should see a short-term boost in fantasy value, depending on whichever player is starting.

Megill has been awarded a spot in the Mets' rotation, and he'll start the team's second game of the season March 28 against Houston, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com reports.

Megill's spot in the rotation was a foregone conclusion with Sean Manaea (oblique) and Frankie Montas (lat) out for the beginning of the campaign. Megill solidified the decision with a strong spring during which he posted a 4.24 ERA, 1.18 WHIP and 18:4 K:BB over 17 innings. Clay Holmes has been named New York's Opening Day starter, and he'll be followed in the rotation by Megill, Griffin Canning, David Peterson and Kodai Senga.

Ashcraft could be used as the closer if Alexis Diaz does not win the role coming out of spring training, Gordon Wittenmyer of the Cincinnati Enquirer reports. "I think we still have some work to do," Reds manager Terry Francona said. "We want to make sure [Diaz's] got his legs under him, with his delivery and everything. We know what he can do. We just want to make sure he's ready to do it."

Diaz hasn't pitched a clean inning during Cactus League play, which included a disastrous outing March 15 that prompted him to work on delivery issues with pitching coach Derek Johnson. The pitcher then had a command-challenged outing against minor leaguers Friday, which set off speculation that Diaz may not be the closer and could open the regular season in the minors. Going back to 2024, there's been chatter about Ashcraft having the makeup of a high-leverage reliever. After he competed for the rotation during spring training, Ashcraft was shifted to the bullpen last week and pitched three scoreless relief innings Thursday. "We've all kind of teetered on that idea and what it would look like," Johnson, the pitching coach, said about Ashcraft as a reliever. "Obviously, we haven't seen it so we don't know. But he could be kind of that really nice piece in the bullpen that we didn't have to go out and acquire." Diaz is expected to throw an inning in the Reds' Cactus League finale Sunday, which could provide an indication about who will work as the team's closer when the season kicks off Thursday against the Giants.

Spiers allowed one run on four hits while striking out one over four relief innings in Saturday's spring start against San Diego.

He entered after Andrew Abbott in what was Spiers' final Cactus League outing before he opens the regular season with a spot in the rotation. That spot is considered temporary and will last as long as it takes Abbott to build up his pitch count. Spiers closed out spring training with a 2.57 ERA through 14 innings over four appearances (one start).

Abbott (shoulder) allowed one hit and struck out three over four scoreless innings in Saturday's spring start against the Padres.

Abbott made his second Cactus League start and was impressive against a star-studded San Diego lineup. The left-hander was brought along slowly during spring training as a precaution, as Abbott missed the final six weeks of the 2024 regular season with a shoulder injury that persisted over the winter. As such, he'll open the season on the injured list, and it's not yet clear how much time Abbott will need to get ready to rejoin the rotation. He worked his pitch count up to 50 on Saturday, which means at least one more outing.

Kelly allowed three runs on five hits and two walks while striking out six over five innings in Saturday's spring start against the Giants.

The Giants tagged Kelly for three consecutive home runs in the fourth inning of his final Cactus League start, but the right-hander told Manny Randhawa of MLB.com that this was the best he's felt all camp. The Diamondbacks' rotation order hasn't been set beyond Opening Day starter Zac Gallen, but Kelly is considered to be part of the top three, which also includes Corbin Burnes. That means he'll likely make his next start Thursday or Friday against the Cubs.

Cease pitched 5.2 scoreless innings in a Cactus League game against Cincinnati on Saturday, allowing two hits and striking out nine batters without issuing any walks.

Cease was dominant in the outing, as he induced 18 whiffs on 74 pitches and topped out at 99 mph on the radar gun. The veteran righty finished his spring in superb form, tossing 10 scoreless frames and striking out 17 batters over his final two starts. Michael King has been named the Opening Day starter for San Diego, so Cease will pitch in the team's second contest of the regular season, which will take place Friday, March 28 at home against Atlanta.

Hart pitched 4.2 innings in a Cactus League game against Cleveland on Saturday, allowing six runs on five hits and no walks while striking out four batters.

Hart was tagged by Carlos Santana for a two-run home run in the first inning and then served up another two-run shot to Brayan Rocchio in the fourth. The southpaw did manage to retire nine straight batters at one point between the two long balls, but this was nonetheless not a very promising performance. Hart is competing for one of two Opening Day rotation spots, with Randy Vasquez and Stephen Kolek the other pitchers in the equation. Among the three, Hart has been the least impressive this spring -- he has a 9.39 ERA and 1.57 WHIP to Vasquez's 3.38 ERA and 1.88 WHIP and Kolek's 2.19 ERA and 1.14 WHIP. However, it's worth noting that Hart also has only two Cactus League appearances under his belt, as he was set back early during the exhibition slate due to the flu.

Gomber (shoulder) completed 3.2 innings, allowing three earned runs on five hits, in Saturday's Cactus League game against the Cubs, Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post reports.

Gomber made his first official Cactus League appearance since Feb. 25 as he continues to return from a sore shoulder. He's likely to begin the season on the injured list as he continues to build up his pitch count, but Saturday's outing was a positive indication that he will be able to return at some point in mid-April.

Quintana will likely need two additional starts before he is able to make his 2025 debut, Curt Hogg of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports.

Quintana was signed in early March and has since made two Cactus League starts. The most recent came Saturday, when he completed three innings of work. Though the team's plans haven't been made official, this report suggests Quintana would be able to take the mound at some point during the second week of April.