MLB Player News

Manager Bud Black announced Sunday that Freeland will start Opening Day against the Rays on March 28, Patrick Saunders of The Denver Post reports.

The left-hander is one of Colorado's longest-tenured players and will take the mound in the season opener after posting a 5.24 ERA, 1.41 WHIP and 85:26 K:BB across 113.1 innings last year. Freeland has pitched well in spring training with three earned runs allowed and an 11:1 K:BB over 9.2 frames.

Spiers appears to be behind Andrew Abbott for the Reds' fifth starter's job, Mark Sheldon of MLB.com reports.

Abbott started the spring a little bit behind because of a left shoulder issue, and he still hasn't pitched in a big-league spring training game. He did toss two innings in a minor-league game however, and with the Reds not immediately needing a fifth starter to begin the season, the team seems willing to wait for him to get stretched out. To his credit, Spiers hasn't pitched poorly in camp, posting an 8:2 K:BB over five Cactus League innings without giving up a homer -- something that was an issue for the right-hander in 2024, when he served up 20 long balls in only 90.2 MLB innings.

Abbott appears to be the favorite to win the Reds' fifth starter job, Mark Sheldon of MLB.com reports.

The southpaw has yet to in a major-league spring training game this season, but the Reds won't need a fifth starter right away so Abbott's incumbency advantage still weighs heavily. That said, his edge is pretty precarious. "If there's a hiccup -- even not just him but weather-wise -- it could derail that first day," manager Terry Francona said. Graham Ashcraft and Carson Spiers are also still vying for the job.

Strider (elbow) will make his first start of spring training Monday against the Red Sox, Mark Bowman of MLB.com reports.

It's a big step for Strider, who will be seeing his first game action since he underwent an internal brace procedure on his elbow last April. The right-hander will begin the campaign on the injured list, but he could make his 2025 debut in late April if he remains on schedule with his rehab.

Taillon allowed one run on four hits and two walks across 4.1 innings in Sunday's exhibition game against the Yomiuri Giants. He struck out four.

With the Cubs set to take on the Dodgers in Tokyo during a two-game set March 18-19, Taillon and his teammates got the opportunity to first play an exhibition game against a team from Nippon Professional Baseball. The veteran righty looked sharp as he tunes up for his regular-season debut. That figures to come later this month after the short series in Tokyo, as Shota Imanaga and Justin Steele are slated to start those contests for Chicago. Taillon projects as a solid if not spectacular fantasy option in 2025 serving as the Cubs' No. 3 starter.

Manager Oliver Marmol announced Sunday that Gray will start Opening Day against the Twins on March 27, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.

It's hardly a surprise that the veteran right-hander will be leading the St. Louis rotation, but the skipper made it official Sunday. Gray had a 3.84 ERA, 1.09 WHIP and 203:39 K:BB across 166.1 innings last season, though his two spring starts have been a bit bumpy with five homers allowed.

Greene allowed two runs on five hits and one walk while striking out six over four innings in Saturday's spring start against the Royals.

Greene made his fifth Cactus League start and appears to be dialing it in ahead of his Opening Day assignment. After a couple of shaky outings to open the spring, Greene has allowed three runs on nine hits and two walks over 12 innings in his last three appearances. He worked his pitch count up to 74 (49 strikes) on Saturday and will make one more spring start before taking the ball for the regular-season opener March 27 against the Giants.

Rodriguez will make his next start Wednesday on a back field, Alex Weiner of Arizona Sports reports

Rodriguez tossed 3.2 dominant innings against the Reds on Friday, and the decision to hold him out of Cactus League competition for his next start does not indicate anything other than a scheduling issue. The club plans to start Jordan Montgomery on Wednesday, so Rodriguez will get his work in while maintaining his five-day schedule.

Burnes allowed one run on four hits and struck out four over four-plus innings in Saturday's spring start against the White Sox.

He struck out the side in the first en route to retiring the first six batters he faced, and Burnes pitched into the fifth inning before being removed after 64 pitches (42 strikes) following a leadoff single. He owns a 1.35 ERA with 17 strikeouts over 13.1 spring innings. Those results -- and the contract Burnes signed during the offseason -- put him in line to start Opening Day, but Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo has yet to decide between Burnes and Zac Gallen, per Alex Weiner of Arizona Sports reports. The manager said the league is after him to name a starter and he needs to get back to them, but he wants "to be as thorough as possible." Arizona is set to host the Cubs in their March 27 opener.

Hart's lack of game action so far this spring may lessen his chance of beginning the regular season as San Diego's fifth starter, Kevin Acee of The San Diego Union Tribune reports.

Hart has pitched in only one Cactus League game so far, and he got in just two innings (without allowing a run) before the contest was stopped due to rain. He then came down with the flu, which temporarily delayed his progression. The left-hander is scheduled to start Sunday against the Angels, and he could get in two more appearances after that, so it's not out of the question that Hart will be able to build up enough to win a job in the rotation. However, manager Mike Shildt recently acknowledged that the Padres haven't had much of a chance to evaluate Hart -- who hasn't pitched in the majors since 2020 and played last year in Korea -- for a rotation role, saying, "We're not as familiar with him, but we like what we've seen. Unfortunately for him, he had a little bit of illness that set him back in his progression, but he can be in a progression to take that role. Just haven't had as much time to evaluate him." If Hart ends up not being able to make the Opening Day rotation, Stephen Kolek and Randy Vasquez would be the leading candidates to begin the campaign as San Diego's fifth starter.