MLB Player News

McDonald was optioned to minor-league camp by the Giants on Monday, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

McDonald was added to the 40-man roster over the winter, but he was never going to make the club given that he's yet to advance past A-ball. The 23-year-old missed much of last season with arm issues but pitched very well when healthy, 0.96 ERA and 0.86 WHIP in 37.2 innings at High-A Eugene.

Musgrove is scheduled to start the Padres' second game of the regular season March 21 versus the Dodgers in Seoul, South Korea, MLB.com reports.

He'll be opposing Yoshinobu Yamamoto in the second contest of the two-game season-opening set in South Korea, while Yu Darvish gets the ball for the Friars in the March 20 opener and matches up against Tyler Glasnow. Musgrove finished the 2023 campaign on the shelf due to right shoulder inflammation, but he was fully cleared ahead of spring training. He's been roughed up for eight earned runs on five hits and two walks over 1.2 innings through his first two Cactus League starts, but he'll likely have one more tune-up outing in Arizona before he toes the rubber in Seoul. After the two-game series in South Korea, the Padres will hold their domestic opener March 28 versus the Giants at Petco Park. Manager Mike Shildt implied Monday that there's a good chance that Musgrove will get the nod ahead of Darvish for the first game in San Diego, per Dennis Lin of The Athletic.

Yamamoto is scheduled to start the Dodgers' second game of the regular season March 21 versus the Padres in Seoul, South Korea.

Manager Dave Roberts had previously announced earlier in spring training that Yamamoto and Tyler Glasnow would both pick up starts during the two-game set in Seoul to open the season, but the Dodgers didn't disclose until Monday which order the two pitchers would take the bump. Glasnow will end up drawing the Opening Day assignment, while Yamamoto will take the hill for Game 2 in his MLB debut, matching up against Padres right-hander Joe Musgrove. After claiming Pacific League MVP awards in each of his final three seasons in Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball before inking a lucrative long-term deal with the Dodgers this winter, Yamamoto has gotten off to a shaky start in spring training, as he's allowed five earned runs on seven hits and three walks while striking out seven in five innings. However, given Yamamoto's track record of elite production in Japan in addition to an impressive arsenal that includes a mid-90s fastball and two plus pitchers -- a high-to-low-90s splitter and an upper-70s curveball -- it shouldn't take long for him to find success in the big leagues.

The Padres announced Monday that Darvish will serve as the team's Opening Day starter March 20 against the Dodgers in Seoul, South Korea.

The Dodgers will counter with Tyler Glasnow in the first game, while Joe Musgrove opposes Yoshinobu Yamamoto in the second contest in Seoul on March 21. Darvish missed the final month of last season with a bone spur in his right elbow, but he's had no limitations this spring, permitting two runs with a 9:0 K:BB over 5.1 frames.

Glasnow will start the Dodgers' Opening Day game March 20 in Seoul, South Korea versus the Padres.

He will be opposed by Yu Darvish, while Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Joe Musgrove will start the second contest of the two-game set for the NL West rivals. Glasnow has looked sharp in his 4.2 innings so far this spring, allowing just one run with a 6:2 K:BB. The big right-hander remains one of the biggest health risks in the game, but he should be a safe bet to perform at a high level for as long as he can stay on the field.

Cobb (hip) could make his Cactus League debut as soon as Saturday, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

After Cobb underwent left hip surgery in October, the initial expectation was that he probably wouldn't be ready to make his season debut until a little before the All-Star break. However, he's blown his projected recovery timeline out of the water thus far and now might rejoin the rotation sometime in April if all continues to go well. Whenever Cobb is cleared to debut, his return would be a big boost to a Giants rotation that has already lost Tristan Beck (arm) and could be without Keaton Winn (elbow). Cobb now shapes up as a nice value pick in fantasy leagues.

Kikuchi gave up six runs on seven hits and two walks over 2.1 innings in a split-squad game against the Orioles on Sunday. He struck out five.

The southpaw tossed 38 of 60 pitches for strikes and settled down after a shaky first inning that saw him serve up a solo shot to Anthony Santander and a grand slam to Jackson Holliday. Kikuchi has an 8:2 K:BB through 4.1 spring frames, numbers that are more reassuring to potential fantasy investors than his 12.46 ERA in Grapefruit League play, and one bad outing in the spring isn't a major cause for concern.

Yankees manager Aaron Boone said Monday that Cole will undergo an MRI on his right elbow, Pete Caldera of The Bergen Record reports.

Cole has been having difficulty bouncing back from from his throwing this spring, so he will be sent for testing to make sure he's not dealing with anything serious. A prognosis for Cole is not expected Monday and possibly not Tuesday, either, as he's slated for multiple opinions regarding the course of treatment. The reigning American League Cy Young winner has made just one Grapefruit League appearance this spring, giving up three runs over two innings back on March 1 versus the Blue Jays. If Cole needs to miss significant time, it wouldn't be a surprise if the Yankees upped their efforts to sign Blake Snell or Jordan Montgomery.

The Nationals optioned Parker to Triple-A Rochester on Monday.

Parker was one of seven players sent out of big-league camp Monday in the Nationals' latest round of roster cuts. The 24-year-old hurler is coming off a stellar 2023 campaign in which he struck out 132 batters over 113.2 innings with Double-A Harrisburg, but he struggled in his late-season promotion to Rochester, as he posted a 10.45 ERA and 2.18 WHIP over 10.1 innings. Parker will look to cut down on the control and command issues in his second go-around at Triple-A in 2024, and if he's able to find success, he could get a look with the Nationals at some point later in the season.

The Nationals optioned Herz to Triple-A Rochester on Monday.

Herz was one of seven players sent out of big-league camp in the Nationals' latest round of spring roster cuts. Acquired from the Cubs last July in the deal that sent Jeimer Candelario to Chicago, Herz settled at Double-A Harrisburg with his new organization and turned in a 2.55 ERA, 1.14 WHIP and 53:20 K:BB in 35.1 innings. He'll get a new challenge at the Triple-A level to begin the 2024 campaign and could get a look with Washington at some point later in the season if he continues to excel with Rochester.