MLB Player News

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

Henry was added to the Nationals' 40-man roster this winter, but that move was made primarily to protect him from the Rule 5 Draft rather than being an acknowledgement that the 24-year-old right-hander is big-league ready. He looks like he'll at least get his first taste of the Triple-A level to begin the 2024 season, despite posting an ugly 10.31 ERA and 1.99 WHIP across 18.1 innings at Double-A Harrisburg in 2023. The Nationals are hopeful that he'll be able to resolve some of the command and control woes that plagued him at Double-A now that he's nearly 19 months removed from the thoracic outlet syndrome surgery he underwent in August 2022.

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

Adon posted a 6.45 ERA and 1.63 WHIP over 12 appearances (10 starts) with the Nationals a season ago, but with the Washington rotation in a better spot from a health standpoint heading into spring training than it was late in the 2023 campaign, the right-hander won't earn a spot on the Opening Day squad. He's still likely to stay stretched out on the farm as a member of Rochester's rotation and will be available to make spot starts for the big club whenever injuries test the Nationals' rotation depth.

Atlanta optioned Smith-Shawver to Triple-A Gwinnett on Monday.

Smith-Shawver finished with an 8.22 ERA over three Grapefruit League starts but also boasted an 11:2 K:BB across 7.2 innings of work. The young right-hander was always pegged for Gwinnett's rotation to open the season but could wind up making a good number of starts with the big club in 2024.

Gray (hamstring) will throw a bullpen session Monday, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.

Gray will throw from the bump for the first time since he suffered a mild right hamstring strain a week ago. While Gray still looks like a longshot to complete his ramp-up program ahead of Opening Day, the veteran hurler is making nice progress and shouldn't miss too much time if he continues trending in the right direction.

Pfaadt allowed four runs on four hits while striking out one over 2.2 innings in Sunday's start against the Dodgers.

Pfaadt was removed after he retired just two of the first six batters and then re-inserted to pitch the second and third innings. He set down the side in order after coming back into the game. Despite the results, Pfaadt told Steve Gilbert of MLB.com that the outing was the best he felt in three spring starts. He's slotted in as the Diamondbacks' No. 4 starter.

Lodolo (tibia) struck out one over two hitless and scoreless innings in Sunday's spring start against the Guardians.

Lodolo fired two perfect innings, and no ball made it out of the infield in his Cactus League debut. This was his first time pitching in 309 days since the left-hander suffered a stress fracture in his left tibia last year that limited him to seven starts. Lodolo told Anthony Castrovince of MLB.com that he felt good despite being anxious. The in-stadium scoreboard indicated his fastball topped out at 96 mph, up a few ticks from his average last season. Lodolo's slow progression through spring training will prevent him from being part of the first turn of the regular-season rotation, but he is expected to be ready soon after that.

Salinas was optioned to Triple-A Las Vegas on Sunday.

Salinas was able to appear in two contests with Oakland this spring, tossing four scoreless frames, allowing two hits and two walks while striking out five batters. He'll look to impress with the Aviators in order to earn another opportunity with the Athletics down the road.

Estes was optioned to Triple-A Las Vegas on Sunday.

Estes appeared in three games with the Athletics this spring, allowing one run on two hits and a walk while striking out eight batters over seven innings. The right-hander produced a 5.23 ERA over 32.2 frames in seven appearances, including six starts, with Triple-A Las Vegas last season.

The Brewers optioned Blalock to Double-A Biloxi on Sunday, Curt Hogg of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports.

Blalock was added to the Brewers' 40-man roster this winter and is seen as one of the organization's top pitching prospects, but he's most likely a year or more away from making his MLB debut. The 22-year-old righty split time between the Single-A and High-A levels in the Red Sox and Brewers organizations in 2023, logging a collective 2.82 ERA and 75:20 K:BB in 67 innings over his 15 starts.

The Marlins announced that Cabrera was scratched from his scheduled Grapefruit League start Sunday versus the Astros due to right shoulder tightness, Jordan McPherson of the Miami Herald reports.

Miami is describing Cabrera's removal as precautionary, but at this stage of spring training, a shoulder injury of any kind to a pitcher is concerning with Opening Day less than three weeks away. If Cabrera isn't cleared to resume throwing within the next few days, he'll be a strong candidate to open the season on the injured list. A potential Cabrera absence to begin the campaign would bolster the odds of Max Meyer or Ryan Weathers breaking camp with the big club as the team's No. 5 starter.