MLB Player News

Crawford allowed two hits and struck out four over three scoreless innings in Sunday's spring start against the Blue Jays.

Crawford made his second Grapefruit League start in a quest to be part of Boston's rotation. He's the early favorite for the No. 4 spot and has allowed one run on five hits (zero walks) while fanning five over five innings. The trick for Crawford, who averaged 77.4 pitches over 23 starts in 2023, is to be able to extend outings past the fifth inning.

Dunning said Sunday the new pitch he's working on this spring is a forkball, Kennedi Landry of MLB.com reports.

Dunning talked about a new pitch following his first spring outing but did not reveal what type of pitch. Statcast recorded the offering as a splitter during Dunning's second start, last week against Arizona, but the pitcher says it's a forkball. "I threw some good forkballs [Sunday], so that was fun," Dunning said. "I had some good swings and misses on them. I think I threw four or five of them, all of them came in the third inning." The right-hander allowed four runs on five hits and one walk while striking five over three innings Sunday, his third Cactus League start.

Muller, who struggled to a 1-5 record, 7.60 ERA and 1.96 WHIP across 77 innings in his Athletics debut campaign in 2023, made several changes to his mechanics this offseason, Martin Gallegos of MLB.com reports.

Muller has had only one opportunity to show off the new look in game action thus far this spring, allowing an earned run on a walk and two hits over two innings while recording three strikeouts in a start against the Dodgers on Feb. 25. However, Gallegos notes Muller's modifications have been noticeable any time he's picked up a ball during camp, with the big right-hander having raised his arm slot and adjusted his windup rotation from east-to-west to more of a north-south orientation, per the recommendations of the team's baseball operations department. The mechanics closely mirror those Muller utilized while toiling in Atlanta's minor-league system in 2022, and the young hurler noted after his first outing that he could already see the changes paying dividends in the form of more swings and misses on his fastball.

Gray was removed from Monday's outing against the Nationals because of right hamstring tightness, Lynn Worthy of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.

It's not ideal, but at least it's not arm-related. Gray permitted one hit and struck out one over 1.2 innings Monday before being lifted. The Cardinals will wait to see how he recovers before deciding whether he will be ready for his next Grapefruit League start or requires a little rest. Assuming health, Gray will be the Cardinals' Opening Day starter.

The Dodgers placed Kershaw (shoulder) on the 60-day injured list Monday, Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic reports.

The move frees up a spot on the 40-man roster for the addition of Andre Lipcius. Kershaw is not expected to pitch until later in the season following offseason shoulder surgery.

Gray was removed from Monday's Grapefruit League start versus the Nationals in the second inning with an apparent injury, Lynn Worthy of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.

Gray was facing his fifth batter of the game but was pulled after appearing to injure himself on a pitch to Nick Senzel. He walked off the field after a visit from the trainer, manager Oliver Marmol and pitching coach Dusty Blake. Gray yielded one hit and struck out one over 1.2 scoreless frames before exiting. The Cardinals figure to update his condition soon.

Iriarte was optioned to Triple-A El Paso by the Padres on Sunday.

Iriarte was added to the Padres' 40-man roster over the offseason and impressed during his time in big-league camp, yielding just one unearned run over three innings. The 22-year-old had seemed in contention for a roster spot, but the team needing to make some early cuts because of its March 20-21 series versus the Dodgers in South Korea probably didn't help Iriarte's bid. He's put himself in position for a promotion at some point this season, however.

Quintana is the likeliest candidate to get the Opening Day start for the Mets, Tim Britton of The Athletic reports.

With Kodai Senga (shoulder) set to miss the first month of the season or more, Quintana should be the next man up for New York to kick off the season. "It would be an honor. It's a dream for any starting pitcher," the veteran southpaw said last week. "Big crowd, a lot of energy. It's a gift." Quintana has thrown 100 or more innings only once in the last four seasons, but he's healthy headed into the spring and the Mets believe he can handle a much larger workload than the 75.2 innings he tossed in 2023 during a campaign that didn't begin until after the All-Star break due to rib surgery.

Sale gave up three hits and two walks over 2.2 scoreless innings in Sunday's Grapefruit League game against the Phillies. He struck out five while also throwing a wild pitch.

That's nine Ks and a 0.00 ERA in 4.2 innings for Sale as he gets ready for his first campaign with Atlanta. The 34-year-old lefty hasn't made 25 starts in a season since 2019, and injuries have left his numbers somewhat volatile since he crossed over into his 30s, but he appears to be 100 percent healthy in camp and could be poised for a rebound. At the very least, he could take a run at double-digit wins for the first time since 2018 with one of the most potent offenses in MLB at his back.

Anderson is throwing long toss from 120 feet, and he's on schedule in his recovery from Tommy John surgery, David O'Brien of The Athletic reports.

The 25-year-old right-hander underwent surgery in April 2023 and is targeting a midseason return to the mound. Atlanta may not have room for him in its big-league rotation once he's ready for game action however, especially if Anderson can't regain the form that saw him produce a 3.58 ERA, 1.23 WHIP and 124:53 K:BB through 128.1 innings in 2021, before a rough 2022 may have provided an early signal that his elbow wasn't 100 percent. Anderson still has a minor-league option remaining, so it wouldn't be surprising if he spent the second half of 2024 at Triple-A Gwinnett.