MLB Player News
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Kyle Hurt RP | LAD
Dodgers' Kyle Hurt: Tossing live BP
Hurt (elbow) threw a live batting-practice session Monday, Bill Plunkett of The Orange County Register reports.
Hurt saw action at Triple-A Oklahoma City down the stretch of the regular season, and the fact that he's getting work ahead of Tuesday's Game 1 of the National League Wild Card Series against Cincinnati may mean he's being considered for postseason play. Clarity on whether Hurt will be active for the series will come closer to first pitch Tuesday.
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Blake Snell SP | LAD
Dodgers' Blake Snell: Confirmed for Game 1 start
Snell will start Game 1 of the National League Wild Card Series against the Reds on Tuesday.
Skipper Dave Roberts hinted Sunday that Snell was in line for the nod in Game 1, and the team confirmed him as the starter Monday evening. Snell looked locked in during his final three appearances of the regular season, posting a 0.47 ERA with 28 strikeouts across 19.0 innings.
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Yoshinobu Yamamoto SP | LAD
Dodgers' Yoshinobu Yamamoto: Getting nod in Game 2
Yamamoto will start Game 2 of the National League Wild Card Series against the Reds on Wednesday, Bill Plunkett of The Orange County Register reports.
Yamamoto finished off the regular season on a high note, tossing 11.1 scoreless frames while striking out 14 in his last two appearances. The 27-year-old drew four starts in the postseason a year ago, posting a 3.86 ERA and 0.96 WHIP with a 15:6 K:BB across 18.2 innings.
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Will Smith C | LAD
Dodgers' Will Smith: Set for another swinging session
Smith (hand) will take more swings in the batting cage Monday, Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic reports.
Smith responded well to taking swings in the batting cage Saturday, and if Monday's session goes well, the catcher will face some live pitching Monday night. If the session goes poorly, Smith would likely be ruled out for the Dodgers' upcoming wild-card round series against the Reds beginning Tuesday. In his absence, Ben Rortvedt has been handling the bulk of the workload behind the plate, and he would likely do so if Smith can't give it a go versus Cincinnati.
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Max Muncy 3B | LAD
Dodgers' Max Muncy: Available for Game 1
Muncy (lower body) will be available for Game 1 of the National League Wild Card Series against the Reds on Tuesday, Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic reports.
Muncy has been trending in the right direction over the last few days after being held out at the end of the regular season due to lower-body soreness, and Ardaya notes that he'll get a few more swings in Monday evening during a live BP session. Assuming he's able to avoid any kind of last-minute setback, expect Muncy to be in the starting nine for Tuesday's matchup.
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Matthew Boyd SP | CHC
Cubs' Matthew Boyd: Tapped for Game 1 start
Boyd will start Game 1 of the National League Wild Card Series on Tuesday against the Padres, Sahadev Sharma of The Athletic reports.
Boyd has been named the top choice for Chicago to open up the wild-card round after Cade Horton went down with a rib injury. Shota Imanaga was presumably also in the conversation, but given his shaky 5.97 ERA over his last six starts, it'll be Boyd who gets the call in Game 1, with Imanaga a candidate to follow in Game 2. Boyd faced San Diego in two starts during the regular season, both in April, surrendering two runs on 11 hits and three walks while striking out eight across 11.1 frames.
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Francisco Alvarez C | NYM
Mets' Francisco Alvarez: Thumb surgery imminent
Alvarez will undergo surgery in the coming days to repair a sprained UCL in his right thumb, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com reports.
Alvarez suffered the injury in late August, but he elected to delay surgery until the offseason and returned to play in early September. The operation could delay Alvarez's offseason workouts a bit, but it should not affect his availability for the beginning of spring training.
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Michael King SP | SD
Padres' Michael King: Left out of wild-card rotation
Padres manager Mike Shildt said Monday that King will be available out of the bullpen for the National League Wild Card Series against the Cubs, AJ Cassavell of MLB.com reports.
Nick Pivetta and Dylan Cease will start Games 1 and 2, respectively, and Yu Darvish is in line to take the ball in a potential Game 3. King was limited to only five starts from late May on due to shoulder and knee problems, and he posted a 6.11 ERA and 12:9 K:BB over 17.2 innings in those outings. The righty could be added back to the rotation if the Padres advance to the NLDS, but he'll be assigned to the bullpen for the wild-card round.
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Corbin Burnes SP | ARI
Diamondbacks' Corbin Burnes: Aiming for July return
Burnes (elbow) said Monday that he's hoping to be ready to rejoin the Diamondbacks' rotation sometime in July next season, Jack Janes of Cronkite News reports.
Burnes underwent Tommy John surgery in June, so a season debut next July, while optimistic, is possible. The pace of Burnes' rehab will ultimately be dictated by the team, and it's unclear whether the Diamondbacks have the same midseason goal as the pitcher. Burnes finished the 2025 season with a 2.66 ERA, 1.17 WHIP and 63:26 K:BB across 64.1 innings.
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Hunter Greene SP | CIN
Reds' Hunter Greene: Confirmed for Game 1 on Tuesday
Greene will start Game 1 of the National League Wild Card Series against the Dodgers on Tuesday.
The Reds left open the possibility of using Greene out of the bullpen Sunday in the final game of the regular season, but once that didn't happen, he became the obvious choice to take the ball in Game 1. Greene collected a 2.76 ERA, 0.94 WHIP and 132:26 K:BB over 107.2 innings covering 19 starts this season. He'll be opposed by Blake Snell on Tuesday.