David A Marcillo's Bold Bullpen Predictions for 2020

Updated on July 6: I stand by all of these predictions! There were plenty of surprises in the last few baseball seasons, including some huge ones that we didn't really find out about until 2020. There's no reason to think that this year will be any less surprising, and if anything, there's plenty to go […]

Kolten Wong Shaping Up to Hit First

St. Louis Cardinals second baseman Kolten Wong seems set to be the team's leadoff hitter. While there hasn't been an official announcement by the team just yet, Wong has hit at the top of the order in six of his seven Grapefruit League starts, and manager Mike Shildt said batting first is, "a good spot […]

Closer Committees: When Sharing Isn't Caring

The concept of a closer-by-committee is, according to some theories, the best way to run a bullpen for most "real life" baseball teams. The concept of a closer-by-committee is, according to all fantasy baseball players, a real life hassle. A well-defined closer is ideal for fantasy teams in standard leagues because it guarantees that one […]

Jorge Alfaro Cleared for Activities

Miami Marlins catcher Jorge Alfaro (oblique) has been cleared for activities and will begin doing, "some hitting, catching, etc." The report states that this will be a process that will take some time, but the team remains hopeful that Alfaro will be ready for Opening Day. If Alfaro starts the season on the injured list, […]

Matt Kemp Doesn't Reach Base on Tuesday

Miami Marlins outfielder/first baseman Matt Kemp had a rough game on Tuesday, striking out twice and ending up 0-for-4. Kemp is hitting just .200 with a .450 OPS about midway through Grapefruit League play. Some reports say he's fighting for a roster spot while other say manager Don Mattingly has basically handed him a spot […]

Paul DeJong Stays Hot in Tuesday's Win

St. Louis Cardinals shortstop Paul DeJong has been on fire this spring and he stayed hot on Tuesday, going 2-for-3 with a run scored in a Grapefruit League win over the Houston Astros. DeJong is hitting .571 with an 1.850 OPS about halfway through Spring Training. He's one of the streakiest hitters in baseball and […]

Kolten Wong Goes Hitless on Tuesday

St. Louis Cardinals second baseman Kolten Wong went hitless in Tuesday's Grapefruit League win over the Houston Astros, ending up 0-for-3 with an RBI. Wong is hitting just .214 in Grapefruit League play about halfway through Spring Training, but he's in no danger of losing his starting job. He was solid last season, slashing .285/.361/.423 […]

Brandon Kintzler Spins a Perfect Inning on Tuesday

Miami Marlins relief pitcher Brandon Kintzler tossed a perfect 1-2-3 inning in Tuesday's Grapefruit League game against the New York Mets. Kintzler came in for the fifth inning and made quick work of his inning, retiring the side in order. It was an encouraging sign from Kintzler after an uncharacteristically wild, four-walk outing his last […]

Alex Reyes Strikes Out Four in Two Innings on Tuesday

St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Alex Reyes pitched two innings in Tuesday's Grapefruit League game against the Houston Astros. He struck out four while allowing a run on three hits and a walk. It was mostly a positive sign from Reyes, who lowered his spring ERA to 10.80 after a rough few outings. Reyes was originally […]

Dakota Hudson Throws Four Good Innings on Tuesday

St. Louis Cardinals starting pitcher Dakota Hudson pitched well in Tuesday's Grapefruit League start against the Houston Astros. He tossed four innings, allowing just one run on two hits and a walk while striking out two. Hudson has one of the Cardinals rotation spaces more or less locked up, but his control issues and lack […]

Jordan Yamamoto Allows One Run on Tuesday

Miami Marlins starting pitcher Jordan Yamamoto pitched well on Tuesday, tossing three innings while allowing one run on four hits in a Grapefruit League start against the New York Mets. Yamamoto didn't walk anyone and struck out one. He allowed the run on a solo home run by Jeff McNeil. Yamamoto has looked solid this […]

Brad Miller Day-to-Day With a Back Issue

St. Louis Cardinals infielder/utility player Brad Miller is dealing with lower back stiffness and is considered day-to-day. The team does not expect the injury to impact Miller's availability for Opening Day nor for it to be an issue he has to deal with in the regular season. It seems they are being cautious with Miller […]

Kwang-Hyun Kim Scheduled to Pitch on Thursday

St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Kwang-Hyun Kim (groin) recovered well from his bullpen side session and is scheduled to pitch in one of Thursday's split-squad games. Kim was scratched from his start on Monday due to mild groin soreness, but he was able to throw a bullpen instead and is now ready to go for Thursday. […]

Dexter Fowler Scuffling Through Spring

St. Louis Cardinals outfielder Dexter Fowler has not had a good spring so far. Fowler, who was awful in 2018 before rebounding with an at-least-average 2019, is 1-for-15 so far in Grapefruit League games. Even with the slight bounce back, his 2019 line of .238/.346/.409 wasn't great, and it may be time for the Cardinals […]

Kwang-Hyun Kim Dealing With Groin Soreness

St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Kwang-Hyun Kim was scratched from his scheduled Grapefruit League start on Monday due to mild groin soreness. He threw a bullpen session instead and is now on track to start one of Thursday's split-squad games. There doesn't seem to be a ton of concern, but the team wanted to be extra […]

Andrew Miller Having Trouble in the Spring

St. Louis Cardinals relief pitcher Andrew Miller is reportedly "having trouble getting a feel for the ball" but insists that nothing "physically hurts." He will undergo a battery of tests, especially to check if there is a nerve explanation. Miller has pitched just one Grapefruit League inning so far and has dealt with several injuries […]

Garrett Cooper Goes Hitless on Monday

Miami Marlins outfielder/first baseman Garrett Cooper had a rough day at the plate in Monday's Grapefruit League game against the Washington Nationals. He went 0-for-3 with a strikeout, lowering his spring batting average to .286. Cooper showed that, when healthy, he could be a legitimate fantasy asset last season, but he had a hard time […]

Pablo Lopez Throws Three Innings on Monday

Miami Marlins starting pitcher Pablo Lopez made it through three innings in Monday's Grapefruit League start against the Washington Nationals. Lopez allowed one run on one hit and three walks. He struck out two and induced four groundouts on the afternoon. Lopez is a sure thing for one of the spots in the Marlins rotation, […]

Genesis Cabrera Exits With a Cracked Fingernail

St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Genesis Cabrera was forced to leave Monday's Grapefruit League game against the Minnesota Twins due to a cracked fingernail. Cabrera was trying to make a case for a rotation spot, but this setback could push him out of that competition. Cabrera was a bit shaky in 20 1/3 big league innings […]

Giovanny Gallegos Picks Up a Save on Saturday

St. Louis Cardinals relief pitcher Giovanny Gallegos picked up a save in Saturday's Grapefruit League game against the Washington Nationals. Gallegos hasn't been great in the early going this spring, but he was solid in this one, allowing just one hit in his inning of work while recording a strikeout. Gallegos is the apparent front-runner […]

Carlos Martinez Throws Three Scoreless on Saturday

St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Carlos Martinez threw three good innings in a Grapefruit League start against the Washington Nationals on Saturday. He allowed three walks but struck out four and did not allow a hit. Martinez was solid as a closer last season, but he's trying to work his way back into the starting rotation […]

Sandy Alcantara Has Another Bad Start on Saturday

Miami Marlins starting pitcher Sandy Alcantara didn't have it on Saturday, struggling through just 1 2/3 innings in a Grapefruit League start against the Baltimore Orioles. Alcantara got just five outs, but allowed five runs on five hits and four walks in the process. Alcantara was the only All-Star for the Marlins last season, and […]

Dexter Fowler Goes Hitless on Friday

St. Louis Cardinals outfielder Dexter Fowler went hitless in Friday's Grapefruit League loss against the New York Mets, ending up 0-for-3 with a strikeout. It's been an ugly start to the spring for Fowler, who is now hitting just .111 in Grapefruit League games. Still, he's essentially guaranteed a starting spot and should remain near […]

Alex Reyes Allows a Run on Friday

St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Alex Reyes allowed a solo home run in his one inning of work on Friday. Pitching against the New York Mets in a Grapefruit League game, Reyes notched two strikeouts but coughed up a homer to Andres Gimenez. The outing lowered Reyes' ERA to 20.25. The often-injured but super-talented Reyes is […]

Yimi Garcia Fires Two Perfect Innings on Friday

Miami Marlins relief pitcher Yimi Garcia tossed two perfect innings in an impressive Grapefruit League outing on Friday against the Houston Astros. Garcia came in to a no-outs, bases loaded situation and escaped the inning without allowing a run. He then pitched a clean inning the following inning as well. Garcia outperformed his peripherals last […]

Daniel Poncedeleon Throws Three Scoreless Innings

St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Daniel Poncedeleon pitched three scoreless innings in Friday's Grapefruit League game against the New York Mets. Poncedeleon allowed just two hits and struck out four without issuing a walk. He's a candidate for the starting rotation after holding his own in 48 2/3 innings (eight starts) last season. With Miles Mikolas […]

Adam Wainwright Pitches Three Strong Innings on Friday

St. Louis Cardinals starting pitcher Adam Wainwright pitched three good innings in Friday's Grapefruit League start against the New York Mets. Wainwright allowed just one run on four hits and a walk while striking out two. Wainwright showed that he still had plenty left in the tank last season, and should again be a solid, […]

Caleb Smith Throws Two Scoreless Innings on Friday

Miami Marlins starting pitcher Caleb Smith tossed two scoreless innings in Friday's Grapefruit League start against the Houston Astros. Facing most of the Astros legitimate starting lineup, Smith allowed one hit and two walks while striking out three. Smith was excellent at the beginning of last season before fading in the second half, but could […]

Jorge Alfaro Won't Swing a Bat for a Few Days

Miami Marlins catcher Jorge Alfaro (oblique) will be running and doing activities to stay in shape, but won't swing a bat or throw a ball for a few days, according to Marlins manager Don Mattingly. The current belief is that the Marlins caught Alfaro's tight oblique early enough to keep it from becoming a major […]

Matt Carpenter Expected Back in the Lineup Soon

St. Louis Cardinals infielder Matt Carpenter (back) is expected back in the lineup soon. "Sunday-ish" was the prediction made by Cardinals manager Mike Shildt. Originally, Carpenter said he expected to be ready to return on Saturday, but now that has been delayed by at least a day. The team doesn't seem overly concerned, with Shildt […]