This article is part of our The Lineup Card series.
Projected Starters - A look at Monday's matchups (all times Eastern)TOR (Drew Hutchison - R) at NYY (Masahiro Tanaka - R) 1:00 PM
MIN (Phil Hughes - R) at DET (David Price - L) 1:08 PM
COL (Kyle Kendrick - R) at MIL (Kyle Lohse - R) 2:10 PM
BOS (Clay Buchholz - R) at PHI (Cole Hamels - L) 3:05 PM
BAL (Chris Tillman - R) at TB (Chris Archer - R) 3:10 PM
NYM (Bartolo Colon - R) at WAS (Max Scherzer - R) 4:00 PM
CWS (Jeff Samardzija - R) at KC (Yordano Ventura - R) 4:10 PM
LAA (Jered Weaver - R) at SEA (Felix Hernandez - R) 4:10 PM
PIT (Francisco Liriano - L) at CIN (Johnny Cueto - R) 4:10 PM
SD (James Shields - R) at LAD (Clayton Kershaw - L) 4:10 PM
ATL (Julio Teheran - R) at MIA (Henderson Alvarez - R) 4:10 PM
CLE (Corey Kluber - R) at HOU (Dallas Keuchel - L) 7:00 PM
SF (Madison Bumgarner - L) at ARI (Josh Collmenter - R) 10:00 PM
TEX (Yovani Gallardo - R) at OAK (Sonny Gray - R) 10:05 PM
Day Game After Night Game: - None
Injuries
Day-to-Day
Nick Ahmed, SS, ARI (hip) -- Left Saturday's game after getting hit on his left hip by a pitch, but the injury sounds minor.
John Axford, P, COL (personal) -- May be absent from the Rockies' opener after his two-year-old son was bitten by a rattlesnake.
Miguel Cabrera, 1B, DET (ankle) -- Expected to be ready for Opening Day.
Dexter Fowler, OF, CHC (back) -- Was dealing with a sore back towards the end of spring training, but was in the lineup for Opening Day against the Cardinals.
Kyle Gibson, P, MIN (illness) -- Expected to be fine for the start of the season.
Hisashi Iwakuma, P, SEA (finger) -- Dealing with a small blister.
Victor Martinez, 1B, DET (knee) -- Feeling soreness in his knee and appears
Daniel Murphy, 2B, NYM (hamstring) -- Expected to be active for Opening Day.
Rougned Odor, 2B, TEX (lower leg) -- Expected to be fine for the start of the season.
Joe Panik, 2B, SF (ankle) -- Expected to be fine for the start of the season.
Addison Reed, P, ARI (shoulder) -- Expected to be ready for Opening Day.
Out
Chris Davis, 1B, BAL (suspension) -- Will miss Opening Day due to suspension but will be available for the Orioles' second game of the season.
Ervin Santana, P, MIN (suspension) -- Serving an 80-game suspension.
Players on the DL
Homer Bailey, P, CIN (elbow) -- Expected to miss a couple of April starts.
Alex Cobb, P, TD (forearm) -- Isn't expected to be ready until late-April.
Coco Crisp, OF, OAK (elbow) -- Expected to miss six-to-eight weeks after having surgery to remove bone chips in his elbow.
Sean Doolittle, P, OAK (shoulder) -- Expected to join the A's in late April or early May.
Jose Fernandez, P, MIA (elbow) -- The earliest he's expected to return to the Marlins' starting rotation is June, but July is a more realistic timetable.
Josh Hamilton, OF, LAA (shoulder) -- Is without a projected return date.
Jake McGee, P, TB (elbow) -- Won't face live hitters until mid-April.
Hunter Pence, OF, SF (forearm) -- Expected to miss most, if not all, of April.
Anthony Rendon, 2B, WAS (knee) -- Has a sprained MCL and does not have a timetable to return.
Garrett Richards, P, LAA (knee) -- Expected to return to the Angels' starting rotation in mid-to-late April.
Chris Sale, P, CWS (foot) -- Will miss his first turn in the White Sox rotation but is expected to return April 12.
Drew Smyly, P, TB (shoulder) -- Will likely miss only one or two turns in the Rays' rotation.
Denard Span, OF, WAS (abdomen) -- All signs point to a mid-April return.
Koji Uehara, P, BOS (hamstring) -- Could return from the DL April 13 after throwing a 35-pitch side session on Saturday.
Jayson Werth, OF, WAS (shoulder) -- Could return from the DL when eligible on April 11.
Matt Wieters, C, BAL (elbow) -- Expected to compete in minor league rehab games before returning to the Orioles sometime in April.
Transactions - Players who have been called up, sent down, traded, released, you name it. We'll cover it here.
Called Up
Matt Albers, P, CWS
Anthony Bass, P, TEX
Andres Blanco, SS, PHI
Archie Bradley, P, ARI
Miguel Castro, P, TOR
Jeff Francoeur, OF, PHI
Jonathan Herrera, SS, CHC
Kelly Johnson, 3B, ATL
Micah Johnson, 2B, CWS
Reed Johnson, OF, WAS
Keone Kela, P, TEX
Don Kelly, OF, MIA
Gerald Laird, C, ARI
Ryan Madson, P, KC
Cody Martin, P, ATL
Franklin Morales, P, KC
Wil Nieves, C, SD
Roberto Osuna, P, TOR
Jordan Pacheco, C, ARI
Rob Scahill, P, PIT
Geovany Soto, C, CWS
Eric Stults, P, ATL
Anthony Swarzak, P, CLE
Devon Travis, 2B, TOR
Dan Uggla, 2B, WAS
Bobby Wilson, C, TB
Eric Young Jr., OF, ATL
Sent Down (to Triple-A unless otherwise noted)
Enrique Burgos, P, ARI (Double-A)
Alex Claudio, P, TEX
Jordan Danks, OF, PHI
Jon Edwards, P, TEX
Brian Flynn, P, KC
Chris Heisey, OF, LAD
Enrique Hernandez, OF, LAD
Brandon Maurer, P, SD
T.J. McFarland, P, BAL
Vidal Nuno, P, ARI
Kevin Quackenbush, P, SD
Robbie Ray, P, ARI
Daniel Robertson, OF, LAA
Yasmany Tomas, OF, ARI
Activated from the DL (15-day, unless otherwise noted)
None
Placed on the DL (15-day, unless otherwise noted)
Bronson Arroyo, P, ARI (60-day DL)
Homer Bailey, P, CIN
Dallas Beeler, P, CHC
Chad Billingsley, P, PHI
Vic Black, P, NYM
Brennan Boesch, OF, CIN
Lisalverto Bonilla, P, TEX
Alex Cobb, P, TB
Tim Collins, P, KC
Patrick Corbin, P, ARI
Erik Cordier, P, SF
Aaron Crow, P, MIA
Brandon Cumpton, P, PIT
Yu Darvish, P, TEX (60-day DL)
Erik Davis, P, WAS
Jorge De La Rosa, P, COL
Jaff Decker, OF, PIT
Chris Denorfia, OF, CHC
Chris Dominguez, 3B, CIN
Josh Edgin, P, NYM
Edwin Escobar, P, BOS
Jose Fernandez, P, MIA
Gavin Floyd, P, CLE (60-day DL)
Nick Franklin, 2B, TB
Kyuji Fujikawa, P, TEX
Kevin Gregg, P, CIN
David Hale, P, COL
Josh Hamilton, OF, LAA
J.J. Hardy, SS, BAL
Matt Harrison, P, TEX
David Hernandez, P, ARI
Oscar Hernandez, C, ARI
Luke Hochevar, P, KC
Mario Hollands, P, PHI (60-day DL)
Travis Ishikawa, 1B, SF
Maicer Izturis, 2B, TOR
Kenley Jansen, P, LAD
Casey Janssen, P, WAS
Brandon League, P, LAD
David Lough, OF, BAL
Cory Luebke, P, SD
Jason Marquis, P, CIN
Jake McGee, P, TB
Nate McLouth, OF, WAS
Matt Moore, P, TB (60-day DL)
Charlie Morton, P, PIT
Jimmy Paredes, OF, BAL
Bobby Parnell, P, NYM
Hunter Pence, OF, SF
Jacob Petricka, P, CWS
Jonathan Pettibone, P, PHI
Cory Rasmus, P, LAA
Anthony Rendon, 3B, WAS
Garrett Richards, P, LAA
Bruce Rondon, P, DET
Hyun-Jin Ryu, P,
Chris Sale, P, CWS
Michael Saunders, OF, TOR
Tanner Scheppers, P, TEX
Justin Sellers, SS, PIT
Tyler Skaggs, P, LAA
Drew Smyly, P, TB
Denard Span, OF, WAS
Chris Stewart, C, PIT
Matt Stites, P, ARI
Marcus Stroman, P, TOR (60-day DL)
Eric Surkamp, P, CWS
Nick Swisher, 1B, CLE
Joe Terdoslavich, OF, ATL
Josh Tomlin, P, CLE
Jacob Turner, P, CHC
Koji Uehara, P, BOS
Tsuyoshi Wada, P, CHC
Zach Walters, DH, CLE
Jayson Werth, OF, WAS
Matt Wieters, C, BAL
Daniel Winkler, P, ATL (60-day DL)
Designated for Assignment
Ehire Adrianza, 2B, SF
Pedro Florimon, SS, PIT
Sam Freeman, P, TEX
Juan Oramas, P, TOR
Stolmy Pimentel, P, PIT
Ryan Sweeney, OF, CHC
Restricted List
Dian Toscano, OF, ATL
Arodys Vizcaino, P, ATL
Released
Cody Ross, OF, ARI
Traded
Craig Kimbrel, P, SD (from ATL)
Cameron Maybin, OF, ATL (from SD)
Carlos Quentin, OF, ATL (from SD)
Jordan Paroubeck, OF, ATL (from SD)
Matt Wisler, P, ATL (from SD)
Melvin Upton Jr., OF, SD (from ATL)
Closer Watch
Atlanta Braves - Jason Grilli is the favorite to serve as the Braves' closer after the team traded Craig Kimbrel to the Padres, but Jim Johnson has 124 career saves and could be in the mix to close as well.
New York Yankees - Dellin Betances and Andrew Miller are expected to split eighth and ninth inning roles early in the season.
San Diego Padres - Step aside, Joaquin Benoit. There's a new closer in San Diego after the Padres completed a blockbuster trade with Atlanta on Sunday to acquire one of the most dominant closers in baseball, Craig Kimbrel.
Key Matchups
Hot Batter Matchups – April 6, 2015Matchup Info | Career Matchup Stats | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Batter | Pos | Game | Pitcher | AB | H | XBH | HR | RBI | BB | K | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS |
| B. Gardner | OF | NYY vs TOR 1:05PM | D. Hutchison | 17 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 6 | .235 | .316 | .706 | 1.022 |
| M. Cabrera | 1B | DET vs MIN 1:08PM | P. Hughes | 31 | 16 | 9 | 5 | 12 | 1 | 4 | .516 | .545 | 1.129 | 1.674 |
| B. Dozier | 2B | MIN @ DET 1:08PM | D. Price | 18 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 3 | .222 | .263 | .611 | .874 |
| T. Hunter | OF | MIN @ DET 1:08PM | D. Price | 23 | 8 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 5 | .348 | .400 | .522 | .922 |
| C. Gonzalez | OF | COL @ MIL 2:10PM | K. Lohse | 15 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 2 | .333 | .412 | .600 | 1.012 |
| T. Tulowitzki | SS | COL @ MIL 2:10PM | K. Lohse | 24 | 8 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 3 | .333 | .385 | .667 | 1.051 |
| R. Braun | OF | MIL vs COL 2:10PM | K. Kendrick | 19 | 9 | 3 | 2 | 7 | 1 | 2 | .474 | .476 | .842 | 1.318 |
| D. Pedroia | 2B | BOS @ PHI 3:05PM | C. Hamels | 15 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | .333 | .333 | .667 | 1.000 |
| H. Ramirez | SS | BOS @ PHI 3:05PM | C. Hamels | 66 | 18 | 13 | 2 | 6 | 5 | 16 | .273 | .324 | .530 | .854 |
| E. Longoria | 3B | TB vs BAL 3:10PM | C. Tillman | 33 | 13 | 7 | 5 | 7 | 3 | 4 | .394 | .444 | .909 | 1.354 |
| R. Johnson | OF | WAS vs NYM 4:05PM | B. Colon | 17 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | .412 | .444 | .471 | .915 |
| F. Freeman | 1B | ATL @ MIA 4:10PM | H. Alvarez | 15 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 5 | 1 | 4 | .333 | .375 | .733 | 1.108 |
| C. Johnson | 3B | ATL @ MIA 4:10PM | H. Alvarez | 15 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 4 | .467 | .500 | .667 | 1.167 |
| T. Frazier | 3B | CIN vs PIT 4:10PM | F. Liriano | 21 | 6 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 7 | .286 | .423 | .619 | 1.042 |
| M. Trout | OF | LAA @ SEA 4:10PM | F. Hernandez | 49 | 18 | 7 | 2 | 11 | 3 | 12 | .367 | .389 | .633 | 1.022 |
| H. Kendrick | 2B | LAD vs SD 4:10PM | J. Shields | 26 | 14 | 6 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 5 | .538 | .556 | .885 | 1.440 |
| J. Harrison | 3B | PIT @ CIN 4:10PM | J. Cueto | 18 | 6 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 2 | .333 | .368 | .611 | .980 |
| C. Hart | 1B | PIT @ CIN 4:10PM | J. Cueto | 35 | 8 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 2 | 10 | .229 | .308 | .486 | .793 |
| A. McCutchen | OF | PIT @ CIN 4:10PM | J. Cueto | 59 | 17 | 9 | 4 | 6 | 6 | 12 | .288 | .373 | .593 | .966 |
| D. Ackley | OF | SEA vs LAA 4:10PM | J. Weaver | 29 | 10 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 3 | .345 | .387 | .655 | 1.042 |
| A. Hill | 2B | ARI vs SF 10:10PM | M. Bumgarner | 25 | 6 | 5 | 2 | 6 | 2 | 7 | .240 | .296 | .600 | .896 |
| J. Pacheco | C | ARI vs SF 10:10PM | M. Bumgarner | 26 | 9 | 4 | 1 | 6 | 1 | 3 | .346 | .370 | .577 | .947 |
| A. Pollock | OF | ARI vs SF 10:10PM | M. Bumgarner | 24 | 7 | 5 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 5 | .292 | .320 | .625 | .945 |
| B. Posey | C | SF @ ARI 10:10PM | J. Collmenter | 18 | 11 | 4 | 3 | 8 | 2 | 0 | .611 | .650 | 1.167 | 1.817 |
Matchup Info | Career Matchup Stats | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Batter | Pos | Game | Pitcher | AB | H | XBH | HR | RBI | BB | K | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS |
Hot Pitcher Matchups – April 6, 2015Matchup Info | Career Stats Allowed To Batters On Opposing Team | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Pitcher | Game | AB | H | XBH | HR | RBI | BB | K | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS |
| Bartolo Colon | NYM @ WAS 4:05PM | 87 | 25 | 5 | 2 | 8 | 2 | 15 | .287 | .309 | .397 | .705 |
| Felix Hernandez | SEA vs LAA 4:10PM | 243 | 46 | 19 | 4 | 25 | 17 | 68 | .189 | .242 | .306 | .548 |
| Jered Weaver | LAA @ SEA 4:10PM | 246 | 55 | 17 | 5 | 18 | 20 | 66 | .224 | .281 | .338 | .619 |
| Clayton Kershaw | LAD vs SD 4:10PM | 125 | 21 | 6 | 2 | 10 | 16 | 32 | .168 | .262 | .261 | .524 |
| Sonny Gray | OAK vs TEX 10:05PM | 114 | 22 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 10 | 22 | .193 | .265 | .198 | .463 |
Matchup Info | Career Stats Allowed To Batters On Opposing Team | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Pitcher | Game | AB | H | XBH | HR | RBI | BB | K | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS |
Cold Batter Matchups – April 6, 2015Matchup Info | Career Matchup Stats | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Batter | Pos | Game | Pitcher | AB | H | XBH | HR | RBI | BB | K | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS |
| I. Kinsler | 2B | DET vs MIN 1:08PM | P. Hughes | 20 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | .150 | .182 | .250 | .432 |
| J. Mauer | 1B | MIN @ DET 1:08PM | D. Price | 23 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 6 | .174 | .296 | .217 | .514 |
| D. Stubbs | OF | COL @ MIL 2:10PM | K. Lohse | 19 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 4 | .211 | .286 | .211 | .496 |
| D. Jennings | OF | TB vs BAL 3:10PM | C. Tillman | 20 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 5 | .100 | .143 | .150 | .293 |
| J. Loney | 1B | TB vs BAL 3:10PM | C. Tillman | 22 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 1 | .136 | .240 | .318 | .558 |
| A. Simmons | SS | ATL @ MIA 4:10PM | H. Alvarez | 15 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .067 | .067 | .067 | .133 |
| J. Bruce | OF | CIN vs PIT 4:10PM | F. Liriano | 16 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | .000 | .000 | .000 | .000 |
| Z. Cozart | SS | CIN vs PIT 4:10PM | F. Liriano | 17 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 4 | .176 | .300 | .353 | .653 |
| B. Pena | C | CIN vs PIT 4:10PM | F. Liriano | 23 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 4 | .217 | .208 | .217 | .426 |
| J. Votto | 1B | CIN vs PIT 4:10PM | F. Liriano | 17 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 5 | .176 | .300 | .353 | .653 |
| K. Calhoun | OF | LAA @ SEA 4:10PM | F. Hernandez | 15 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 | .067 | .125 | .067 | .192 |
| C. Iannetta | C | LAA @ SEA 4:10PM | F. Hernandez | 20 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 8 | .100 | .250 | .250 | .500 |
| M. Joyce | OF | LAA @ SEA 4:10PM | F. Hernandez | 18 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 | .056 | .105 | .111 | .216 |
| A. Hechavarria | SS | MIA vs ATL 4:10PM | J. Teheran | 22 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | .227 | .227 | .273 | .500 |
| G. Stanton | OF | MIA vs ATL 4:10PM | J. Teheran | 21 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 7 | .095 | .240 | .286 | .526 |
| P. Alvarez | 3B | PIT @ CIN 4:10PM | J. Cueto | 30 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 6 | .200 | .265 | .200 | .465 |
| S. Marte | OF | PIT @ CIN 4:10PM | J. Cueto | 20 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | .050 | .050 | .050 | .100 |
| N. Walker | 2B | PIT @ CIN 4:10PM | J. Cueto | 45 | 9 | 3 | 2 | 6 | 5 | 7 | .200 | .294 | .356 | .650 |
| J. Upton | OF | SD @ LAD 4:10PM | C. Kershaw | 33 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 10 | .121 | .171 | .212 | .384 |
| A. Jackson | OF | SEA vs LAA 4:10PM | J. Weaver | 19 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 7 | .158 | .273 | .211 | .483 |
| S. Smith | OF | SEA vs LAA 4:10PM | J. Weaver | 15 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 5 | .133 | .133 | .333 | .467 |
| A. Beltre | 3B | TEX @ OAK 10:05PM | S. Gray | 15 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 | .133 | .188 | .133 | .321 |
| L. Martin | OF | TEX @ OAK 10:05PM | S. Gray | 17 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 6 | .118 | .250 | .118 | .368 |
| P. Goldschmidt | 1B | ARI vs SF 10:10PM | M. Bumgarner | 25 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 5 | 6 | .200 | .323 | .400 | .723 |
| G. Blanco | OF | SF @ ARI 10:10PM | J. Collmenter | 17 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 5 | .118 | .211 | .176 | .387 |
| B. Crawford | SS | SF @ ARI 10:10PM | J. Collmenter | 22 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 | .227 | .217 | .318 | .536 |
Matchup Info | Career Matchup Stats | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Batter | Pos | Game | Pitcher | AB | H | XBH | HR | RBI | BB | K | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS |
Cold Pitcher Matchups – April 6, 2015Matchup Info | Career Stats Allowed To Batters On Opposing Team | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Pitcher | Game | AB | H | XBH | HR | RBI | BB | K | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS |
| Drew Hutchison | TOR @ NYY 1:05PM | 69 | 19 | 10 | 6 | 16 | 13 | 20 | .275 | .395 | .604 | .999 |
| Kyle Kendrick | COL @ MIL 2:10PM | 102 | 36 | 12 | 5 | 14 | 8 | 12 | .353 | .396 | .573 | .969 |
| James Shields | SD @ LAD 4:10PM | 91 | 33 | 12 | 3 | 11 | 7 | 17 | .363 | .408 | .584 | .991 |
Matchup Info | Career Stats Allowed To Batters On Opposing Team | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Pitcher | Game | AB | H | XBH | HR | RBI | BB | K | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS |
Jason Grilli, P, ATL - The Padres acquired Craig Kimbrel on Sunday, which opens the door in Atlanta for someone to fill the void in the ninth inning. While the Braves haven't officially announced who will be their new closer, Grilli is the favorite to land the role after a strong spring (2.25 ERA, 11:0 K:BB in eight innings) and 50 career saves to his name.
Other Recent Recommendations: None.
DraftKings Value Picks
SP - Dallas Keuchel, HOU ($6,900)
C - Nick Hundley, COL ($3,000)
1B - Eric Hosmer, KC ($4,000)
2B - Dustin Pedroia, BOS ($3,700)
3B - Manny Machado, BAL ($3,900)
SS - Jose Ramirez, CLE ($3,400)
OF - Joc Pederson, LAD ($3,800)
