SCOTTSADALE, Ariz. — Take a spin around the Cactus League with “Three Up, Three Down,” an inside look at what is coming up and what went down on Wednesday.
THREE UP
1. The wait will soon be over for Diamondbacks fans itching to see new ace Zack Greinke pitch in a game. Greinke, who signed a six-year, $206.5 million contract in the offseason, will work two innings against the Oakland A’s on Friday in front of what figures to be a large crowd. While other teams held back their aces in the first few games or first week of spring training, Greinke is on a different program. “He’s excited to go out there and pitch and we’re excited to see him,” Arizona manager Chip Hale said. “First outing of spring training, so we’re going to take it easy.” Should Greinke struggle, it could be interesting to see how Diamondbacks fans react given the money the team shelled out for the former Dodger.
2. Jake Peavy was rocked in his first spring training start Thursday for the Giants against a Milwaukee Brewers split squad. Peavy gave up six runs and nine hits and didn’t make it out of the second inning. The Giants lost 8-7. No need to sound the alarm yet because it’s early March, but Peavy is expected to be in the Opening Day starting rotation. It’s Madison Bumgarner, Johnny Cueto, Jeff Samardzija, Peavy and Matt Cain as the projected five. But with Cain coming off a cyst and not yet throwing and if Peavy can’t right the ship, one wonders if the door is a little more open for Chris Heston to crack that group. Bumgarner, the ace of the staff, is on the mound Friday for his spring debut.
3. Some big-name players are dealing with injuries and will miss some time. In the Seattle camp, Nelson Cruz has a sore left knee and will be held out until the weekend. San Francisco outfielder Hunter Pence has Achilles tendinitis and an MRI showed he could be back in a week. Angels shortstop Andrelton Simmons is dealing with arm fatigue and has missed two games but could be a DH on Friday and play in the field on Saturday. None of these seem serious and teams deal with minor aches and pains to key players every spring, but the key is proper management of the injuries and giving rest while balancing a need to play games.
THREE DOWN
1. The Royals will be without outfielder Jarrod Dyson for six weeks after he suffered a strained right oblique in the opener against complex-neighbor Texas on Wednesday. That puts Dyson, who was to be a platoon player, out of action for Opening Day and beyond. Manager Ned Yost will have to come up with a plan for how to spread the playing time among other right fielders in spring training while getting a replacement ready to start. Paulo Orlando leads the pack, but big-league veteran Travis Snider should see more action.
2. The Dodgers have some injury issues in their starting rotation that were compounded after the announcement that Brett Anderson will need surgery for a bulging disc in his back. He will be out three to five months. Anderson has a history of back problems but was healthy all season in 2015. Still, the Dodgers were counting on him to help shore up the rotation in the absence of Zack Greinke. With pitcher Hyun-Jin Ryu not throwing for a few days and not expected back to full strength until well after the season begins following shoulder surgery last year, the Dodgers’ pitching depth will be tested. Alex Wood likely slides up to the No. 4 rotation spot and the Dodgers will have to find a No. 5 out of a few candidates in spring training.
3. The Rockies might just have their replacement at shortstop for suspended Jose Reyes, who will spend Opening Day in court to deal with a spousal abuse charge. He’s 23-year-old Trevor Story, who hit a 442-foot, three-run homer in Thursday’s game against the Diamondbacks. Story was making his spring training debut. If Story has a good spring and holds off another youngster, Cristhian Adames, he should get the job. Rafael Ynoa and veteran Daniel Descalso are also in the mix, but the Rockies figure to go with a younger player with more upside.