Finnegan or Feldman will start Reds’ opener
The last name of the Cincinnati Reds’ opening day starter will start with an “F,” as manager Bryan Price said it will be Brandon Finnegan or Scott Feldman.
“I’d be happy with either one,” Price said Friday in Goodyear, Arizona. “I’ll sit down with (pitching coach) Mack (Jenkins) and (general manager) Dick (Williams) and go over it and come to an executive decision.”
For the second year, Anthony DeSclafani entered spring as the presumptive opening day starter only to be injured. He has been shut down for four weeks because of a sprained ulnar collateral ligament.
Feldman and Finnegan pitched Friday, Feldman in a minor-league game and Finnegan in the big-league night game against the Cleveland Indians.
Feldman, 34, was signed in the offseason as a possible starter or reliever, but quickly secured his spot in the rotation after Homer Bailey underwent surgery to remove bone spurs in his right elbow.
He made five starts for the Astros last season and was 7-4 with a 3.97 ERA in 40 appearances between Houston and Toronto. He was 5-5 with a 3.90 ERA in 18 starts for Houston in 2015. This spring, he’s 0-1 with a 4.50 ERA in eight innings over three starts.
Finnegan was 10-11 with a 3.98 ERA in 31 starts last season. Although 2015 was Finnegan’s first full season in the big leagues, Price isn’t worried about opening day being too much for Finnegan, who will turn 24 on April 14.
“(He) handled some big moments last year pitching in Dodger Stadium against (Clayton) Kershaw, and pitching in the World Series (with the Royals in 2014),” Price said. “There are certainly more important games than a single game in LA. He’s pitched in the postseason and World Series.”
Yankees spring no-hitter on Tigers
No runs once again off Masahiro Tanaka. No hits off him or the New York Yankees' bullpen, either. Tanaka and two relievers combined on a spring training no-hitter against the Detroit Tigers in a 3-0 win Friday in Lakeland, Florida. New York manager Joe Girardi didn't keep the lineup card as a souvenir, but still appreciated the effort.
"I'm happy for our guys," Girardi said. "It's fun. Obviously, it means more if it's the regular season, but still it's a no-hitter."
Tanaka, scheduled to start on opening day, struck out six and walked two in 4 innings. The Japanese ace has thrown 13 scoreless innings in exhibition play.
"I felt that I wasn't at my best, but considering that I still was able to put up some zeroes, that part satisfied me," Tanaka said through a translator.