Central notes: Martinez, Hamels, Diaz

Carlos MartinezThe right shoulder is a major source of uncertainty for the cardinals At the present time, while the right-hander was at the camp with his arm in a sling yesterday after an injection of platelet-rich plasma. Martinez was already halfway through a two-week shutdown when he received the injection, and the Cardinals said yesterday that this injection could postpone his referral delay. Much has been said about Martinez in the pipeline, but Rick Hummel of St. Louis Post-Dispatch quotes Martinez as clearly and confidently declaring: "I'll start, man." As Martinez will not restart the pitches until mid-March, it seems almost impossible for him to accumulate an extra workload in the first match of the team's season on March 28th. he would need to start the season on the casualty list. As Hummel writes, this would open the door to one of the Dakota Hudson or Austin Gomber enter the first five to start the season. Director Mike Shildt congratulated Hudson and Gomber on discussing possible rotation options with Hummel.

Elsewhere in the center of NL …

• Asked about his future in the game Wednesday, cubs to the left Cole Hamels told a crowd of reporters that he had no intention of retiring any time soon (Twitter link via Mark Feinsand of MLB.com). There was little reason to think that Hamels, who had just turned 35 in December, was seriously considering retirement, but his response was nonetheless fun and revealing of his goals. Hamels launched a "No Hell!" When asked if he was considering retiring and expressed the desire to play until he turned 45, pointing out that he was a teammate of ageless wonder. Jamie Moyer at the beginning of his career. Hamels had a tough start to the season with the Rangers in 2018, but was revitalized by an exchange in Chicago. rate in 76 1/3 innings with the Cubs (12 starts).
• The Pirates recipient Elias Diaz is fighting for a viral disease, and one may wonder if it will be ready for the opening day, as writes Nubyjas Wilborn of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. The director of sports medicine Pirates, Todd Tomczyk, said that Diaz would stop his baseball activities for "a few weeks." 452 with 10 homers and a dozen doubles in just 277 appearances at the plate.He is still firmly behind Francisco Cervelli on the depth map of the team, but with the arrival of Cervelli in the final season of his current contract, the 2019 campaign could be a testing ground for Diaz, who will monitor the starter position in 2019. Presumably, He is 29 years old. Jacob Stallings Cervelli will be Cervelli's substitute at the start of the year if Diaz is not ready to leave, as he is the only other receiver on Pittsburgh's list of 40 players. The Bucs have a minor league veteran Steven Baron in the camp on a minor league affair as well.