Dontrelle Willis faced live hitters on Monday afternoon at the Giants' spring training complex in Arizona.

Willis will continue working out in Arizona until he is cleared for live action. Once given that clearance, he's expected to spend a few days at rookie ball before moving on to Triple-A Fresno. The Giants inked the left-hander to a minor league contract in mid-July after he was dumped by the D'Backs.

The Giants are working to change Dontrelle Willis' delivery by raising his arm slot and shortening his motion.

San Francisco, who signed the lefty to a minor league deal on July 15, thinks Willis can return to being effective with simplified mechanics. He has been throwing for Giants personnel and "hasn't been wild," according to Giants executive and pitching guru Dick Tidrow. The plan is for Willis to pitch in one or two summer league games before moving to Triple-A Fresno and then, hopefully, the big leagues as a left-handed specialist. We're rooting for him, but the odds are against Dontrelle ever contributing any fantasy value again.

Giants signed LHP Dontrelle Willis to a minor league contract.

Well, that happened faster than expected. The Diamondbacks cut ties with Willis on July 4 after he allowed 14 earned runs and 27 walks in 21 1/3 innings (five starts) for the club. He will report to Triple-A Fresno and attempt to resurface in the National League West from there.

Diamondbacks designated LHP Dontrelle Willis for assignment.

Poor Dontrelle just can't throw the ball over the plate anymore. After he failed as a starter, the D-backs tired him as a reliever, but that lasted all of one game after he allowed three runs in his one inning of work. It's entirely possible that we've seen the last of Willis in the big leagues, and it's almost certain we've seen the last of his success.

The Diamondbacks have decided to move the struggling Dontrelle Willis to the bullpen.

Is it possible the Diamondbacks' bullpen could get even worse? Maybe. Willis has a positively awful 11/21 K/BB ratio over 17 1/3 innings since coming over from the Tigers earlier this month. Similar to Oliver Perez in New York, it's hard to believe he'll make any progress being buried in the bullpen.

Diamondbacks manager A.J. Hinch wouldn't say whether Dontrelle Willis will make his next start after he walked six and allowed five runs over four innings in a loss to the Cardinals on Tuesday.

"You know, I haven't really given it any thought," said Hinch. "We'll see (rookie Barry) Enright (today) and collect our thoughts on the off-day and figure it out as we go." Willis has a 4.67 ERA over four starts starts since joining the Diamondbacks, but his 11/21 K/BB ratio over 17 1/3 innings indicates that he's actually been pretty fortunate. Everybody likes Dontrelle, but it's hard to justify using a pitcher who just can't throw strikes.

Dontrelle Willis issued six more walks while lasting just four innings in St. Louis on Tuesday night.

Willis has now walked 27 batters in 21 1/3 innings with the Diamondbacks. He also hit a batter tonight and uncorked a wild pitch. It's hard to see the Diamondbacks keep putting him out there.

Dontrelle Willis walked seven while allowing two runs in 2 1/3 innings Wednesday against the Yankees.

This might be it for Willis in Arizona. He allowed just one hit tonight, but he walked three in the first and four before being removed in the third. He only allowed the two runs because Blaine Boyer immediately induced a double-play ball after taking over.

Dontrelle Willis yielded five earned runs over five innings as part of a no-decision against the Tigers on Friday night.

The artist formerly known as the D-Train walked four, struck out four and gave up five hits against his old team. It's the kind of outing that has become all too familiar. He's not a fantasy option.

Dontrelle Willis will be skipped in the rotation for the upcoming series against Boston, which starts on Tuesday, according to Diamondbacks manager A.J. Hinch.

Monday is an off-day, so Ian Kennedy, Rodrigo Lopez and Dan Haren will stay on regular rest for their subsequent starts, which bumps Willis completely. Willis split the fingernail on his left middle finger against the Braves on Thursday, so this will also give him time to heal. Willis will now start on either Friday or Saturday against his former teammates in Detroit. He isn't an advisable fantasy option.

Dontrelle Willis walked six while allowing two runs in four innings Thursday against the Braves.

This was the 2008-09 version of Willis. He also threw two wild pitches, and just 49 of his 100 pitches on the afternoon were strikes. Willis isn't very difficult to hit these days, so he's not going to stay in the rotation for long if he keeps walking so many batters.

Dontrelle Willis held the Rockies scoreless over six innings Saturday, winning his debut with the Diamondbacks.

Willis wasn't exactly spectacular -- he walked four and threw only 60 of his 106 pitches for strikes -- but the results were good enough in his return to the National League. He struck out three and worked well in damage control. Still, we'd hold off on grabbing him in fantasy leagues.

Diamondbacks acquired LHP Dontrelle Willis and cash considerations from the Tigers for RHP Billy Buckner.

He is expected to join the rotation immediately and could start as soon as this Saturday against the Rockies, according to Diamondbacks manager A.J. Hinch. Willis, 28, was just 2-8 with a 6.86 ERA during his time with the Tigers and will look to resuscitate his once-promising career with a return to the National League. It's a worthwhile gamble, especially at the league minimum, but we're not convinced he can be an effective big league pitcher anymore, regardless of location.

Joe Capozzi of the Palm Beach Post reports that the Mets, Brewers and Marlins have interest in DFA'd lefty Dontrelle Willis.

Capozzi has also confirmed the Diamondbacks' interest, which was first reported by MLB.com's Steve Gilbert. It's no surprise that all four teams are from the National League, given his lack of success in the AL. He was designated for assignment by the Tigers on Monday after throwing up a 4.98 ERA, 1.78 WHIP and a 33/29 K/BB ratio through his first nine outings.

According to Steve Gilbert of MLB.com, the Diamondbacks have had discussions with the Tigers about acquiring left-hander Dontrelle Willis.

That didn't take long. Willis was designated for assignment by the Tigers on Monday after posting a 4.98 ERA, 1.78 WHIP and 33/29 K/BB ratio through nine games (eight starts) this season. The Tigers would obviously have to eat a substantial portion of his remaining contract, but they are already prepared to be on the hook for all of it just to get him out of town. The pitching-hungry Diamondbacks could at least provide a marginal prospect for their troubles.

Tigers designated LHP Dontrelle Willis for assignment.

In a few starts early in the year, Willis looked like he might have found the form that made him such a commodity in the early part of his career, but it simply didn't last. Whatever answers he had found are gone and he's scuffling once again, with a record of 1-2, an ERA of 4.98, and a WHIP of 1.78. It will be very interesting to see if anyone claims Willis, but we're guessing his contract scares all but a few teams away. He's likely to remain a Tiger, though a change of scenery might not be a bad idea for Willis.

Dontrelle Willis will be designated for assignment on Sunday when the Tigers recall starter Max Scherzer.

It's about time. Willis got off to a decent start this season and actually appeared to have found some answers, but he will leave behind a 1.79 WHIP and a 4.98 ERA through nine outings. Perhaps some other teams will show interest, but safe money has him landing back in Triple-A Toledo.

Dontrelle Willis returned to action on Saturday May 15.

Dontrelle Willis has been scratched from his scheduled Monday start against the Yankees due to flu-like symptoms.

Brad Thomas will fill in. A similar situation happened in late April and Willis was able to pitch out of the bullpen, so that's a possibility Monday night. D-Train has a surprising 3.99 ERA through 29 1/3 innings this season, but, given past performance, is unlikely to remain effective for much longer.

Dontrelle Willis struck out six and allowed three runs over 5 1/3 innings Tuesday in a 4-3 no-decision loss to the Twins.

Willis left with a deficit, but his offense was kind enough to tie the game before the bullpen blew it. He's a deceiving solid start to the season, going 1-1 with a 3.99 ERA. But buyer beware -- he's faced an incredibly easy schedule to this point and still allowed a 1.50 WHIP. Although he's drawn the division-leading Twins his last two starts, he got them without Joe Mauer, Justin Morneau and J.J. Hardy on Thursday and didn't have to face Mauer again on Tuesday. At best, Willis is a low-end AL-only guy right now.