MLB Player News

Angels general manager Billy Eppler said Sunday during an appearance on MLB Network Radio on SiriusXM that Ohtani is throwing "roughly" two bullpen sessions per week at about "80 to 85 percent" intensity.

Since Ohtani is still completing the rehab process for his elbow following his October 2018 Tommy John surgery, he's been permitted to receive treatment and conduct his throwing program at the Angels' facility during the league-wide suspension of play. Eppler estimates that Ohtani is typically throwing around 35 pitches during the sessions and should increase the frequency of them before he's deemed ready to face hitters in May. Organizing live batting practice sessions in which Ohtani can test himself against hitters could prove to be more of a challenge if the MLB season remains suspended deep into May.

Vogelbach's improved contact rate stood out to hitting coach Tim Laker before spring training was suspended, Greg Johns of MLB.com reports.

Vogelbach worked on several adjustments to his approach in the batter's box this offseason after posting an anemic .162/.286/.341 line following the All-Star break in 2019. Laker feels Vogelbach's results this spring -- a .321 average (9-for-28) across 12 Cactus League games -- speak to a keener eye at the plate on the part of the burly slugger. "He was frustrated a little bit in spring, just because he hadn't hit any home runs yet, but Daniel Vogelbach is not a guy that is going to have to worry about power," Laker said. "It's not like he lost his power. I felt like he was having better at-bats, wasn't striking out nearly at the clip he was in the second half. I did think it was headed in the right direction, for sure."

Ohtani (elbow) has started throwing bullpen sessions, Jeff Fletcher of The Orange County Register reports.

In a Q&A session, Angels general manager Billy Eppler indicated that Ohtani tossed a bullpen Monday and another Friday morning. The Friday session consisted of "15 pitches...fastballs only," according to Eppler. The news is in line with reports earlier in April suggesting that Ohtani's return to the mound was imminent. It also bodes well for the possibility that the Angels' ace could be ready to pitch in games by the time the 2020 season gets underway.

Canha was starting to "hit his stride" at the plate when spring training was suspended, Shayna Rubin of The Mercury News reports.

The veteran outfielder hit .318 (7-for-22) with three doubles, six RBI, six walks and two runs over 11 Cactus League contests prior to the pause in play. Canha returned home shortly after spring training was suspended and has been engaging in body weight workouts in his backyard, a regimen that includes lunges, pushups and sit-ups. He's supplemented that work with some cardiovascular activity in the form of jumping jacks and an exercise bike and is also taking dry swings, attempting to address all aspects of personal fitness under unusual circumstances. Canha is slated to serve as the starting left fielder when the season does begin after a breakout 2019 during which he slashed .273/.396/.517 with 26 home runs and 58 RBI.

Lewis projects as the everyday right fielder this coming regular season despite having hit just .172 (5-for-29) over 11 Cactus League games before spring training was suspended, Brent Stecker of 710 ESPN Seattle reports.

Stecker notes that general manager Jerry Dipoto identifies the slugger's occasional "empty swings" as a byproduct of an opposite-field approach to hitting which requires Lewis to often allow the ball to go deeper into the zone than a pull hitter does. The Mariners are willing to accept such a tradeoff so long as Lewis is able to generate a similar caliber of long-ball production to that of his first big-league cup of coffee in 2019. Following his September promotion, the 24-year-old became the second player in MLB history to homer in each of his first three games and ultimately left the yard once every 12.5 plate appearances across 18 contests overall. Signs of his prodigious power were evident once again this spring despite the overall lack of success, as three of Lewis' five hits during Cactus League play were home runs.

Choi is preparing to resume workouts in his native South Korea after a two-week period of self-quarantine following his return to the country, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

Choi has had to wait longer to resume workouts than some of his teammates due to his decision to return to his home country, which appears to be returning to normalcy daily. The 29-year-old will look to maintain the positive pace of preparation he'd established during Grapefruit League play, when he hit .273 over 10 games.

Cespedes (ankle) would be the most likely candidate on the Mets to handle designated hitter duties if the DH is implemented universally during a season played entirely at spring training sites, Deesha Thosar of The New York Daily News reports.

The club does have other options for the DH spot, such as Matt Adams and Dominic Smith, in a realigned Grapefruit League that would include both NL and AL franchises. The Mets would be in a division with the Astros, Cardinals, Marlins and Nationals in the most recently proposed plan, necessitating a universal DH. Not requiring Cespedes to play defense as he continues his recovery from ankle and heel surgeries while keeping his bat in the lineup would be something of a best-case scenario for the Mets. The 34-year-old wasn't yet running the bases or taking part in fielding drills when MLB suspended play, and it's not clear how ready he will be to patrol the outfield once action resumes.

Miller projected for "ample playing time" all over the field in 2020 when spring training was suspended, Anne Rogers of MLB.com reports.

The veteran's ability to play multiple infield and outfield spots combined with the March 7 release of Yairo Munoz seemingly left Miller with solid job security when play was paused. His Grapefruit League play didn't exactly hurt his cause either, with the 30-year-old hitting .267 (4-for-15) with two doubles, three RBI, two walks and three runs across six games. Miller had a solid rebound season in 2019 while splitting time with the Indians and Phillies, slashing .260/.329/.565 with 20 extra-base hits (six doubles, one triple, 13 home runs) across 170 plate appearances.

Stanton has been staying home to help stop the spread of COVID-19, Brendan Kuty of NJ Advance Media reports.

Stanton posted a video to his personal Instagram account Wednesday emphasizing his decision to stay home and encouraging others to do so as well. In early April the slugger was deemed eligible to work out at the team's training facility in Tampa as he was technically still rehabbing his strained right calf. However, manager Aaron Boone has indicated that Stanton is fully healed, thus he should be ready to go when play resumes.

Carpenter had some encouraging at-bats over the last two Grapefruit League games before spring training was suspended, Rick Hummel of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.

Hummel notes Carpenter drew three walks and slugged an opposite-field home run off the Mets' Jacob deGrom in his last five plate appearances before play was paused. The round tripper was especially noteworthy, not only because it came against a two-time Cy Young award winner, but because the veteran had been focusing on hitting the ball the other way all spring after frequently falling victim to the shift during a 2019 season in which he hit just .226. Hummel also reports Carpenter appeared to be much more confident this spring despite hitting just .235 (4-for-17) during eight Grapefruit League contests, and that the 34-year-old should have a chance to see more standard defensive alignments as a No. 2 hitter whenever projected leadoff man and stolen-base threat Kolten Wong gets on base ahead of him.