MLB Player News

Bednar (lat) allowed two hits and struck out one across a scoreless inning in Thursday's Grapefruit League game against the Blue Jays.

Bednar has been sidelined by lat tightness for just over two weeks, though he has downplayed the seriousness of the injury. Per Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Bednar's pitches looked sharp and his fastball sat consistently at 97 mph. It's expected that he will be ready for Opening Day.

Mlodzinski has been unavailable lately due to right forearm tightness, Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.

Mlodzinski's last Grapefruit League appearance came more than a week ago and he allowed five runs while recording just two outs in that outing. The reliever has made nice recent progress, though, as he's throwing out to 120 feet and is slated for a bullpen session within the next few days. It would appear Opening Day is still possible, but it will be close.

Bednar (lat) will make his Grapefruit League debut Thursday against the Blue Jays, Alex Stumpf of MLB.com reports.

Bednar first developed some right lat tightness in early March but has been progressing nicely since then. The closer has said previously that he was optimistic about ramping up in time for Opening Day, and his return to game action certainly helps his case.

Moreta underwent surgery on his right UCL on Thursday and will be out 14-to-16 months, Alex Stumpf of MLB.com reports.

Moreta landed on the 60-day injured list Wednesday after damaging his UCL earlier this spring. He logged a 3.72 ERA and 1.09 WHIP across 58 innings last year, but he won't be able to follow up his solid season until midway through the 2025 campaign.

Reid-Foley (arm) pitched in a minor-league spring training game Thursday, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com reports.

Reid-Foley has missed some time this spring due to arm fatigue, but he threw a bullpen session Tuesday and returned to game action Thursday, striking out multiple batters. The Mets will likely try to get Reid-Foley into one of their final Grapefruit League games, and the 28-year-old righty should be able to begin the season in New York's bullpen.

The Rockies optioned Justice to Triple-A Albuquerque on Thursday.

Justice was in the race to win a spot in Colorado's Opening Day bullpen, but he will instead begin the year in the minors after giving up five earned runs in eight spring innings. Justice was quickly promoted through the Rockies' farm system and into the majors last season after starting the year in High-A ball. His performance steadily declined as he advanced to higher levels, so a demotion to Triple-A could allow Justice to get his feet back underneath him.

King (1-0) gave up three runs on four hits and three walks while striking out five batters over 3.1 innings in a win over the Dodgers on Thursday in Game 2 of the Seoul Series.

King picked up the victory and racked up a healthy strikeout total in his first regular-season outing as a Padre, but the appearance wasn't smooth for the ex-Yankee. He made it through his first frame without giving up a run despite yielding a pair of hits, but Mookie Betts tagged the right-hander for a two-run homer in the fifth inning and drew a walk that led to another run on King's ledger in the seventh. Despite entering in the fourth frame, King ended up with an early-season starter's workload (75 pitches), and he's fully expected to hold down a rotation role moving forward. His work in relief Thursday was likely a one-off consequence of the Padres' next regular-season contest being one week away.

Cubs manager Craig Counsell said Thursday that Assad will begin the season in the rotation, Meghan Montemurro of the Chicago Tribune reports.

Jameson Taillon's back injury opened up another spot in the rotation and Assad has won it over Drew Smyly. The right-hander didn't pitch well this spring but has earned the shot with some fine work in a swingman role for the Cubs over the last two seasons with a 3.06 ERA.

The Cubs reassigned Pannone to minor-league camp Thursday.

Over a small sample of eight innings in spring training, Pannone struck out six while allowing just one earned run on four hits and one walk. Despite the strong showing in Cactus League play, Pannone was unable to win a spot in the Cubs' Opening Day bullpen after attending camp as a non-roster invitee. The 29-year-old has previously made 50 appearances at the big-league level over parts of three seasons, though just one of those came in 2023.

The Cubs reassigned Lovelady to minor-league camp Thursday.

Lovelady attended camp as a non-roster invitee after joining the Cubs on a minor-league deal over the winter. The right-hander logged a 4.63 ERA and 1.07 WHIP across 23.1 innings in 27 appearances out of Oakland's bullpen in 2023, but he fell short in his bid for a spot in the Cubs' Opening Day relief corps.