MLB Player News

Rodriguez tossed 4.2 scoreless innings in Monday's Grapefruit League game against the Nationals. He allowed four hits and a walk while striking out five.

Rodriguez still has not allowed an earned run this spring across 13 innings and he's struck out 15. The lefty had an underwhelming first season in Detroit last year, as he missed significant time due to personal reasons and finished with a 4.05 ERA and 72 strikeouts across 91 innings. Rodriguez should again lead the staff in 2023, and if he can carry over some of his spring success, he could be primed for much better production from a fantasy standpoint.

Raya left his outing early on Saturday as a precaution due to shoulder tightness, the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports.

Raya made a strong impression last season at Low-A Fort Myers with a 3.05 ERA and 10.5 K/9. His fastball sits in the mid-to-high 90s and he has a quality curveball, slider and change as well, so the stuff is there for the 20-year-old to grow into a big-league starter. Durability will be the big question for Raya, so it's worrisome he's facing issues in camp, even though this could be minor.

The Mariners reassigned Miller to minor-league camp Monday.

Miller pitched well during Cactus League play, but he's in need of a little more refinement in the minors before being considered for the major-league rotation. The 24-year-old is considered a top-100 prospect by many following a breakout season across three levels in the minors in 2022.

Ryu (elbow) hopes to throw his first post-Tommy John surgery bullpen session sometime in April, Keegan Matheson of MLB.com reports.

Ryu is currently throwing on flat ground from 90-to-120 feet as he moves along in his rehab. The veteran lefty said Monday through an interpreter that he hopes to rejoin the Toronto rotation "sometime in mid-July." A mid-July debut would be 13 months after his surgery, which is a relatively fast return for a starting pitcher. The team, for what it's worth, has a "loose date in mind" for Ryu's return, but it's a "moving target," per Matheson.

Manoah gave up one run on five hits and a walk over six innings while striking out four in Sunday's Grapefruit League game against the Rays.

Tampa Bay's run in the third inning was the only one of the game, as Manoah found himself in a spring pitcher's duel with Drew Rasmussen. Manoah tossed 71 pitches (50 strikes) and appears ready for Opening Day after turning in a 15:6 K:BB through 14.1 frames this spring while not allowing a homer.

The Guardians reassigned Toussaint to minor-league camp Monday, Mandy Bell of MLB.com reports.

Toussaint posted an ugly 14.54 ERA in four appearances this spring. The former top prospect is still just 26 but is in his third organization since the start of 2022 as he tries to regain his footing.

Red Sox manager Alex Cora said that Whitlock (hip) who is scheduled to pitch in Monday's Grapefruit League game against the Pirates, will likely require three more starts to build up before he's ready to join the big-league rotation, Alex Speier of The Boston Globe reports.

Based on that timeline, Cora confirmed that Whitlock won't be in consideration for making the Red Sox's fifth start of the regular season, likely paving the way for Kutter Crawford to break camp as the final member of the team's rotation. Whitlock is scheduled to pitch three innings Monday before covering four innings in his next outing and then five innings in his final two starts prior to coming off the injured list, according to Cora. Assuming he sticks to a normal four-day rest schedule between those outings, Whitlock would be on pace to be activated as soon as April 9.

Lorenzen has been scratched from his scheduled Grapefruit League start Monday against the Blue Jays due to groin tightness, Chris McCosky of The Detroit News reports.

The Tigers are opting for a bullpen game to cover Lorenzen's turn through the spring rotation, but the bigger question is whether his groin injury is something that will be significant enough to keep him from being ready to go for the start of the season. If Lorenzen is able to resume throwing within the next few days, he should be available to make one final start this spring in either the Grapefruit League or in an exhibition game. Lorenzen built up to 2.2 innings and 69 pitches in his most recent spring outing March 14.

Bello (forearm) struck out three over two scoreless and hitless relief innings in Sunday's spring game against the Phillies.

Bello made his Grapefruit League debut after dealing with forearm tightness at the start of spring training. The right-hander soothed any concerns Sunday, when he set down all six batters faced over 25 pitches. According to Ian Browne of MLB.com, this might be Bello's last Grapefruit League outing. The Red Sox are expected to place him on the injured list to start the regular season and want to allocate innings to those pitchers that will break camp on the major-league roster. In the meantime, Bello can build up his pitch count on the back fields against minor-league opponents.

The Tigers optioned Faedo to Triple-A Toledo on Monday, Jason Beck of MLB.com reports.

Though he made 12 starts in 2022 for a Tigers pitching staff that was decimated by injuries, Faedo faced a tough path to a spot in the season-opening rotation with Detroit adding starters Matthew Boyd and Michael Lorenzen in free agency and getting Spencer Turnbull (elbow) back from Tommy John surgery. Faedo didn't help his case for a spot on the Opening Day roster by allowing seven runs on 11 hits and three walks over 5.1 innings. The 27-year-old right-hander will now head to Toledo but should be on the top candidates for a call-up whenever Detroit is need of a spot starter in 2023.