MLB Player News

Cole allowed one run on three hits and no walks while striking out five across three innings in Thursday's Grapefruit League win over Philadelphia.

Cole's previous start was scratched due to inclement weather, so this was the ace's second start of the spring. He gave up a third-inning run but was otherwise on top of his game, throwing 38 of his 50 pitches for strikes. Cole should get a few more chances to pitch in exhibition play before toeing the mound for the Yankees on Opening Day.

Garcia (undisclosed) cleared the league's health and safety protocols Thursday, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.

Garcia was away from the team for nearly a week after being placed in the health and safety protocols. However, manager Dusty Baker told reporters that every player besides Pedro Baez (COVID-19) has returned to the team after quarantining. Garcia will be fighting for a roster spot for the remainder of spring training, though the addition of Jake Odorizzi will make his path more difficult.

Javier (COVID-19 health and safety protocols) returned to the Astros' spring-training complex Thursday and completed a bullpen session, Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle reports.

Javier was one of several Houston players who were forced to self-isolate last week due to the COVID-19 protocol, but only reliever Pedro Baez is believed to have tested positive for the virus. With the right-hander now back in camp less than a week after entering the protocol, he should still be on track to clinch a spot in Houston's Opening Day rotation. Javier may find himself a few days behind his fellow starters in the build-up process, however.

Bassitt allowed an earned run on two hits and recorded two strikeouts across three innings in a Cactus League win over the Brewers on Wednesday,

The right-hander was reasonably sharp in his first taste of game action this spring, which is certainly encouraging, considering Martin Gallegos of MLB.com reports that Bassitt is a potential Opening Day starter for the Athletics if Frankie Montas is unable to ramp up sufficiently after a delayed start to spring training due to a COVID-19 infection. Bassitt has produced a combined 15-7 record, 3.35 ERA and 1.18 WHIP across 207 innings in 39 appearances (36 starts) over the last two seasons.

Severino (elbow) threw his first bullpen session of the spring Tuesday, Kristie Ackert of the New York Daily News reports.

The 20-pitch side session was also Severino's first since he underwent Tommy John surgery in February 2020. Per Ackert, Yankees manager Aaron Boone said Severino bounced back well from the workout, so the right-hander will get back on the field Thursday to throw off flat ground. He'll likely need to complete several more bullpen sessions before the Yankees clear him to face hitters in batting practice, perhaps in early April.

Houck allowed one hit and one walk while striking out three over three scoreless innings in Wednesday's spring game against Atlanta.

Houck was overpowering Wednesday, a complete reversal of his first Grapefruit League outing, in which he walked five and retired just two batters. His fastball routinely hit 96-97 mph on the radar, per Ian Browne of MLB.com, well above the 92 he showed last season. "I saw him pitch last year, and I noticed he was 92, 93," manager Alex Cora said. "With his movement, I thought that was good enough. But now, you see 96, 97, it's eye-opening." Throwing strikes consistently and attacking the zone will be the mission going forward for Houck, who is expected to start the season at Triple-A Worcester.

Urquidy allowed three runs on three hits and one walk while striking out three over 2.1 innings in Wednesday's spring game against the Marlins.

Urquidy got up to 45 pitches (32 strikes) and pitched into the third inning, putting him on the same schedule as the other starters. He told Brian McTaggart of MLB.com that he intends to throw more curveballs in 2021, and Urquidy featured that offering during Wednesday's contest (12 of his 45 pitches). Urquidy's curve was the least used of his four pitches (11.9 percent) in 2020.

Cease is the scheduled starter for Monday's game against the Cubs, Daryl Van Schouwen of the Chicago Sun-Times reports.

Cease, who threw a live batting practice session on the team's off day Wednesday, will be making his Cactus League debut when he faces the White Sox's crosstown rivals. His spring activity has been limited to bullpen sessions and a three-inning simulated game in which he worked on fixing mechanical flaws in his delivery.

Cobb pitched three innings in Wednesday's Cactus League contest against Cleveland, allowing one run on two hits and one walk while striking out four.

According to Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com, Cobb's velocity hit 94 mph during the exhibition outing, a slight bump over his average velocity last season. That bodes well for the right-hander's attempt to bounce back after a trio of subpar campaigns. Cobb appears in line for the final spot in the Angels' six-man rotation, but his fantasy value is limited by an unexciting skillset that includes a lack of strikeouts.

Suarez is being stretched out as a starter during spring training and is also being looked at as a bullpen option, Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic reports.

Suarez has struck out seven batters over 3.1 innings thus far in Cactus League play, though he has also allowed five baserunners and two runs. The southpaw is a longshot for a rotation role to open the campaign, so he could start the season in the big-league bullpen or as a starter in the minors. Suarez hasn't had much success as a major-leaguer so far, posting a 7.99 ERA and 1.78 WHIP across 83.1 innings, primarily as a starter.