MLB Player News

Palmquist is a bit behind schedule after being hit on the shin by a line drive, Thomas Harding of MLB.com reports.

Palmquist is expected to be fine, but the issue has slightly delayed his ramp-up. The left-hander tossed a scoreless inning in his Cactus League debut last week. He is in the mix for a spot in the Rockies' rotation, but Palmquist's best shot to make the team might be as a long reliever.

Julien is dealing with lower-back tightness, Thomas Harding of MLB.com reports.

It's not clear when Julien was injured, but he last played Tuesday. Consider him day-to-day for the time being. The left-handed-hitting Julien is competing for reps against right-handed pitching and looks to be among the favorites for starts at first base.

Sasaki tossed 1.1 innings against Arizona in a Cactus League game Wednesday, allowing three runs on three hits and two walks while striking out three batters.

Sasaki made his first appearance this spring and struggled mightily at the outset, allowing three hits (including two doubles) and a walk to the first five batters he faced. That netted the Diamondbacks two runs, but Sasaki was at least able to escape further damage by striking out the final two batters he faced in the frame. The right-hander returned for the second frame and struck out another batter before issuing a free pass and being pulled. While this was far from an encouraging outing for Sasaki, the Japanese hurler stated after the game that his delivery "is coming along nicely" and emphasized that, "It was an exhibition game, so I threw the pitches I wanted to work on," per Dylan Hernandez of the New York Post. Indeed, of the 36 pitches Sasaki threw in the outing, 11 were cutters -- a pitch he's working on adding to his arsenal -- and four were sinkers (a pitch he threw just twice in regular-season action as a rookie). With that said, fantasy managers probably shouldn't read too much into this rough outing, and the expectation remains that Sasaki will open the campaign in Los Angeles' rotation. Ultimately, however, he'll need to display much better results -- especially in terms of control, as he tossed only 17 of those 36 pitches for strikes Wednesday -- to remain a starter all year.

Doyle underwent imaging on his left wrist after the injury forced him to be scratched from Wednesday's Cactus League game against the Cubs, Thomas Harding of MLB.com reports.

The Rockies had said previously that Doyle being scratched was precautionary, but him being sent for imaging suggests there's some level of concern. The results of the imaging are not in yet but might be available later Thursday. If Doyle is forced to miss time, the Rockies could shift Jake McCarthy over to center field.

Matsui (groin) is limited to flat-ground throwing and is questionable for Opening Day, Jeff Sanders of The San Diego Union-Tribune reports.

Matsui has been limited after tweaking his left groin last week. The reliever has already had to pull out of pitching for Team Japan in the World Baseball Classic and might not be ready for Opening Day, either. Matsui holds a 3.86 ERA and 130:60 K:BB over 126 regular-season innings in his two years with the Padres.

Fitts tossed two scoreless frames Wednesday against the Mets in his Grapefruit League debut.

Fitts surrendered a pair of singles, didn't walk anyone and notched one strikeout. Notably, the righty averaged 97.6 mph with his four-seamer and topped out at 98.6 mph. It's a big velocity jump after he averaged 95.9 mph with the heater in 2025, and it also reinforces that Fitts is healthy after he missed the final five weeks of the regular season with right arm neuritis. Fitts is competing for a spot in the Cardinals' rotation and certainly made a positive first impression.

Benge went 3-for-3 in the Mets' Grapefruit League game against the Cardinals on Wednesday.

The 23-year-old hit leadoff, and while all three of Benge's knocks were singles, they all came in two-strike counts as he saw a total of 19 pitches over the three plate appearances. Benge is being given a real chance to win the starting job in right field during camp, and performances like this can only help his case. He slashed .282/.389/.467 between High-A, Double-A and Triple-A in 2025 with a 13.5 percent walk rate and a 17.5 percent strikeout rate, adding 14 homers and 24 steals on 28 attempts in 116 games.

Mack went 1-for-3 with a grand slam in the Marlins' Grapefruit League game against the Phillies on Tuesday.

The fifth-inning blast came off minor-league pitcher Andrew Walling, but it was still a statement of intent from Mack that he's not interested in heading back to Triple-A Jacksonville to begin the season. The top catching prospect slashed .252/.323/.463 in 98 games last year with the Jumbo Shrimp, slugging 18 homers, and his defense looks ready for the majors already, although he was charged with a throwing error on a pickoff attempt Tuesday. Mack's biggest hurdle to a spot on the 26-man roster is the fact that Agustin Ramirez and Liam Hicks are ahead of him on the depth chart, but Ramirez still has a lot of work to do on defense to prove he's capable of sticking behind the plate long term. A rough start to 2026 with the glove for the 24-year-old could open the door for Mack to make his MLB debut early in the season.

Mahle (illness) will make his Cactus League debut Saturday against the Athletics, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

Mahle has been slowed early on in Giants camp by an illness, but he's been cleared for game action. The right-hander was limited to only 16 starts in 2025 with the Rangers because of shoulder issues, but he finished the season healthy before inking a one-year, $10 million contract with San Francisco over the winter.

Riley went 1-for-2 with a two-run home run in Atlanta's Grapefruit League game against the Pirates on Wednesday.

The third baseman took Jarod Bayless deep in the third inning, taking advantage of Paul Skenes' exit two batters prior. Riley was fully healthy for the first time in a while this offseason, and he's looking to rebound after a couple tough campaigns that saw him hit just 35 homers in 212 regular-season games with a .760 OPS -- a sharp decline for the 28-year-old after he belted 75 long balls with an .869 OPS in 2022-23 while missing only six games in total.