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Matzek (elbow) feels healthy to begin the spring and is aiming to be ready for Opening Day, but an IL stint to begin the season hasn't been ruled out, Justin Toscano of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.

Atlanta has the bullpen depth to take things slowly with Matzek as he completes his recovery from Tommy John surgery, so he might end up needing a brief IL stint to allow him to finish ramping up. The 33-year-old southpaw didn't pitch at all in 2023, and his numbers declined in 2022 prior to undergoing surgery that October, but the team is hoping Matzek can return to the form that saw him post a 2.64 ERA, 1.20 WHIP and 120:47 K:BB over 92 innings in 2020-21.

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