Velasquez tossed two scoreless innings in his spring debut Wednesday. He allowed one hit, struck out one and did not walk a batter.
Velasquez is working on improving his curveball this spring, according to Todd Zolecki of MLB.com. The pitch wasn't very useful last season as batters hit .297 with a .591 slugging percentage against it. Velasquez has the potential to be a top-of-the-rotation pitcher, but he needs to make some strides with his overall command this season so he can pitch deeper into games. He topped six innings in a game just three times in 24 starts last year.