MLB Player News

Duffey threw his first live batting practice of summer camp on Friday, MLB.com reports.

Twins manager Rocco Baldelli said Thursday that Duffey is slightly behind other pitchers in his build-up to the season, so this is a positive sign. However, his progress is worth monitoring because Duffey may be eased into the start of the regular season.

Cordero threw two scoreless innings as a starter in Friday's intrasquad game, Scott Merkin of MLB.com reports.

Cordero, who will be a reliever during the regular season, pitched well out of the bullpen for the White Sox in 2019 after spending time with three organizations before joining Chicago. "Jimmy has plus-plus stuff," White Sox bench coach Joe McEwing said. "The biggest thing with Jimmy is controlling the strike zone." Cordero is expected to fill a middle relief role this season.

Tate suffered an apparent right forearm injury during Friday's intrasquad game when he was hit by a line drive, Nathan Ruiz of The Baltimore Sun reports.

Tate took a line drive to the right arm while pitching Friday and immediately received medical attention. The exact nature and severity of the injury are unclear, but the Orioles ended the game after the injury occurred.

Hall will join the Orioles' player pool, Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com reports.

Hall's presence in the pool is unlikely to be more than attempt to get him the best coaching possible this season. He's an interesting prospect, but he shouldn't be expected to play a role in the majors this season, as he's yet to reach Double-A.

Blach experienced some elbow soreness Thursday, Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com reports.

Blach is getting his elbow checked out Friday, which should determine the extent of the issue. The veteran lefty is part of the Orioles' 60-man player pool, but he's not on the 40-man roster, so he's not necessarily lined up to play a significant role this season.

Graveman faced live hitters for the first time in summer camp Thursday, throwing batting practice to Daniel Vogelbach and Tim Lopes, Greg Johns of MLB.com reports.

The veteran right-hander worked up to 40 pitches, taking a break after the first 20 in order to simulate a two-inning game. Johns separately reports Graveman encouragingly was able to consistently hit between 94 mph and 96 mph with his fastball during the session. The 29-year-old is looking to rebuild his arm strength after the three-month-plus layoff, but he noted Thursday he is at full health after missing most of the last two seasons following Tommy John surgery and looking forward to finally getting back into regular game action. "I'm very excited," said the former A's Opening Day starter. "I can't hide it. I love this game and have a passion for this game. I'm ready to pitch. I feel like I'm a big league pitcher and can get guys out and help a team win. It's been driving me nuts to not be able to play the last two years, so I'm ready to get out and compete."

Fairbanks, who pitched in a simulated game during Thursday's summer camp session, made a strong impression on manager Kevin Cash by striking out three of the four hitters he faced, Juan Toribio of MLB.com reports. "This has a chance to be a pretty big season for Pete," Cash said. "To just continue to establish just how talented he is."

The young right-hander faced the foursome of Kevin Kiermaier, Hunter Renfroe, Nate Lowe and Chris Herrmann, striking out the latter three after allowing Kiermaier an infield single. Fairbanks' impressive four-seam fastball was on display, as well as a new changeup he's developed and what Kiermaier described as a "nasty" slider. Fairbanks already has two Tommy John surgeries on his medical chart, but he's back to throwing in the high 90s and offered some reason for optimism last season after arriving in Tampa following a trade with the Rangers. While the 26-year-old finished with a 5.11 ERA in his 13 appearances with the Rays, that bloated figure was accompanied by an impressive 2.89 FIP that implied Fairbanks ran into some tough luck.

Loup was one of four pitchers to participate in a simulated game at summer camp Thursday, Juan Toribio of MLB.com reports.

The veteran southpaw is thought to have a firm grip on an Opening Day roster spot after posting a 1.93 ERA and 0.43 WHIP over four Grapefruit League appearances. Loup threw 20 pitches overall during his one inning Thursday, getting 12 into the strike zone and recording a strikeout while facing the quartet of Manuel Margot, Yoshi Tsutsugo, Kevan Smith and Mike Brosseau.

Duffey has not thrown in live batting practice or a scrimmage in summer camp as he's slightly behind other pitchers in his build-up to the season. MLB.com reports. "Duff, just due to every guy being in a different spot, probably just going to be a hair behind as we build him up," manager Rocco Baldelli said. "We're just building him up right now before we get him out there facing hitters."

It's not clear if Duffey is dealing with an injury or just behind on his conditioning. Either way, it doesn't look like a major concern. However, Duffey was thought to have sneaky fantasy value early in the season if starting pitchers are not going to be able to go far into games, as he could get significant innings and opportunities as a result. If Duffey is eased into the start of the season, he may not be able to capitalize on those potential early relief innings.

The Rays are specifically not naming Anderson (or anyone else) the closer, John Romano of The Tampa Bay Times reports. "We've tried to stay away from naming specific roles because we think it's a benefit to our club to be able to be versatile and prioritize matchups," manager Kevin Cash said. "But there's no way you can doubt the value of how challenging getting the last three outs of the game is."

The Rays had 11 pitchers record saves last year, but Anderson wasn't one of them. Yet following the Emilio Pagan trade, he's the favorite to inherit at least the majority part of the role, but given the Rays' approach to the role, perhaps a little caution is advised, despite his excellent skills.