MLB Player News
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Janson Junk RP | MIA
Marlins' Janson Junk: Clean inning in spring debut
Junk (ankle) struck out two batters and allowed one hit and no walks over a scoreless inning of relief in Saturday's 5-4 loss to the Astros in Grapefruit League play.
Junk went down with a Grade 1 right ankle sprain early in camp, but after advancing through his throwing program over the last few weeks, he was finally cleared to make his spring debut Saturday. The 30-year-old right-hander made 16 of his 21 appearances with the Marlins last season as a starter, but the ankle issue may have cost him whatever small chance he had at a spot in Miami's Opening Day rotation. Junk should still be in good shape to break camp with the big club as a long man out of the bullpen.
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Brandon Waddell RP | NYM
Mets' Brandon Waddell: Battling shoulder issue
Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said that Waddell is dealing with shoulder discomfort and won't pitch in Monday's Grapefruit League game against the Marlins as planned, Laura Albanese of Newsday reports.
The severity of the shoulder issue isn't fully known, but Waddell will likely be shut down for at least a few days. The southpaw resurfaced in the majors last season for the first time since 2021, appearing in 11 games and posting a 3.45 ERA, 1.28 WHIP and 22:11 K:BB over 31.1 innings with the Mets. Waddell no longer occupies a spot on the 40-man roster and is expected to open the season as a swingman at Triple-A Syracuse.
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Joshua White RP | MIA
Marlins' Josh White: Dispatched to Triple-A
The Marlins optioned White to Triple-A Jacksonville on Sunday.
While he wasn't able to secure a spot on the Marlins' Opening Day roster, White could be a candidate to pitch in high-leverage spots out of the big-league bullpen at some point later this season if he can continue to carry over his success from 2025. Between stops with Jacksonville and Double-A Pensacola last season, the 25-year-old righty was one of the more dominant relief arms in the upper minors thanks to a deceptive high arm slot, finishing with a collective 1.86 ERA, 0.92 WHIP and 107:23 K:BB in 67.2 innings.
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Chris Paddack RP | MIA
Marlins' Chris Paddack: Looking good this spring
Paddack gave up two hits over three scoreless innings in Saturday's Grapefruit League game against the Astros. He struck out two without walking a batter.
The 30-year-old right-hander built up to 40 pitches (27 strikes) against a patchwork lineup headlined by Christian Walker and Isaac Paredes. Paddack's fastball topped out at 95.8 mph, and through six spring innings he has yet to allow a run while posting a 6:1 K:BB. Given his injury-plagued career and 5.22 ERA over 246.1 innings the last two seasons between the Twins and Tigers, however, simply taking a regular turn for the Marlins in 2026 would be an accomplishment.
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Grant Holmes RP | ATL
Braves' Grant Holmes: Struggles with control Saturday
Holmes gave up two hits and three walks over 2.2 scoreless innings in Saturday's Grapefruit League game against the Orioles. He struck out three.
Facing a mostly young split-squad Baltimore lineup that included Samuel Basallo and Dylan Beavers, Holmes built up to 58 pitches, but only 31 of them were strikes. The 29-year-old right-hander sports a 7:5 K:BB through 7.1 spring innings, and while he hasn't given up a run yet, Holmes' inability to find the strike zone consistently is a little worrying for an Atlanta rotation that can't afford any more attrition with Spencer Schwellenbach (elbow), Hurston Waldrep (elbow) and AJ Smith-Shawver (elbow) all set to miss significant time.
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Paolo Espino RP | TOR
Paolo Espino: Retiring from baseball
Espino announced Saturday that he will retire from professional baseball after the World Baseball Classic, Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.ca reports.
Espino spent parts of six seasons in the majors and will end his MLB career with a 5.12 ERA and 1.38 WHIP over 265.2 innings.
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Orion Kerkering RP | PHI
Phillies' Orion Kerkering: Tosses bullpen session Saturday
Kerkering (hamstring) threw a bullpen session Saturday, Charlotte Varnes of The Athletic reports.
The right-hander completed his third side session since having his throwing program delayed by a Grade 1 hamstring strain at the start of camp, per MLB.com. Kerkering, who's expected to be one of Philadelphia's primary setup men for closer Jhoan Duran, still has plenty of time to build up in advance of Opening Day.
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Nick Sandlin RP | LAA
Angels' Nick Sandlin: Faces hitters Saturday
Sandlin (elbow) threw a live batting practice session Saturday, Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com reports.
It's the first time Sandlin has faced live batters this spring, as he continues to work his way back from an arthroscopic elbow procedure he underwent in the fall. It's still unclear how far away he is from making his debut in the Cactus League, but he's likely to grab a spot in the Angels' bullpen once he's fully healthy.
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Drew Anderson RP | DET
Tigers' Drew Anderson: Effective in early going
Through three Grapefruit League appearances covering 8.1 innings, Anderson has yet to allow a run while striking out 10 batters.
Anderson logged 3.1 scoreless innings in Friday's contest against the Red Sox while striking out four. The 31-year-old righty most recently pitched in the Korea Baseball Organization, and he was able to parlay some success across two seasons as a starter into an MLB contract with the Tigers heading into 2026. Anderson figures to slot into Detroit's bullpen, potentially as a long reliever if Friday's extended usage is any indication of his role.
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Rafael Montero RP | NYY
Yankees' Rafael Montero: Still not in camp
Montero continues to have visa issues and hasn't yet arrived at Yankees camp, Bryan Hoch of MLB.com reports.
Montero has been unable to join New York to this point while he works to resolve the visa issues. The veteran reliever had been slated to use the exhibition season to try to win a spot in the Yankees' bullpen, but given how much time he's already missed, it's becoming increasingly unlikely that Montero will break camp with the big-league club.