MLB Player News

Martin will pitch as a reliever during spring training, Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic reports. "He got after it [Thursday]," Arizona manager Torey Lovullo said. "He had extremely high velo, really good, sharp breaking balls."

Martin, who topped out at 97 mph Thursday, has been impressive early in camp, fueling hope the Diamondbacks can salvage something from the pitcher that was seen as the centerpiece of the Zack Greinke trade four years ago. When the right-hander was acquired along with three other players from Houston in 2019, Martin was a starter coming off Tommy John elbow surgery. Subsequent injuries delayed his Arizona debut until 2021. He has had middling results in both the minors and majors since then, but he's embracing the bullpen role, which may be the best thing for his career at this time.

Yankees manager Aaron Boone indicated over the weekend that Holmes may sometimes be used outside of save situations during the regular season, Andy Martino of SNY.tv reports. "There are going to be days where if it's [George] Springer, [Bo] Bichette and Vladdy [Vladimir Guerrero Jr.] coming up in the eighth inning in a big spot, that might be Clay," Boone explained.

Boone suggested that he plans to deploy Holmes in the highest leverage situations, which could come earlier than the ninth inning at times and may not always qualify the right-handed hurler for a save. Still, the manager hinted that he would continue to see plenty of chances to close, stating, "I would expect [Holmes] to close a lot of games for us. Probably most games, and hopefully a lot of games. But I do see a number of guys getting saves." Holmes didn't earn any saves in his first four big-league seasons, but he racked up 20 last year after taking over the ninth-inning role in the first half of the campaign. The reliever's stock is boosted by playing for a team projected to be among the best in the league, but Boone's comments and Holmes' late-season fade last year may provide enough risk to keep him outside of the top 10 closers in fantasy drafts.

Alexander is expected to primarily work in relief this season, Cody Stavenhagen of The Athletic reports.

Alexander made 17 starts and 10 relief appearances in 2022, but he's likely to be much more of a bullpen option this year with Matthew Boyd and Spencer Turnbull back in the starting mix coming off injuries. Newcomer Michael Lorenzen also figures to slot into the rotation, along with Eduardo Rodriguez and Matt Manning. Alexander is a valuable lefty swingman for the Tigers, though his fantasy value will be limited in a relief role. He's always an option to start if a need arises, however.

Kilian said he is working to correct a mechanical flaw this spring, which he hopes will allow him to post better results in 2023, Sahadev Sharmam of The Athletic reports.

Kilian made his MLB debut in 2022 and struggled mightily, posting a 10.32 ERA and 2.03 WHIP across three starts. It's not a huge sample size, and the 25-year-old still has decent prospect upside, so he could certainly turn a corner this year. The Cubs seemingly have a full rotation entering camp, so Kilian will likely have to compete for a bullpen role or begin the year with Triple-A Iowa.

Silseth could win a spot in the Angels' rotation this spring, but he is more likely to start the season in the minors, Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com reports.

The Angels seemingly have five of six rotation spots accounted for, with Jaime Barria, Tucker Davidson, Griffin Canning, Chris Rodriguez and Silseth competing for the sixth spot. Silseth has a higher long-term ceiling than most of his competitors, but is also the least experienced of the bunch, so it would make sense for him to open the year in the minors. The 22-year-old righty logged a 2.28 ERA, 0.95 WHIP and a 34.4 percent strikeout rate in 15 starts at Double-A last year. He has never pitched at the Triple-A level, but he gave up 21 earned runs with 24 strikeouts in 28.2 frames in the majors last year.

Jameson will start on the mound for Arizona in Saturday's split-squad game against Oakland, Theo Mackie of The Arizona Republic reports.

Jameson turned a few heads in his brief major-league stint last season, posting a 1.48 ERA and 1.11 WHIP through 24.1 frames in four starts. He's one of the primary candidates for the fifth spot in Arizona's rotation alongside Ryne Nelson, who will start in the D-backs' other split-squad matchup Saturday against Colorado.

Mariners manager Scott Servais noted Thursday that Munoz is ahead of schedule in his recovery from October bone-fusion surgery in his right foot, Shannon Drayer of MyNorthwest.com reports.

"I am very happy with what I've seen there, and he feels good about where he's at," said Servais. Munoz is not yet on the pitching schedule for Cactus League games, but he's already thrown a number of bullpen sessions without issue since he reported to Mariners camp. The expectation is that the high-leverage reliever will be 100 percent in time for Opening Day.

Pearson "looks really comfortable in his own skin right now" and "his stuff is outstanding," Blue Jays pitching coach Pete Walker told Keegan Matheson of MLB.com on Thursday.

Pearson's career has been sidetracked by injury, most recently with his 2022 season being wiped out by mononucleosis and a lat strain. He's healthy now, though, and while his days of starting might be over, he has the potential to be a lockdown reliever for the Jays.

Beck will start the Giants' Cactus League opener Saturday against the Cubs, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

Sam Long will follow him and is expected to work two frames. Beck, 26, posted an underwhelming 5.25 ERA in 111.1 innings last season between Double-A Richmond and Triple-A Sacramento. He has yet to make his MLB debut and will enter the 2023 campaign as emergency depth for San Francisco.

Gallegos is working on adjusting to MLB's new pitch timer, John Denton of MLB.com reports.

Gallegos had one of the slowest paces in all of baseball in 2022, but the new rules for the 2023 season will force him to adjust. "It's hard for me. It's a new experience and a big challenge for me," Gallegos said. "I am trying to make some adjustments about the timing, but it's a big change." The 31-year-old reliever has often worked in a high-leverage role for the Cardinals, and he figures to fill a similar spot in the bullpen this year, as long as the pace-of-play changes don't have negative impact on his effectiveness. Ryan Helsley still figures to see the majority of the save chances.