MLB Player News

Lamet (elbow) said Friday that he felt 100 percent, Dennis Lin of The Athletic reports.

Lamet is no stranger to elbow injuries, having undergone Tommy John surgery back in 2018. He narrowly avoided a second such procedure at the end of last season, as doctors told him he was shut down just in time to avoid serious damage. He underwent platelet-rich plasma therapy instead and said that he felt back to normal after just a few weeks of rest. While his confidence is certainly a good sign heading into the upcoming season, players tend to be rather optimistic about their own health, so it's not nearly enough to conclude that he's completely out of the woods with regard to his elbow issues.

Loaisiga will serve as a "utility reliever" this season, appearing as an opener, a single-inning arm or in long relief as needed, Lindsey Adler of The Athletic reports.

Perhaps most notably, starting games was not listed among the righty's duties for the upcoming season. He did technically start in three of his 12 appearances last season but didn't face more than 12 batters or record more than nine outs in any of them. Over his three big-league seasons, he's been the first pitcher on the mound in 11 of his 36 outings but has reached five innings just twice, both of which came back in 2018.

Hernandez has been working on his changeup in hopes of pitching deeper into games this season, Christina De Nicola of MLB.com reports.

On a per-inning basis Hernandez was excellent last season, backing up his 3.16 ERA with a 1.01 WHIP, 32.1 percent strikeout rate and 4.7 percent walk rate. The main negative from his statline is that he averaged just 4.3 innings per start. The 25-year-old was almost never asked to go a third time through the order, facing just seven batters for a third time and allowing four earned runs while recording just two outs when he did. Hernandez almost exclusively used his fastball and slider last year, throwing his changeup just 5.7 percent of the time, so if the pitch truly has improved it could certainly help him reach the next level.

Pardinho has no restrictions to begin spring training following Tommy John surgery, Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet.ca reports.

Pardinho underwent the procedure back in February of last year and missed the entire 2020 season while rehabbing. He may not be fully ready for game action until a month or two into the season, but it appears as though he's set for a fairly normal spring buildup. When he does eventually see game action, it won't come anywhere near the big-league level, as he's yet to pitch above Low-A.

Ferguson (elbow) was placed on the 60-day injured list Friday, Eric Stephen of SBNation.com reports.

Ferguson underwent Tommy John surgery in September and isn't expected to pitch in 2021, so it was only a matter of time before he was placed on the 60-day IL. Justin Turner was added to the 40-man roster in a corresponding move.

Gibaut cleared waivers Friday and will remain in Twins camp as a non-roster invitee.

Gibaut was removed from the 40-man roster to make room for new signing Matt Shoemaker. It's not particularly surprising that he went unclaimed, as he owns a 6.08 ERA and a 15.4 percent walk rate in 26.2 career innings at the major-league level.

General manager Ross Atkins said Friday that Thornton (elbow) is beginning spring training with no restrictions, Mike Wilner of the Toronto Star reports.

The 27-year-old was able to avoid Tommy John surgery and instead had loose bodies removed from his right elbow at the start of September, but he's ready to go for the start of spring workouts. Thornton struggled before being shut down in 2020 with seven runs and 15 hits allowed over 5.2 innings, and he faces long odds of cracking the Blue Jays' starting rotation to open 2021.

General manager Ross Atkins said Friday that Romano (finger) is beginning spring training with no restrictions, Mike Wilner of the Toronto Star reports.

The 27-year-old missed the entirety of September and was left off the roster for the AL Wild Card Series due to a sprained finger, but he's a full go for the start of spring training. Romano had a 1.23 ERA, 0.89 WHIP and 21:5 K:BB over 14.2 innings during 2020 before the injury, and he's expected to open 2021 as the setup man for closer Kirby Yates (elbow).

Manager Kevin Cash said Honeywell (elbow) looked good in a short bullpen session Friday, Neil Solondz of the Rays Radio Network reports.

The 25-year-old underwent a minor elbow procedure in mid-December, but he may be ready for the start of spring games Feb. 27 given he's already throwing bullpen sessions. Honeywell was once one of Tampa Bay's top prospects, but he hasn't pitched in a game since September 2017 and has undergone four surgeries in that span.

Giles (elbow) will not pitch this season under any circumstances, Ryan Divish of The Seattle Times reports.

Giles underwent Tommy John surgery at the end of September last year. If he winds up on the short end of the recovery timeline, he'd have had at least an outside chance of making an appearance or two very late in the year, especially if the Mariners managed to make the playoffs. The team ruled that out Friday however, with manager Scott Servais saying, "We will not let that happen."