MLB Player News

Yankees manager Aaron Boone said Saturday that Severino is already in "elite shape" at the start of camp, James O'Connell of the New York Daily News reports.

Severino's health remains a big question mark for the Yankees, as the right-hander has pitched in only 26 games since 2018. He was excellent in the 19 regular-season starts he made last season, posting a 3.18 ERA, 1.00 WHIP and 112:30 K:BB over 102 innings, but a lat injury cost him two months of the campaign. However, he's now further removed from his 2020 Tommy John surgery and should be able to pitch with few (if any) restrictions this season, assuming he stays healthy. Fantasy managers can't ignore Severino's lengthy injury history when deciding where to draft him, but given his electric arsenal and past successes, it's certainly feasible for him to rank as a top-15 starting pitcher by season's end.

Glasnow missed his scheduled bullpen session Saturday due to a stomach illness, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

Glasnow's health is worth watching this spring, but a brief stomach bug isn't likely to be the sort of thing which makes a significant impact. Other than the illness, Glasnow enters camp healthy, having returned from Tommy John surgery late last season to throw 11.2 innings, including five in the playoffs. He struck out 15 batters while allowing just six hits and one run, indicating that he remains as good as ever on a per-inning basis. Exactly how many innings he'll throw remains a mystery, however, as he's only once reached triple digits in that category and has never made more than 14 starts in a major-league season.

DeGrom (side) won't throw a bullpen session Sunday but will play catch and go through fielding drills, Kennedi Landry of MLB.com reports.

DeGrom is dealing with some side tightness early in camp, and while the issue is a very common one for pitchers to experience at this stage of spring, it's brought extra scrutiny given deGrom's talent level and lengthy recent injury history. The Rangers have suggested he would be able to pitch through the problem in the regular season, but there's no reason to push things with Opening Day still nearly six weeks away. DeGrom will take part in some activities Sunday with an eye towards potentially throwing a bullpen session Monday or Tuesday.

McCullers (forearm) has been temporarily shut down from throwing, Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle reports.

Arm troubles limited McCullers to just eight starts last season, and while he doesn't seem to have a specific diagnosis beyond being "a little sore" at the moment, the fact that he's been shut down isn't encouraging. There's still plenty of time for this to turn out to be nothing more than a minor blip in McCullers' preparation for Opening Day, but he doesn't have the health track record to support a particularly optimistic outlook.

Whitlock (hip) threw a bullpen session Friday, Jen McCaffrey of The Athletic reports.

Whitlock's versatility has been helpful to Boston that last two seasons, but he's expected to be a full-time starter in 2023. The Red Sox's rotation features several pitchers returning from injury. Depending on how conservative the team is with him, James Paxton (lat) and Chris Sale (wrist), there could be a piggybacking situation at the outset of the season. As a starter in 2022, Whitlock had a 4.15 ERA over 39 innings.

Paxton (lat) threw a bullpen session Thursday, Jen McCaffrey of The Athletic reports.

Paxton threw eight bullpens over the winter and is working through a normal spring training for the first time since 2019. After the Red Sox turned down a two-year, $26 million club option this winter, the left-hander exercised a player option worth $4 million to stay in Boston. He likely could have made more in free agency, but Paxton is comfortable with the training staff and environment in Boston, which is half the battle for pitchers coming back from injury. The 34-year-old will occupy a spot in the rotation.

Kluber threw 31 pitches in a bullpen session Friday, Jen McCaffrey of The Athletic reports.

Kluber is coming off a fully healthy season, his first since 2018. In 31 starts for the Rays, the right-hander posted a 4.34 ERA and showed hints of an effective pitcher that previously earned a Cy Young Award. The 36-year-old is looking to build off last season and will slot in the middle of Boston's rotation.

Cortes (hamstring) felt no issues during his bullpen session Friday, Marly Rivera of ESPN.com reports.

The southpaw mentioned to Rivera after his workout that he has made "good strides and felt better," and that he was progressing faster than he initially thought. Bryan Hoch of MLB.com reports that Cortes tossed 24 pitches in the session and was operating at "70-75 percent" capacity after being diagnosed with a Grade 2 hamstring strain that caused him to pull out of the World Baseball Classic. Fantasy managers will want to see how Cortes feels in the coming days, but for now, this appears to be a very positive development.

Mize was placed on the 60-day injured list by the Tigers on Friday as he recovers from right elbow and back surgeries.

The Tigers needed to free up a spot on the 40-man roster for waiver claim Tyler Holton. Mize had Tommy John surgery last June and also underwent back surgery around the same time. He's begun a throwing program but is expected to miss most, if not all, of the 2023 season.

Martin said Friday that the right biceps soreness which forced him from his final start of last season was a non-issue this offseason, James Fegan of The Athletic reports.

Martin took a couple weeks off from throwing after the season and then went through his normal offseason training. The right-hander said his goal is to throw 170-180 innings this season, and the White Sox might need him to with Mike Clevinger's status up in the air due to an ongoing MLB investigation into domestic violence allegations.