MLB Player News

Montas is expected to be ready to begin the 2021 season in the rotation, Matt Kawahara of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

Montas had been dealing with some mild residual breathing issues after he tested positive for COVID-19 in February, but he recently hit 98 mph during a sim game. Manager Bob Melvin said that the team "didn't see any ill effects" during his throwing session. Barring any setbacks, the right-hander should open the season in the rotation and could potentially serve as the team's Opening Day starter.

Kirby was invited to major-league spring training Wednesday.

Kirby spent the entire 2020 campaign at the Mariners' alternate training site, and he'll now join the team for developmental purposes as a non-roster invitee. The right-hander cleared intake testing Wednesday and will be immediately eligible to join the team for workouts. Kirby is slated to begin the year in the minors, but he'll have several weeks to work with the major-league coaching staff prior to Opening Day.

Eovaldi pitched a three-inning simulated game Tuesday, Pete Abraham of the Boston Globe reports. He allowed a run on two hits and a walk while striking out four.

Abraham believes Eovaldi was squeezed on one call, which could have turned one of the walks into a strikeout. Eovaldi had been scheduled to start Saturday, but he was pushed back due to personal reasons. This outing serves as his second spring start.

McCullers allowed two runs on two hits and two walks while striking out four over two innings in Tuesday's spring game against the Nationals.

In what was a rather odd outing for McCullers due to 2021 spring training rules. McCullers was pulled with two outs in the second inning, then came back out to start the third and was actually dinged with a blown save in a game he started. The right-hander reached the 50-pitch threshold he was shooting for and was able to introduce his changeup and cutter, Chandler Rome of Houston Chronicle reports. He also wanted to get up and down three times, so in that regard, mission accomplished for McCullers.

Kopech struck out one over a scoreless inning in Tuesday's spring game against San Diego.

Kopech made his first game appearance in nearly a year, as his last one came March 10, 2020. Seven of his nine pitches went for strikes, and his fastball clocked in between 97 and 99 mph, Scott Merkin of MLB.com reports. The flame-throwing prospect will pitch out of the bullpen to start the season, but he could eventually move into the rotation.

Lynn allowed two hits and four walks while striking out five over 2.2 scoreless innings in Tuesday's spring game against the Padres.

Lynn is on schedule in terms of pitch count, as he tossed 60 pitches, but only 30 of them landed for strikes. That's an obvious area that needs to be cleaned up, but Lynn was pleased overall, noting good velocity and how well his curveball played, Scott Merkin of MLB.com reports.

Kikuchi allowed an earned run on two hits and two walks across three innings in Monday's Cactus League loss to Cleveland, his second start of spring training.

Shannon Drayer of 710 ESPN Seattle reports Kikuchi needed a mound visit after a rocky start, but he subsequently settled down, inducing six straight groundouts at one point. Kikuchi's fastball velocity was also impressive for the second time in as many starts, consistently averaging between 95 and 96 mph and climbing as high as 97. "All my pitches feel great, and I was able to throw my splitter and was even able to throw one to a lefty, (Eddie) Rosario. It felt great," Kikuchi said. "One hung up there and ended up being a home run. Other than that, really good."

Paxton will pitch in a second simulated game Tuesday, which would normally be his day in the rotation, Daniel Kramer of MLB.com reports.

Paxton has yet to make his spring debut, but his delay in jumping into game action is unrelated to any health issue. Rather, the left-hander has been looking to refine some secondary pitches, and Kramer adds that the team is also opting to have him get his work in sim games for the moment "due to scheduling and logistics purposes."

Montas, who is still ramping up to his Cactus League debut after returning from COVID-19, is scheduled to pitch in a simulated game sometime this week, Martin Gallegos of MLB.com reports.

The right-hander was able to throw a bullpen session Saturday without setbacks, setting up the opportunity to face live hitters. Montas has reported some mild residual breathing issues from his recent illness, but he's considered to be very close to full health at this point.

Arihara allowed one run on two hits over three innings in Monday's spring game against the Cubs.

Arihara showed better control of his seven pitches in this outing than he did in his debut, when he gave up three runs and five hits. The downside Monday was the fielding behind him -- two first-inning errors by non-regulars (Charlie Culberson and Andy Ibanez) extended the inning and used up some of Arihara's pitch count. Per Kennedi Landry of MLB.com, Arihara typically pitches to contact, so he needs quality fielders behind him.