MLB Player News

Milone signed a minor-league contract with the Blue Jays on Thursday that includes an invite to spring training.

Milone made nine starts with Baltimore and Atlanta last season but struggled with a 6.69 ERA and 1.56 WHIP over 39 innings. He missed the final several weeks of the regular season due to left elbow inflammation and was let go by Atlanta at the end of September. Assuming he's fully healthy this spring, Milone should compete for a major-league roster spot with his new club.

Cortes (elbow) tossed a live batting practice session Thursday, Bryan Hoch of MLB.com reports.

Cortes' ability to face hitters this early in camp suggests the left elbow impingement that sidelined him for the final month and a half of the 2020 season is no longer a concern. A non-roster invitee, Cortes will be fighting for a spot in the Yankees' Opening Day bullpen.

Montas was cleared to join his teammates Thursday following a brief stay on the COVID-19 injured list, Martin Gallegos of MLB.com reports.

Montas tested positive for the virus prior to camp and missed the first few workouts. With Opening Day still over a month away, he should still have enough time to get up to full speed by the start of the season.

Glasnow was impressive during his first time facing hitters this spring Wednesday, Adam Berry of MLB.com reports.

Glasnow threw 29 pitches overall to Ji-Man Choi, Joey Wendle, Yandy Diaz, Austin Meadows, Manuel Margot and Willy Adames, taking a simulated inning break after the first three batters. Glasnow came away particularly pleased with his comfort level and grip when deploying the new cutter/slider he's been working on, and he's looking forward to continuing to tweak it as spring training progresses. Meanwhile, manager Kevin Cash also noted how good the big right-hander's tempo and velocity were during the session, emphasizing Glasnow looked as good as he had during the postseason.

Medina has a chance to be called up at some point during the coming campaign, Max Goodman of Sports Illustrated reports.

Medina is only 21 years old and has yet to pitch beyond the High-A level, but the organization is clearly optimistic about his outlook as a big-leaguer. "He's somebody we're very excited about...you never know what can happen. He's somebody that we feel has a bright future and a major-league future," manager Aaron Boone stated Tuesday. Though the young right-hander's upside and strikeout potential are certainly enticing, Medina will need to show vast improvement with his command and control before he's likely to find success in the majors.

Skubal said he is working to add a splitter to his pitch arsenal in spring training, Jason Beck of MLB.com reports.

Skubal said he's modeling his new pitch after fellow young pitcher Casey Mize. "If I could take Casey's splitter -- that's a pitch that I'm learning -- so if I could take Casey's splitter and just add it right to my arsenal, I would really like that," Skubal said. The 24-year-old lefty threw a fastball 58.9 percent of the time last season and mixed in a changeup, but the splitter could become his new out pitch if it develops. Skubal is vying for a rotation spot out of spring training and is one of several promising pitching prospects within the Detroit organization.

Taillon (elbow) tossed a live batting practice session Wednesday, Bryan Hoch of MLB.com reports.

Taillon's ability to face hitters this early in spring training would seem to suggest that the Yankees are confident that he's made a full recovery from the May 2019 Tommy John surgery that sidelined him for the entire 2020 campaign, his final season in Pittsburgh. After surrendering a quartet of prospects to acquire him in January, the Yankees are counting on a healthy Taillon to re-emerge as a reliable No. 2 or 3 starter behind his former Pirates rotation mate, staff ace Gerrit Cole. Expect the Yankees to use Taillon judiciously in games during the Grapefruit League slate, but he should be ready to handle a 75-to-100-pitch workload in starts by the beginning of the regular season in April.

Whitley cleared COVID-19 intake testing and joined the Astros for workouts Wednesday, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.

Whitley missed just under a week of camp, so he shouldn't be too far behind the rest of the Houston pitching staff in the ramp-up process for the start of the season. The 23-year-old is still waiting for his first big-league call-up, as he missed out on a potential promotion last summer while battling an arm injury. He's back to full health for the start of spring training, but Whitley will likely have to impress at Triple-A Sugar Land to begin the season before Houston gives him a trial in the big-league rotation.

Whitley's arrival to camp is delayed due to COVID-19 intake procedures, Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle reports.

Players underwent a PCR and antibody test upon reporting for spring training and is now required to observe a five-day quarantine period. It was previously unclear what had caused Whitley's delayed arrival, and given this news, it's now expected the 23-year-old will be available within a matter of days.

Luzardo made a strong impression during his first time facing live hitters Tuesday, Martin Gallegos of MLB.com reports.

The young left-hander has been looking forward to demonstrating some offseason improvements he made to his breaking ball, but Luzardo went to his tried-and-true heater on his first pitch to a hitter this spring and clocked 98 mph on the radar gun. Gallegos reports Luzardo went on to generate several swings and misses during what was a 30-pitch outing, prompting manager Bob Melvin to marvel at how good the 23-year-old looked right from the jump.