MLB Player News

Manning allowed three runs on three hits and four walks across 1.1 innings in Saturday's Grapefruit League game against the Phillies.

Manning followed starter Kenta Maeda, who tossed two scoreless innings, with a rough relief appearance to begin his spring schedule. Of particular concern is the four walks, as the righty struggled with command last season in the majors, posting a career-worst 3.9 BB/9 across 27.2 regular-season innings. The 27-year-old is vying for a roster spot during spring training, but continued struggles could relegate Manning to Triple-A Toledo, which is where he spent most of 2024.

Mahle allowed two runs on four hits and struck out two over two innings in Saturday's spring start against the the Giants.

Mahle gave up some loud contact during his Cactus League debut, including a two-run home run to former Ranger Sam Huff. After a couple of seasons marred by Tommy John elbow surgery and a shoulder injury, Mahle is expected to win a job in the Rangers' rotation.

Maeda tossed two scoreless innings in Saturday's Grapefruit League game against the Phillies. He didn't allow a hit or a walk and struck out four.

Making his first spring training appearance, Maeda looked comfortable in a starting role, as he breezed through the first two innings of the game. The veteran righty has displayed increased velocity in camp, and that translated into four strikeouts among the six batters he retired. Maeda struggled mightily in 2024, posting a career-worst 6.09 ERA across 112.1 regular-season innings, but a bounceback campaign is possible in 2025. With Alex Cobb (hip) unlikely to be ready for the start of the season, Maeda may have a path to some starts in the early going.

Bello (shoulder) has extended his throwing program to 90 feet and will undergo a strength test Sunday, Christopher Smith of MassLive.com reports.

The right-hander was shut down briefly at the start of camp due to shoulder soreness, and he's still building up his arm strength before progressing to bullpen sessions. Bello's availability for the beginning of the regular season remains up in the air, and he may need to return to mound work soon to avoid a delayed start to the campaign.

McKenzie allowed one run on one hit and struck out one over two innings in Saturday's spring game against the Reds.

McKenzie is looking to turn the page on a disappointing 2024, when he finished the season at Triple-A Columbus. He mainly used his four-seamer, which was noticeably faster than the 91.1 mph it averaged last season, and gave up a lot of hard contact, including a first-inning home run to Elly De La Cruz. It was an efficient outing for the right-hander, who got several quick outs during his first Cactus League outing.

Matthews threw two scoreless innings with two strikeouts and no walks in his first outing of the spring Saturday. He reached 97.4 mph with his fastball and also displayed a refined changeup which he worked to improve in the offseason, the St. Paul Pioneer Press reports.

Matthews was a fast-rising prospect last season who rose from High-A to the majors based on his impeccable control and strong strikeout rates but struggled in his first trip to the majors (6.69 ERA). He has an outside shot this spring to win the fifth starter role, but it's more likely he begins the season in Triple-A. He could still have a significant impact in the majors this season with his minuscule walk rate (1.0 BB/9 career in minors), strong strikeout rate (10.2 K/9 career in minors) and velocity.

Bello (shoulder) isn't yet throwing bullpens and isn't likely to be ready to pitch in games for at least a week, Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com reports.

Bello was recently shut down due to shoulder soreness, and though he's since been able to resume throwing, he hasn't yet tossed a bullpen session. Manager Alex Cora hasn't ruled Bello out from being ready for Opening Day, instead saying, "We'll see how it goes next week" in reference to the hurler's outlook moving forward. The Red Sox are already experiencing rotation issues, as Kutter Crawford's Opening Day status is in doubt due to a knee injury and Lucas Giolito began camp a few days behind other pitchers as he builds up following the internal brace procedure he underwent last March.

Manager Alex Cora said Saturday that Crawford (knee) isn't certain to be ready to pitch by Opening Day, Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com reports.

Crawford has been experiencing patellar tendon soreness and is consequently behind schedule, though he did throw a bullpen session Friday. Despite that mound session, it's unclear if the right-hander will be fully ramped up by the time the regular season starts. Per Cotillo, Cora said of Crawford, "With Kutter, that's the one it looks like is going to be long. Opening Day, right now, is an 'if.' Let's see what happens." The Red Sox are already dealing with rotation issues, as Brayan Bello is also behind schedule due to a shoulder injury.

Cobb (hip) played catch Friday, Chris McCosky of The Detroit News reports.

Friday marked Cobb's first time throwing since he was shut down earlier this month due to hip inflammation. He is still expected to miss roughly the first month of the regular season, but he said Saturday that his hip feels much better, which is a positive sign.

Eovaldi allowed two runs on two hits and one walk while striking out one over two innings in Friday's spring opener against the Royals. He also hit a batter.

Eovaldi used his entire repertoire over the two innings, and he broke out a new two-seamer, although it was not identified as such in the Statcast box score. "I've been working on that two-seam runner," he told Kennedi Landry of MLB.com. "It wasn't as great today. In the offseason, the TrackMan results were awesome." The right-hander said he felt like he was rushing all his pitches down the mound and plans to work on slowing down his mechanics in subsequent outings.