MLB Player News

Maier struck out five over four innings and allowed two earned runs on five hits and one walk Saturday in Single-A Augusta's 5-4 win over Columbia in 10 innings.

Selected in the seventh round of the 2022 First-Year Player Draft, Maier didn't take the hill for an affiliate that year or in 2023 while he recovered from an internal brace surgery to stabilize the right ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow. After the 22-year-old right-hander entered spring training without any restrictions, he was cleared to make his long-awaited professional debut this past weekend. He spotted 41 of his 60 pitches for strikes in the outing.

Pivetta was placed on the 15-day injured list by the Red Sox on Tuesday with a right elbow flexor strain, Gabrielle Starr of the Boston Herald reports.

Pivetta has been an early-season bright spot for the Red Sox, allowing just one run with a 13:1 K:BB over 11 innings covering his first two starts. After sustaining the injury coming out of his most recent start last Wednesday, however, Pivetta will be on the shelf for a least a couple weeks and potentially much longer, given the nature of the injury. It's not clear yet who might fill Pivetta's spot in the rotation, but Cooper Criswell, Chase Anderson and Josh Winckowski look to be the top candidates.

Triple-A Gwinnett placed Anderson on its 60-day injured list March 28.

Anderson remains on Atlanta's 40-man roster, but because he was optioned to Triple-A in March, he'll begin the season on Gwinnet's 60-day IL rather than the big club's. The right-hander isn't expected to be ready to pitch in games until the second half of the season while he completes his recovery from April 2023 Tommy John surgery.

Lara has been held back in extended spring training to begin the minor-league season as he recovers from an oblique strain, Mark Bowman of MLB.com reports.

Lara is one of the few high-upside prospects left in Atlanta's farm system, but he'll have to wait a few weeks before he makes his season debut. The 6-foot-3 righty only logged 9.1 innings at High-A Rome last season after pitching 72 innings at Single-A Augusta, so he'll presumably head back to Rome once he's fully healthy.

Gipson-Long (groin) is being evaluated for right forearm tightness, Evan Woodbery of MLive.com reports.

Gipson-Long looked to be almost done with his rehab assignment while working his way back from a groin strain, but he now has a new and potentially more serious injury to deal with. The Tigers should have more information on the right-hander's condition later this week.

Paxton (2-0) picked up the win Monday, allowing two runs on three hits and a walk over six innings against Minnesota. He struck out four.

Paxton nailed his first quality start of 2024 on Monday, getting on the board in the category after securing eight quality starts in 19 appearances last season. While he only allowed four base runners, Paxton was tagged for a pair of runs when Manuel Margot launched a two-run homer in the third to plate Austin Martin, who reached via walk. With one of baseball's best offenses behind him, Paxton seems primed to reach double-digit wins for the first time since 2019 if he can stay healthy.

Morton (1-0) didn't factor into the decision Monday, allowing four runs on five hits and five walks over 5.2 innings. He struck out four.

Morton's walks came back to bite him, with three of his four earned runs scored by players he walked on base. Most of the damage came in the fifth, when Morton opened up the inning by issuing a pair of free passes before Brandon Nimmo launched a three-run home run. Even with Monday's struggles, Morton owns a solid 3.18 ERA across 11.1 innings after blanking the White Sox in his 2024 debut.

Castillo (0-3) took the loss Monday, allowing four runs on nine hits and one walk across five innings against Toronto. He struck out six.

Castillo turned in another poor start, yielding four earned runs for a third straight appearance. The 31-year-old has endured a minor dip in velocity once again to begin 2024, dropping from 96.2 mph to 95.4 mph after sitting around 97 mph for most of his career. If there's any silver lining to his slow opening to the season, it would be that Castillo hasn't seen a dropoff in strikeout rate (10.3 K/9). He'll look to turn things around Sunday in a homestand against the Cubs.

Berrios (2-0) picked up the win Monday, allowing four hits and a walk over 6.2 scoreless innings against the Mariners. He struck out six.

Berrios was dominant Monday for his third quality start of the season, yielding no extra-base hits as part of his first scoreless outing of 2024. He got into a little trouble in the fifth inning, allowing back-to-back singles, but he then consecutively retired Josh Rojas and J.P. Crawford to get out of the jam. Of pitchers with three starts this season, Berrios ranks first in ERA (1.45). His next appearance is set to come Sunday against the Rockies.

Montgomery allowed two runs on two hits and three walks while striking out three over four innings for Triple-A Reno on Sunday.

Montgomery, who threw 60 pitches, made his debut in game action after signing with the Diamondbacks late in spring training. The goal was get through four innings and 65 pitches, so mission accomplished on both fronts for the left-hander. A normal five-day routine lines up Montgomery to throw again Friday (April 12) then next Wednesday (April 17). The pitcher earlier this spring targeted his Arizona debut for April 19, which falls outside the five-day routine, given his appearance Sunday.