MLB Player News

Verlander (shoulder) said he ramped up his throwing intensity during a 60-pitch bullpen session Friday, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.

The veteran right-hander noted that his fastball velocity in Friday's session was sitting in the low 90s. Verlander will begin the season on the injured list as he works his way back from an offseason right shoulder issue, but he continues to make steady progress in his recovery. It's not clear when he might face hitters or if he'll pitch in any Grapefruit League games.

DeSclafani (elbow) felt good after a 35-pitch bullpen session Friday, Betsy Helfand of the St. Paul Pioneer Press reports.

The veteran right-hander has been slowed by right elbow soreness, but he's building up his workload and could soon face live hitters. DeSclafani will meet with the training staff Saturday to determine the next steps in his recovery.

Elder struck out six over 3.1 innings in Thursday's Grapefruit League game against the Red Sox. He gave up one run on two hits and two walks.

The right-hander made 31 starts for Atlanta last season, but he seemed to have fallen behind Reynaldo Lopez in the battle for the fifth starter spot with Opening Day approaching. Elder's performance Thursday announced that he wasn't going down without a fight though, and he did get the start in this one while Lopez entered the game in the fifth inning. Lopez hasn't been a regular starter in the majors since 2019 and hasn't thrown more than 66 innings in either of the last two seasons, so Elder could still have a leg up based on his proven ability to handle a larger workload. Through 7.2 innings this spring, the 24-year-old Elder has a superficially shaky 7.04 ERA, but it comes with a 10:3 K:BB.

The Red Sox optioned Perales to Triple-A Worcester on Friday.

The 20-year-old was added to Boston's 40-man roster in November in order to protect him from being selected in the Rule 5 Draft, but he was never a realistic candidate to make the Opening Day roster. Perales split last season between the Single-A and High-A levels, posting a 3.91 ERA, 1.42 WHIP and 115:50 K:BB across 89.2 innings.

Gonzalez was optioned to Triple-A Worcester by the Red Sox on Friday, Pete Abraham of The Boston Globe reports.

Gonzalez was added to the 40-man roster over the winter and is one of the club's better pitching prospects, but he was always going to head back to the minors for more seasoning. The 21-year-old should open the season in Worcester's rotation.

Houck allowed one run on three hits and one walk while striking out four over three innings in Thursday's spring game against Atlanta.

Houck followed starter Nick Pivetta and looked sharp during his third Grapefruit League appearance. "He's throwing more strikes, which is important," Red Sox manager Alex Cora told Julian McWilliams of The Boston Globe. "His stuff is a little bit better compared to last year at this point." Houck, who had a 21.4 strikeout percentage in 2023, is up to 31.0 percent this spring. He had been competing for one available rotation slot, but with Lucas Giolito (elbow) out of the rotation for now, there's another slot available for Houck, who is competing with Garrett Whitlock, Josh Winckowski and Cooper Criswell.

Red Sox manager Alex Cora said Bello is one of two starters being considered for Opening Day, Julian McWilliams of The Boston Globe reports. Nick Pivetta is also a candidate to start Boston's season opener in Seattle.

Given that the Red Sox just inked Bello to a six-year contract extension, it makes sense that he's in line for a big role in 2024. Bello was the team's best starter for much of last season before tiring in September, when a sub-4.00 ERA ballooned to 4.24. In two Grapefruit League starts, the 24-year-old right-hander has allowed one run on five hits while striking out five over five innings.

Perez (finger) is listed as the Marlins' probable starter for Friday's Grapefruit League game against the Mets.

The 20-year-old exited his previous start last weekend due to a broken nail on his right middle finger, but that won't affect his availability for Friday. Perez covered 2.1 frames in that start and should continue building up his workload over the final weeks of spring training.

Freeland has increased the velocity on all of his pitches this spring, Manny Randhawa of MLB.com reports.

Freeland made his second start of the spring Tuesday and allowed only one earned run across three innings while striking out five. More importantly, he averaged 92.6 mph with his fastball, nearly three ticks higher than his average mark in 2023. Freeland has been able to throw all of his pitches with more velocity, and he credits strengthening his shoulder during the offseason as well as working on his pitch grips for the improved performance.

McKay has thrown two scoreless innings while striking out three and walking one across two outings in Grapefruit League action.

McKay got positive reviews from throwing sessions and live batting practice early this spring. He's largely carried that over to game action, though he's yet to complete more than an inning in either of his outings. McKay is fighting for a roster spot, and while it may not come on Opening Day, he looks to be in line to impact the Rays' big-league roster at some point in the campaign.