MLB Player News

Maeda (elbow) threw 13 pitches in a scoreless inning with a hit allowed and strikeout in his spring debut Saturday. He reached 90.3 mph with his fastball. "Just a relief to be able to come back scoreless," Maeda told MLB.com.

Maeda hadn't thrown a competitive pitch since August of 2021 before undergoing Tommy John surgery. He hopes to reach 92-93 mph with his fastball, but velocity hasn't been a big part of his arsenal (90.5 mph in 2021). The Twins will slowly ramp him back up this spring, but the larger question is if the Twins will use a six-man rotation in April to ease Maeda back into action once the regular season begins.

Kaprielian (shoulder) will throw a live batting practice Sunday, Martin Gallegos of MLB.com reports.

Kaprielian has a long injury history, most recently undergoing shoulder surgery in October. He appears to be trending in the right direction and has time to be ready by Opening Day if all goes well. He's expected to throw at least two live batting practice sessions before pitching in the Cactus League.

Rodriguez is slated to start Sunday's Grapefruit League game against the Orioles, Chris McCosky of The Detroit News reports.

The start will be Rodriguez's spring debut, and the lefty will be looking to rebound after a tumultuous 2022 debut in Detroit. He made only 17 starts for the Tigers as he missed significant time due to personal reasons. Rodriguez logged a respectable 4.05 ERA in those starts, though he only struck out 72 batters across 91 innings, giving him a 7.1 K/9. He had a 10.6 K/9 a year earlier with Boston, so he'll be looking for an improvement in that area this season as the leader of Detroit's staff.

Taillon changed the grip on his slider over the offseason, making the pitch more of a "sweeper," Jordan Bastian of MLB.com reports.

Last season, Taillon used his slider just under 19 percent of the time, making it his second-most popular pitch behind the fastball. The righty also mixed in a curve, a cutter, a sinker and a changeup, giving him a fairly deep arsenal. The Cubs liked what they saw, inking Taillon to a four-year, $68 million contract back in December. He figures to slot in as the No. 2 pitcher behind Marcus Stroman once the regular season gets underway.

Paxton (lat) will start Friday's spring training game against the Twins, Chris Cotillo of The Springfield Republican reports.

Paxton is reportedly healthy heading into camp, and he'll get the chance to prove it next week. He's made a grand total of seven starts over the last three seasons while dealing with multiple injuries, including Tommy John surgery and most recently a lat strain. The veteran lefty owns a strong 3.59 career ERA, but between his long layoff and his age (34), it's hard to have confidence that he'll get back to anything close to peak form.

Rogers added a sinker to his repertoire this offseason while also focusing on cleaning up his mechanics, Paige Leckie of MLB.com reports.

"I'm in a lot better spot mechanically and mentally than last year," Rogers said Thursday. "I really went into the offseason kind of fixing a few mechanical problems that I was honestly searching all year for last year. ... Going through what I went through last year, it really helped me as far as my mental game [goes], being at rock bottom, [which was] something I had never gone through before." After a rough 2022, the southpaw is looking to regain the form that saw him post a 2.64 ERA and 20.1 percent K%-BB% over 133 big-league innings in 2021. Rogers is expected to begin the season in the Miami rotation, but his leash could be a short one if he stumbles out of the gate.

Bello (forearm) will throw off a mound Sunday, Ian Browne of MLB.com reports.

Bello has been playing catch this week after he was shut down for a week following a bout of tightness in his forearm. Sunday's mound session is expected to indicate if the tightness is a non-issue. The right-hander is competing for a spot in the rotation.

Houck will start next Thursday against against the Phillies, Ian Browne of MLB.com reports.

This will be the first time Houck pitches in game action since undergoing back surgery last September. He's in the mix for a rotation spot but could eventually serve as a multi-inning reliever, if Boston's projected starters remain healthy.

The Pirates are planning to use Oviedo as a starter in 2023, Rob Biertemptfel of The Athletic reports.

Oviedo has gotten most of his big-league experience as a reliever, though he made seven starts in Pittsburgh to close out 2022 after being acquired by the team at the trade deadline. He posted a solid 3.23 ERA with 28 strikeouts across 30 innings in that span, and he is likely to make starts at some point in 2023. For the time being, he's on the outside looking in for a regular rotation spot, but he should be among the top candidates to fill in if injury or poor performance requires the rotation to be shuffled.

Sanchez (shoulder) is not expected to be ready for game action until the summer, Jon Heyman of the New York Post reports.

Sanchez underwent arthroscopic shoulder surgery in October, and has seen his development stalled by injuries -- particularly over the last couple of seasons. He's expected to start throwing bullpens soon and also reportedly got in significantly better shape over the offseason, but Miami is going to take things slowly with the 24-year-old. There's still reason for optimism in the long term, but Sanchez offers just as much risk as he does reward for 2023, if not more.