MLB Player News

Holliday (hand) said Saturday that he has been cleared to resume throwing a baseball, Andy Kostka of TheBaltimoreBanner.com reports.

Holliday was cleared for fielding and one-handed swings earlier this week after getting the stitches removed from his hand, and he's now added throwing to his regimen. Assuming he continues to progress without any issues, he'll begin taking regular swings Thursday as part of a plan to have him back in Baltimore's lineup around mid-April.

Flaherty allowed a run on a hit and a walk across two innings of work in Friday's Grapefruit League game against the Phillies. He struck out four.

Flaherty has been eased in to action so far this spring, as he's logged just three innings across two Grapefruit League appearances so far, but he shouldn't need much work to get ready for the year. The veteran righty is coming off an up-and-down 2025 campaign in which he posted a 4.64 ERA across 161 regular-season innings but also struck out 188 batters. Flaherty had a much sharper 3.17 ERA in 2024, his first season with the Tigers before getting traded to the Dodgers at the deadline that year. He should slot into the middle of Detroit's rotation in 2026, potentially right behind Tarik Skubal and new addition Framber Valdez.

Baez went 1-for-2 with a two-run home run in Friday's Grapefruit League game against the Phillies.

Baez has now gone 4-for-7 through three spring games, and his home run Friday was his first of the exhibition slate. Earlier this month, the veteran was suspended from the World Baseball Classic for testing positive for marijuana in March 2023. The WBC's governing body classifies marijuana as a banned substance, but Major League Baseball does not, so his status with the Tigers is unaffected. Baez looks like Detroit's primary shortstop to begin the year, though he could also move into a utility role and play some in center, particularly if top prospect Kevin McGonigle makes a push for the role at short. The 33-year-old had something of a bounce-back campaign in 2025, but his fantasy value overall has been trending down across his four seasons with the Tigers.

Baty (hamstring) will start at first base and bat fourth in Saturday's Grapefruit League game against the Nationals.

Baty tweaked his hamstring during an offseason workout shortly before the start of spring training, but he's now been cleared to begin playing in exhibition games. Now that he's healthy, the 26-year-old is expected to compete with top prospect Carson Benge for the starting job in right field this spring. If Baty loses the battle, he will likely still make the Opening Day roster as a utility man.

Stowers will undergo medical imaging after being scratched from Saturday's Grapefruit League lineup due to hamstring tightness, Christina De Nicola of MLB.com reports.

Stowers should be considered day-to-day for now, but if it's any sort of strain, it could jeopardize the outfielder's availability for Opening Day. The 28-year-old has gone 1-for-6 with two walks and two strikeouts in his limited action so far this spring.

Walls (oblique) will start at shortstop and bat seventh in Saturday's Grapefruit League game against the Tigers, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

Walls was slated to make his spring debut last weekend before being scratched due to oblique tightness. The issue didn't set him back much, however, and Walls still has plenty of time to ramp up for Opening Day assuming no further delays. Walls' 2025 season was cut short when he underwent sports hernia surgery in September.

Rafaela is in the lineup for Saturday's Grapefruit League game against the Twins, Tim Healey of The Boston Globe reports.

Rafaela was involved in a scary collision with teammate Roman Anthony on Friday as the two players tracked a flyball to left-center field, which left both players down for a brief period of time. Anthony got the wind knocked out of him, but both players stayed in the game and will start Saturday's contest. Impressively, Rafaela later homered against Atlanta ace Chris Sale in the third inning, Rafaela's second home run of the spring.

Anthony said he just got the wind knocked out of him in a collision with teammate Ceddanne Rafaela during Friday's Grapefruit League game against Atlanta, Ian Browne of MLB.com reports.

It was a rather ugly incident that left both players down and drew the training staff onto the field, but both Anthony and Rafaela stayed in the game and are right back in there for Saturday's exhibition, per Tim Healey of The Boston Globe. Through five spring games, Anthony has gone 3-for-16 with a double and four strikeouts. He is primed to serve as Boston's leadoff hitter to begin 2026.

Nola gave up one run on two hits in two innings during Friday's Grapefruit League game against Miami. He struck out two.

It was a decent spring debut for Nola, who fired 20 pitches for strikes among his 31 offerings and induced six swings and misses. The 32-year-old right-hander got his fastball velocity up to 92.9 mph, which is an encouraging figure after he averaged just 91.4 mph amidst an injury-plagued 2025 campaign. Nola is hoping to rebound for the Phillies in 2026 -- he turned in a career-worst 6.01 ERA and 1.35 WHIP covering 17 regular-season starts last year.

Pepiot allowed one unearned run on one hit and two walks in two innings during Friday's Grapefruit League game against Toronto. He struck out two.

Pepiot showed some signs of rust in his first spring outing, throwing just 19 of his 32 pitches for strikes. The right-hander's fastball velocity topped out at just 94.6 mph as well after averaging 95.2 mph in 2025, so he'll be looking to round into form in the coming weeks. Though he did manage a strong 3.41 ERA and 1.12 WHIP across 16 home starts at hitter-friendly Steinbrenner Field last regular season, Pepiot is still likely looking forward to the Rays moving back to pitcher-friendly Tropicana Field in 2026.